Smart Business & Career Tips

You, the Movie

"Storytelling is the most powerful way to put ideas into the world today."

Robert McAfee Brown

By John Carlton

Have you ever wondered where the knack for finding stories and hooks — the main ingredients of any great copywriter’s bag of tricks — comes from?

Here is my insight (after a couple of decades on the advertising front lines): It comes from observing life as an ongoing movie. With characters, story angles, plot twists, and endings that arrive like punch lines.

This is how the legendary copywriters I’ve known go through their day… seeing nearly everything in terms of a movie script. It’s an unconscious habit, and wickedly effective at keeping your writing chops chugging on all cylinders.

Even the most mundane errand can be retold as a raucous tale full of shocking revelation when you put this talent to work. Nothing interesting or weird or funny gets by a top scribe.

So, when faced with clients needing killer ads… it’s easy to find, and flesh out, the stories hidden in products, campaigns, and markets. Because it’s all a movie.

Think about your own life.

No, seriously. Think about it.

Most people have trouble "seeing" themselves in the world at all. Without a mirror, they’re not even sure they exist. Their daily experiences are like watching a "monkey cam" - the filmed result of attaching a camera to the back of a chimp and letting him wander off.

It’s not a smooth, thought-out, coherent narrative. Instead, it’s jerky, chaotic, and (unless there are "happy accidents") mostly boring.

There. I’ve said it.

Most people lead boring lives.

For any savvy copywriter, that’s a tremendous advantage. All you have to do… is be the one thing your bored-to-death prospect reads today that gets his blood moving. And you’re well on your way to closing the sale.

Again, think about your life.

Consider how it has progressed in actual chapters, or acts… just like a long-running serial flick.

Maybe your story is as straightforward as childhood, adulthood, starting a biz, getting married.

Or maybe it’s more nuanced, in peculiar ways that make sense to you… but may sound exotic to outsiders. I know one guy, for example, who catalogs his past using whichever car was in his life at the time: The ancient ‘55 Buick Special (junior year in high school), the only slightly abused ‘67 Mustang (freshman year of college), the brand-spanking-new Toyota (first full-time job), the Pontiac mini-van (first kid), etc.

This guy will fry your ear with great stories, too. All starring him and his wheels.

The more precise and anchored you can be, the better your stories will become.

And the better your OWN parcel of stories is, the easier you can spot - and use - stories from the world around you when you’re writing to influence and persuade.

I was lucky to grow up in a family of storytellers. And since I was the youngest by eight years, I learned quickly to be pithy and interesting… or risk losing the attention of my audience. (Few adults have much patience for meandering stories with no point, even from their own kids.)

The trick is to focus on short, crisp, rollicking tales that get to the payoff quickly. With a beginning, a middle, and an end. Or, like a good joke, with a premise, a set-up, and a punch line.

In fact, I suggest you start crafting your tales - both the personal and professional - in three brisk sentences.

They can be serious or funny or rueful or just hmmm -inducing snippets of action.

But they must be complete stories.

So start editing, with an audience in mind. For example: "Suzy and I, at 17, started out convinced no one had ever felt a love so wild and crazy before. However, that dizzy high of shared hormonal bliss… was cruelly followed by heartache and misery when her attention shifted away from me. And I ended up as a sad, sad boy, convinced no one had ever felt such pain before."

Set-up, plot synopsis, and tidy ending with a hook (the "completed circle" of the phrase convinced no one had ever felt...). You can go into more specifics (should your audience crave it), but you’ve laid out the story very efficiently here.

If the point you were trying to make… say, in a sales piece… was that you’ve been around the block emotionally, you scored. Any further detail would muddy up the yarn.

Here’s another one: "I interviewed for my first real job right out of college. Cinched up my tie, answered every jackass question seriously, shook hands like a candidate. Got the gig, hated every second of my life for six months, never quite caught my breath, got fired, and happily collected unemployment checks for the next three months."

Or, here’s a tidbit from my own biography: "We were vandals as kids, mostly ineffective and innocent, but occasionally stunning models of anarchy. Asked an engineer, once, how many railroad ties his cow-catcher could handle… and the next day, put all those plus one on the tracks. Derailed the train… and our genuine horror of success was deepened by the realization we’d better watch our butts if we were gonna engage with the adult world like that."

Three sentences. Yeah, long ones. But three coherent, grammatically correct sentences. A complete story, with entry point, action, and a quasi-moral ending.

