“You can be good at technology and still like fashion and art. You can do it your way, on your terms. ”
— Marissa Mayer, Yahoo CEO
“It’s in Apple’s DNA that technology alone is not enough. Technology married with liberal arts, married with the humanities, that is what yields us the result that makes our hearts sing.”
— Steve Jobs, Co-Founder and Apple CEO ( iPad 2 Launch in March 2011)
This week’s post wraps up my current series here on WordPress. Over these last few weeks, I let you peek inside my ‘trep toolbox and inside my proverbial to-do list re: workflows and tools I use/plan to use for increased productivity, performance, and online visibility. Today’s entrepreneur needs to balance humanity and technology and reboot, so that he/she can sustain momentum, step up and lead, flip the script as needed, and have a real impact. Especially with all the hoopla about net neutrality.
Technology impacts our lives regularly now, from smartphones and social media to wearables, and everything in between.
What separates the digital immigrant from the digital native?
The answer lies in how one approaches technology and its potential to shape a person’s digital citizenship and spur change.
Here’s what I wrote about digital immigrant educators and mavericks like myself, in my soon to be published textbook on Autism intervention in the iEra:
“They understood and embraced the power and potential of innovation through digital citizenship as a way of life, not just a way to harness technology to accomplish tasks for greater productivity. Each of them started me on my journey towards fully realized digital citizenship, which should be the professional development goal of every educator and service provider in the 21st century classroom and workplace.
Being a seasoned Apple™ technology expert and subsequent iPad Evangelist taught me the value of using digital visual supports to tap into the inner landscape of children with Autism and special needs. It also taught me the value of seeking out multi-sensory learning experiences and then providing them for others. That’s why I advocate for the combining of toys and tech in treatment for a truly holistic approach to enhancing working and episodic memory.
I learned that designing teachable moments that promote what we now refer to as digital citizenship must involve the synthesis of design, functionality, and portability. I learned that digital citizenship is as much an attitude, a way of life, as it is a skill set in need of steady cultivation for future success; professionally and personally.”
Honing one’s digital citizenship and tech savvy go hand in hand in the startup arena, where it’s all about streamlining, wearing many hats, and using tech to maximize efficiency and productivity.
That’s why I love my swiss-army-knife entrepreneurial tool of choice, my iPad; something I wrote about extensively in my business book, The NICE Reboot:
“A tech gadget’s greatest selling point is its customization feature. It resides within each App, in terms of the hardware and user interface, which you customize by tweaking the settings button on the control panel. It also resides in each App’s toolbar, which can often be tweaked by the individual user at any time. This allows for better integration of the hardware and software portions of the mobile device.”
So what’s on my tech radar in the iEra?
What do I recommend entrepreneurs consider, try out, and spread the word about?
Here are 4 Apple™ related tech tools I’ve used and found both customizable and quite helpful; the two reasons I’ll use any kind of technology to begin with!
1. Kindle App for iPad: Used for Content Curation
I remember getting one of the first Kindles and being very impressed. But I was blown away when I started using the Kindle App on my iPad! Reading has made a real comeback, thanks to Amazon’s Kindle and Kindle App. From reading all kinds of books to Emailed PDFs of proposals, I can both “power up” and “power down” as needed; learning, growing, and traveling to far away lands without ever leaving my chair. Best of all, Kindle has some cool tricks that makes for a truly customizable reading experience!
2. iMazing for Mac (Windows version was released 2/6/15): Used for Productivity
Upgrading our devices, and/or their operating systems, are necessary evils. Thanks to iMazing (formerly DiskAid), I can easily and pretty much painlessly transfer my data (Apps, music, SMS, Contacts, Calls, Photos) and even remember where I put which App on my device. iMazing allows me to literally recreate my previous setup either via “backup” or “cloning” by using a snapshot of my home screens. Talk about the ultimate customization helper! Best of all? One free trial (15 days) works 3 times!
3. Notability for iPad (Notability for Mac also rocks!): Used for Presentations & Social Media
I have used this versatile, inexpensive, and visually appealing App since it first came out around 3 years ago, and still give it rave reviews! It’s a robust, comprehensive virtual project manager. Notability is a note taker, audio-recorder, PDF editor, Infographics creator, and mind-mapping generator; essential for us multi-taskers! There are many ways to use it to customize lists, notes, presentations, and documents, making life much less complicated and much more portable! Best of all? Use iCloud to sync across devices!
4. Desk for Mac, Desktop Publishing Client for OS X Yosemite: Used for Blogging/Social Media and Content Creation
Desk launched a few months ago and was updated on 2/19/15 and all I can say is…wow! As a multi-platform blogger (WordPress, Tumblr, The Huffington Post) I can truly appreciate navigating the easy user-interface, the easy drag and drop (for pics/video) mode, the easy text editing (word count AND character count included), and the fact that I can quickly publish. I enjoy the vintage yet modern “feel” which lets me concentrate (a very uncluttered space appears when I start typing…a nice change from other platforms!) and customize both my blogpost experience and the actual blogposts! Best of all? I can export my writing as a PDF, RTF, or DocX file!
All products and projects are the sum of their parts, which is why using technology helps me manage all the “moving parts” I encounter on a daily basis as an entrepreneur. The tech sector may resemble the Wild West of yesteryear, but it’s important to understand this point, which is excerpted from The NICE Reboot:
“Mobile technology is a product of creativity, functionality, productivity, undercutting prices, and marketing attempts. That’s why there are free, paid, discounted, and holiday themed versions of prototypes. Their success is determined by the fast-paced roller coaster ride in which they are unveiled, hawked, and finally purchased by the consumer. And if the consumer isn’t tech savvy to begin with, the entire process becomes more confusing and frustrating.”
So what’s a digital immigrant to do, to prepare for the future of work?
Remember what Elizabeth Bennett tells Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice?
“Perhaps you should take your aunt’s advice and practice?”
Best,
Penina
The NICE Reboot Book Blog on Entrepreneurship in the iEra 