Consider how looooooooooooong I could have dragged out that tale, and been absolutely justified in doing so. Because, hey, events took place over a couple of days, and there are details of our gang and the neighborhood and the derailment that are fascinating.

Just freaking fascinating.

But longer stories should be told only if you’re invited to tell them. As in, writing your thousand-page biography and selling it. Anyone buys, it’s a tacit agreement to put up with every long-winded saga you’ve got up your sleeve.

Okay… now it’s your turn.

Leave a three-sentence story from your life in the new "comments" section on ETR’s website here.

Don’t be shy. We’re all trying new stuff this year. (Or should be, because the business landscape is changing so dramatically and rapidly. The best marketers I know are trashing old limitations, stretching new boundaries, waking up and engaging the world on fresh terms.)

I promise to read every submission. I’ll even toss a few comments into the pile myself, when warranted.

And I can guarantee you this innocent little exercise will sharpen your chops as a storyteller. Some of you are already damn good, I’m sure… while others can use a lot of work. But we ALL need to remember how critical stories are for communication. (As in, communicating your sales message in a way that grabs attention, persuades, and closes.)

C’mon. Three lines. That forces you to be concise, to consider every single word carefully, and to crunch often-rambling experiences into tidy little narratives with a point.

Just like a top writer does it.

I’m not looking for funny. Not looking for tears. Not looking for anything profound.

Just a story.

For some writers, this will be a true test, because you aren’t used to pushing yourself. However, the best already do.

Good luck.

[Ed. Note: John Carlton is an expert copywriter, a pioneer in online marketing, and a teacher of killer sales copy. Get the details here on how to get your hands on the kick-ass secrets of the world’s smartest, happiest, and wealthiest marketers. And be sure to read his insights, tactics, and advice on copywriting and marketing at his blog.

]This article appears courtesy of Early To Rise, the Internet’s most popular health, wealth, and success e-zine. For a complimentary subscription, visit http://www.earlytorise.com.

Bring Your Story Home to Your Reader

By John Carlton

Let's go deeper into storytelling, what d'ya say? My last article in ETR ("You, The Movie") seems to have hit a nerve.

In that article, I discussed the importance of storytelling as a skill, especially for copywriters attempting to persuade prospects to become customers. The brief exercise I suggested was aimed at sharpening your ability to weave a pithy tale... and the response was overwhelming. At last count, more than 160 folks posted their efforts in the new "comments" section on ETR's website. (And I read every single one. Thanks, again, to everyone who participated. It was fun, wasn't it?)

Today, if you're up for it, I have another exercise that will help hone your writing chops to dangerous "street-wise salesmanship" levels.

But first... let's do some triage.

In case you missed it, I reviewed specific submissions in the comments section. But, in general, if there was one glaring fault in the three-sentence stories that were posted, it was the lack of a clear punch line. This is the most common error rookies make (and it's an easy fix, once you get hip to advanced storytelling tactics). Many of the narratives sort of "floated," without moorings. And while meaningful to the writer, the tales remained mysteries to the reader.

Great storytelling sucks people into your world. This is especially important when one of your ultimate goals is to use your writing to sell stuff. (Most legendary ads involve some type of storytelling.)

Even the most rollicking yarn can put people to sleep if it's too complex, goes off on too many tangents, or doesn't tickle the reader's short attention span.

And most people are not natural storytellers... so they sometimes ramble off on quirky paths, repeating themselves, unable to clearly explain plot points, and bombarding the listener with irrelevant details. "Did I tell you about the UFO that attacked us? No? It was Tuesday last week. No, wait, it was Wednesday. Yeah. It must have been Wednesday, because I was headed to IHOP to meet Suzy for waffles. You know they have specials every Wednesday, don't you?"

This is how people get strangled.

In my long experience trying to force folks to tell better stories, the first task is nearly always to trim the excess verbiage and fluff.

The outline to follow is: the set-up (the tease of the payoff to come)... plot elements (relevant details)... action (the fulfillment of the tease)... and punch line.

Focus on your reason for telling your story... which could vary from pure entertainment to providing insight to persuading someone to buy. When you're done, you want your listener or reader to FEEL something. Happiness ("Aww, the puppy got rescued")... alarm ("My God, I'm gonna keep a loaded gun by my bedside from here on out")... astonishment ("My neighbors are doing what at night?")... or, yes, even greed ("Hey! I want that kind of deal too!").

The process can also be described biologically. Like this: foreplay... climax... resolution.

Stories, like sex, benefit from a focus on the goal. The less extraneous interruption, the better.

In other words: It's not about you at all, even if you're the star of the story.

It's about your reader.

Ideally, he will "see" himself in your story. Or feel like he's temporarily privy to the world you create with your words - a world he would not otherwise have access to.

Have you ever read a story to a child? Once they get a taste for it, just saying, "Once upon a time..." will glaze their eyes over, as they eagerly prepare themselves to be transported to a world far different than their own.

The concept of "transporting" is critical. You're driving the story, and it's your responsibility to keep it on the road. Your reader will abandon you at the first hint that you don't know where you're going. And he'll despise you for getting his hopes up for a good tale if you then dash them with a feeble punch line.

That's why striving for pithy, concise stories is so important for writers. Set-up... plot elements... action... punch line.

And the three-liner is classic. One of the best: "I've been poor. And I've been rich. Rich is better."

No need for any details. In this example, the words "rich" and "poor" carry their own payload of emotional backstory with them, because, in this context, nearly everyone will have a feeling about being rich and a feeling about being poor. A long-winded rant about HOW poor you were, or HOW rich you became, is excessive.

Concise, memorable stories pack a punch.

Even better, there is a segue into the life of the reader in that three-line beauty. "Rich is better" may seem like an obvious statement, but coupled with the set-up lines, it delivers a strong message that smacks of truth. You want to hear what else this guy has to say.

The flow of a quick story, told with feeling, is always ripe with implications for the reader.

However, good ad copy doesn't rest on implications. It's got to move quickly to specifics.

So here's a simple tactic from my own bag of tricks that has helped bring many a story "home" to readers: First, you tell your tale, aiming for the kind of breathless prose that makes your prospect afraid to exhale for fear of missing a delicious detail.

Then, you deliver the punch line or the moral or just the ending. Don't try any clever transitions back into your sales pitch. Instead, you merely say: "And here's what that means for YOU..."

When reading fables to kids, any attempt to explain the moral would ruin the transcendent pleasure of listening to them. Ideally, you want the ending to rattle around in their heads, while they mull over the ethical implications and come up with their own conclusion. (Kids hate it when adults wag fingers and try to force lessons on them.)

But when you're writing to adults, you no longer have that luxury. Especially with ad copy. Adults are so numb to incoming data, they will hear even a great story, store it away somewhere in their cluttered brain, and move on to the next volley of arriving stimuli without coming to any conclusion whatsoever.

So, as the copywriter, it's your job to complete the thought.

You just continue the thread, going deeper into your sales message.

"I've been poor. And I've been rich. Rich is better. Here's what that means for you: You can continue on with your life believing that 'money can't buy happiness,' if that makes you feel better. But I'm here to tell you that having a pile of extra cash is actually a fabulous feeling... and your life will get better almost immediately. Plus, since I've already done the hard work of going from clean broke to filthy rich, I know all the shortcuts... and I'll share them with you..."

Et cetera.

So, if you're up for it... here's your next assignment: Tell a short, three-sentence story (using the set-up, plot, action, and punch line outline). And then write a one- or two-line segue that brings the story home to your reader. Leave it in the "comments" section on ETR's website here. 

You're allowed to be nonsensical for this exercise. In other words, you don't actually have to be selling anything. You can make it all up.

Just think - really, really hard - about how the punch line of your story MIGHT lead into a sales message.

Be concise, and bring it home to the reader. That's the key to world-class sales messages.

You cannot "fail" at this exercise, because you're just warming up your chops.

You don't learn to ride without hopping into the saddle. And it's okay to fall off, as long as you climb back on.

Again, I'll read every submitted story, and comment as needed.

[Ed. Note: Think storytelling doesn't matter? Think again. John Carlton is an expert copywriter, a pioneer in online marketing, and a teacher of killer sales copy - and he's honed the storytelling craft to a fine point. From John, you can also discover how to get your hands on the kick-ass secrets of the world's smartest, happiest, and wealthiest marketers.

And be sure to read his insights, tactics, and advice on copywriting and marketing at his blog.]

This article appears courtesy of Early To Rise, the Internet’s most popular health, wealth, and success e-zine. For a complimentary subscription, visit http://www.earlytorise.com.

Scheduling Stress Breaks

   By Michael Masterson

If you work as hard as I do, you will be forever on the verge of a nervous breakdown unless you do something about it. One of the best things you can do is schedule at least two (and preferably three or four) stress breaks every working day.

A stress break is not a stress break unless:

1. You get at least 10 feet away from your desk.
2. You are completely distracted by it.
3. It lasts at least five minutes.
4. It relaxes you.
5. It energizes you.

If you have good control over your daily schedule, you can plan stress breaks between tasks. Ideally, you’ll want a five-minute break every 90 to 120 minutes. If your schedule is too frenetic or unpredictable to do it that way, use an egg timer and simply break away from whatever you are doing when it rings.

Suggested stress-reducing activities:

1. Stretching
2. Yoga
3. Billiards
4. A walk in the sun
5. Meditation

What will NOT reduce stress?

1. Lifting weights
2. Any strenuous exercise
3. Talking about work
4. (Probably) talking about anything
5. Sex

You will notice that the stress-reducing activities suggested above are solo ventures. That is not a coincidence.

This is something you can start today. If you think you are too busy to start today, you really, REALLY need to start today. If you have no problem with the idea of taking stress breaks, you don’t have enough stress in your life because you are not working hard enough. Get to work.

This article appears courtesy of Early To Rise, the Internet’s most popular health, wealth, and success e-zine. For a complimentary subscription, visit http://www.earlytorise.com.

 

GizmoCall.com-Possible Zero Cost Phone Calls

January 30th, 2007 According to Michael Robertonson of GizmoProject making phone calls from a computer should be as easy as typing a URL. So,  with the release of  GizmoCall.com - a new service from SIPphone - it is. Typing http://gizmocall.com/18005551212 is all it takes. And it's not just easy, but free. You can get 10 minutes of free calling per day to call just about any phone number in the world (sorry Antarctica). Before Gizmo Call, you had to download a big program, install it, register for an account and buy calling minutes. With Gizmo Call, you just install a Flash plug-in into your web browser and begin talking. With Gizmo Call, people can call a wide range of numbers and devices, but there's a more clandestine strategy at work. Gizmo Call lets you dial numbers for almost any country - even mobile phones - by typing them into the number field at gizmocall.com or simply typing a gizmocall.com URL into a browser. This will take you to the GizmoCall.com web site and load the flash plugin (if you don't have it), and you're ready to talk. It's the easiest way to initiate a call. Talking for 10 minutes per day is free to registered users with unregistered users getting 5 minutes per day. Longer calls require the purchase of Call Out minutes which provides a low cost way to do calling. There are many calls you can make with no per minute charge whatsoever: Gizmo Project users, GoogleTalk, Windows Live, enum numbers, GUPS or any SIP number. You can also use GizmoCall.com to call WiFi devices like the Nokia n80ie and n800. International users now even have access to previously blocked US 800/888 numbers with no per minute charge. We do charge $4 for custom CallerID which you can set so that Gizmo calls will look like they are coming from your mobile or office phone.

England to put up X-ray cameras on Lampposts that can see you NUDE!!!

The Government is considering installing X-ray cameras on lampposts to spot armed terrorists and other criminals. However, officials acknowledged that it would be highly controversial as the cameras can "see" through clothing.

read more | digg story

Expensive specs made me see an opportunity

This is an inspiring article from The Sunday Times by Rachel Bridge How I Made It: James Murray Wells, Founder of Glasses Direct

:BECOMING a young entrepreneur was not something James Murray Wells planned. Born and brought up in Gloucestershire and sent to boarding school at the age of nine, he dreamt of getting a job in the theatre as a director or manager. But while at university studying English he decided he ought to pursue a less risky profession such as law. The problem was that, deep down, he knew it was not what he really wanted. “I was racking my brains for a business idea or an opportunity that would save me from law school,” said Murray Wells. And then the answer came to him when he had to buy a new pair of glasses. “They were £150 and I thought it was way too much. What the hell was I paying for? They were just a bit of plastic and a bit of glass,” he said. “It didn’t make sense.” He started researching the market while he was supposed to be revising for his finals, looking up market reports in the university library and trying to track down manufacturers through the internet. He eventually found a lab in Lancashire that agreed to make a pair of glasses from the prescription Murray Wells sent in. One week later they arrived — with a bill for £5. “That was the wholesale cost. It just shocked me because I had paid £150 for the same thing,” he said. So Murray Wells borrowed £1,000 on his student loan and, working from the front room of his parents’ house, hired a student web developer at £6 an hour to help him design a website where customers could enter their prescriptions and order spectacles. The website went live in July 2004 with all prescription glasses priced at £15. Murray Wells started publicising his service by handing out flyers in the street. He said: “I used to jump on trains at Bristol Temple Meads and put flyers on the tables and get off the train before it went. So people had two hours to sit there and read about Glasses Direct.” Within days Murray Wells was receiving so many calls he had to get friends to answer the phone. “At one point I had eight friends working from my home and my mum was the staff canteen in the kitchen,” he said. “We were laying cables into my parents’ spare bedroom.” Read Full Article Here

Unleash your inner genius: Ten great ways to boost your personal creativity

By Paul Sloane


Let’s say you are wrestling with a tough issue – maybe at work, at home, with your children or in your social life. You have been stuck for a while and you can’t seem to make a breakthrough. You want to come up with some really creative ideas. What can you do? Here are ten great practical ways to boost your inventiveness and to crack the problem:

1. Ask why, why? Ask, "why has this issue arisen?” Come up with six different reasons and for each of them ask, “why did this happen?” Keep asking why for each cause. This helps you to better understand the different reasons why this is a problem and so in turn you will see different possible solutions.

2. Sleep on it. Ponder the issue and all its aspects for some time and then put it out of your mind. Get a good night’s sleep. The subconscious mind goes to work and often you come up with great ideas the next day.

3. Talk it over with someone who has nothing to do with the situation. They will often ask basic questions or make seemingly silly suggestions that prompt good ideas. Two heads are better than one but people who are too close to the issue will often come up with the same ideas as you, so try an outsider.

4. Ask how some celebrity would tackle the issue. What would Steve Jobs do? Or Bob Geldof , or Richard Branson, or Salvador Dali or Margaret Thatcher or Madonna or Sherlock Holmes? Take each individual’s approach to its extremes and it will likely give you some radical solutions.

5. Pick up any object at random and say to yourself, “this item contains the key to solving the problem.” Then force some ideas. Try this with several different objects and you will have a selection of radical and inventive ideas.

6. Use similes. Try to think of a different problem in another walk of life that is like your problem. Say you want your staff at work to try new ways of working. You might imagine that this is like getting your children to eat vegetables. List various methods you might use with your children to encourage or persuade them to try vegetables. Then go through the list and then see if any of the ideas can be converted into things you can try at work.

7. Imagine an ideal solution in a world where there are no constraints –e.g., you can use any resource you want. Now work back from that ideal and challenge each of the constraints that is holding you back from achieving it. Many of the obstacles can be overcome when you take this approach.

8. Open a dictionary and take any noun at random. Write down six attributes of that noun – so for tree you might write - root, branch, family, apple, trunk and tall. Then force some links between the word or its attributes and the problem in order to come up with fresh ideas. You will be surprised at how well this works – for individuals or in a group.

9. Ponder the issue and then go for a walk around an art gallery or museum. The range of external stimuli will help you conceive plenty of new ideas.

10. Draw a picture of the situation showing the people and the issues in simple cartoon style. Put it up on the wall and then imagine how the story could develop. Think of it as a cartoon strip. Many people’s brains work better in images than in words or numbers so this can lead to fantastic ideas.

These methods work for individuals and for groups. Try them and see what suits you best. Above all keep reminding yourself – there are some great solutions for my problem – I haven’t found the right one yet but I will!

Paul Sloane runs Creative Leadership and Ideas Workshops to help boost innovation. He is the author of many books. His website is http://www.destination-innovation.com

Act To Create It

by Jack Canfield, America's Success Coach

The thing that most separates winners from losers in life, is that winners take action. If you want to live your dreams, not only must you decide what you want, turn your dream into measurable goals, break those goals down into specific action steps, and visualize and affirm your desired outcomes — you must start taking action.

I recommend making the commitment to do something every day in at least three different areas of your life that moves you in the direction of your dreams. If one of your goals is physical fitness, make a commitment to do some sort of exercise — aerobics, weight training, stretching — four to five times a week for a minimum of twenty minutes. I read recently that if you simply go for a 30 minute walk four times a week, that would put you in the top 1% of those people getting physical exercise! If your goal is financial independence, start saving and investing a portion of your income every month with no exceptions. If your goal is to write a book, write for a minimum of one hour every day.

Don’t Let FEAR Stop You
Most people never get what they want because they let their fears stop them. They are afraid of making a mistake, looking foolish, getting ripped off, being rejected, being hurt, wasting their time, and feeling uncomfortable.

Fear is self-created by imagining catastrophic consequences that have yet to happen. It is all in your mind. In fact, you can actually scare yourself by imagining negative and harmful images. But simply stop the catastrophic thoughts and images, and the fear goes away.

Rejection Is a Myth
One of the biggest fears that stops people from asking for support, guidance, advice, money, a date, a job, the sale, or anything else is the fear of rejection. In fact, it’s been known to literally paralyze people. They become tongue-tied and refuse to reach for the phone or get up and walk across the room. They break out in a sweat at the mere thought of asking for what they want.

I have come to realize that the whole concept of rejection is false — that rejection doesn’t really exist. Think about it for a moment. If you asked someone to join you for dinner, and they said no, you could tell yourself that you had been rejected. But think about it. Did you have anyone to eat dinner with before you asked them? No! Did you have anyone to eat dinner with after you asked them? No! Did your life really get worse? No. It stayed the same!

Act As If
One of the secrets of success is to start acting like a success before you are one. Act as if. If you had already achieved your dream, what kinds of clothes would you be wearing? How would you act? How would you treat others? Would you tithe a portion of your income to your church or favorite charities? Would you have more self-confidence? Would you take more time to spend with your loved ones?

I suggest that you begin to do those things now. When I decided that I wanted to be an “international” consultant, I immediately went and applied for a passport, bought an international clock that told me what time it was anywhere in the world, printed business cards with the words “International Self-Esteem and Peak Performance Consultant,” and decided I would like to first go to Australia. I bought a poster of the Sidney Opera House and placed it on my refrigerator. Within one month, I received an invitation to speak in Sidney and Brisbane. Since then, I have spoken and conducted trainings in over 20 countries and continue to expand my business around the globe.

Start acting as if you already have everything you want. Most people think that if they have a lot of money, they could do the things they want to do, and they would be much happier. In fact, the reverse is true. If you start by creating a state of happiness and abundance, then do the things you are inspired to do from that state of being, you will end up having all the things you ultimately desire.

You may not be able to fill your closets with expensive Italian suits and designer clothing, but why not invest in one or two really great outfits, so that when you do need them, they are there. When you dress like you have already made it, you will look the part, and successful people will naturally be attracted to you and invite you to participate with them.

The Law of Attraction states that you will attract to you those things that match your state of being. If you focus on having gratitude for what you do have, you will feel rich, and you will attract more abundance into your life. If you focus on what youdon’t have, you will send out a message of lack and you will attract more lack into your life.

For more on The Law of Attraction, I highly recommend watching The Secret, a ground-breaking, feature-length movie presentation. The Secret reveals how to apply this powerful knowledge to your life in every area from health to wealth, to success and relationships.

Jack Canfield, America’s Success Coach, is the founder and co-creator of the billion-dollar book brand Chicken Soup for the Soul and a leading authority on Peak Performance. If you're ready to jump-start your life, make more money, and have more fun and joy in all that you do, get your FREE success tips from Jack Canfield now at www.JackCanfield.com

Emotional Freedom Techniques

Based on impressive new discoveries involving the body's subtle energies,Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) has been clinically effective in thousands of cases for
            Trauma & Abuse
            Stress and Anxiety          

          Fears & Phobias
            Depression
            Addictive Cravings
            Children's Issues
            hundreds of  Physical Symptoms including headaches,
            body pains and breathing difficulties.
            

Properly applied, over 80% achieve either noticeable improvement or complete cessation of the problem. 

              ...Often works where  nothing else will.
              ...Usually rapid, long lasting and gentle.
              ...No drugs or equipment involved.
              ...Easily learned by anyone.
              ...Can be self applied

Download a free manual

Electric

They called him ‘Electric’. Later I found out that there were two pieces to that name—one public, one private. The public name referred to his ability to dance to a popular tune of the same name. The second secret of the name was the fact that he was able to throw the campus of our private boarding school in Jamaica into chaos by plunging us into blackout because he knew which switches to pull to do just that.

I first met him through his insistence that he join my literature class. I was head of department and so I chose the students of my class based on motivation and behavior. Electric did not qualify on the second ground because his teachers said he was a troublemaker. Since I was busy he had to hang around outside my office several times before he met me. He made a passionate plea to be in my classes. He said the other teachers did not want him to do well. When I asked why my classes he said I made the students laugh.

“When you make learning fun, people learn easily,” he said gravely as if he were some educational expert.

On a hunch I took him into my class but I warned him that I could send him to another class if he breached my code of conduct.

One of the things I impressed on my students was the need to own their own copy of the five essential texts. I gave a deadline for students to have the texts by the end of the month.

One evening my wife who was in charge of the library came home troubled. She had caught one of the students stealing books. She, however, was sympathetic once she heard his story. He pleaded with her not to report the matter to the principal because he said with his record he was bound to be expelled. That student was ‘Electric”. He has stolen the texts for my course.

We made a decision not to report the matter. Between us we had sample copies of the texts from the publishers which we donated to “ Electric.” We also asked him not to let on where he got the books so that we would not be questioned why we gave him the books.

After this incident Electric became a model student in my class. He volunteered to lug the big ,heavy reel to reel tape recorder from its storage place in the Principal’s office every time we played the “ Julius Caesar “ recordings. He helped me pack up the tapes, set up the recorder. He was eager to carry my books and notes. When we showed the movie “ To Kill A Mockingbird” he was the one who did all the arrangements of the projector, changing the reels and so one.

Often he would follow me to my home on campus discussing the books. He knew some of the texts by heart and could quote appropriate parts easily. I found out that he used to live on the streets of Kingston and was rescued by a foreigner working in Jamaica who was paying his tuition at this exclusive school.

Electric in his own way balanced out the costs of his education. I learnt that he asked certain teachers for help with buying his shirts, others he asked for pants, shoes and other school necessities. He told me that as a street kid he knew not to ask for too much help from any one person.

Electric taught me a lot about Jamaica. One day he surprised me by telling me that I had a political mind. It was after he told me that any would be political should read “ Julius Caesar.” When I asked him about this he said,

“ Mr. D. I know who is sleeping with whom in Kingston. I wash cars to earn money. I wash cars in the rich areas. They pay more to keep me quiet because I see whose cars are parked in whose driveway early in the morning. I see who comes out to pay me. I can tell what kind of person by the way they treat me. I know *Mr. Seaga and *Mr. Manley.”

“ Mr. D. you are a different person. You are a tough teacher but you and your wife have kind hearts. You treat me like another human being. You don’t act like a Pharisee shouting, ‘ Lord,Lord,look what I do’. You are like the Good Samaritan, you just help and move on.”

Electric went on to do really well in the regional examination but fate had one more card to play with us. Electric had really bad hand writing. I tried my best to get him to practice better handwriting but he did not think it was important.

At the regional examination I was a manager of a team of markers.

The head of the examining team was an old school mate. He was now Professor of English at one of the regional campuses. We were not allowed to mark students whom we taught. So Electric's paper went to another team. His answers caused some trouble. One marker who claimed she could not understand his writing scored him at three marks out of twenty on one essay. Our system,however,had a checking procedure where another marker looked at each script. This marker gave him 17.The head of the team who had to arbitrate the scores was inclined to give him at least 14 marks.

The head of the team, an earnest woman, who was determined to be fair sought out the Chief Examiner who was my friend. I had just decided to take a break and the Chief spotting me started a conversation on my teaching experiences in Jamaica. For some reason I told him about the strange student called Electric and how good he had become as a student by linking literature to his street experience.

We were interrupted politely by the head of the team who asked for an expert opinion from the chief.

He looked it over and said ,”I think it’s 16 or 17”.

Passing it to me, he said,” Have a look.”

A quick glance revealed it was Electric’s script.

“ This is the student I was telling you about, “ I replied shocked at the co-incidence.

The Chief took the script to his team of chief examiners. Later I was told they agreed that despite his bad handwriting they felt that he deserved a passing grade in all his essays.

I have often wondered if Electric would have passed if there were not a dispute, if the head of the marking team had not consulted the chief and if that chief had not decided to let his expert team mark the script.

Today, years later, I recall with fondness my long talks with Electric. I can still see his excitement of the day of graduation. When he introduced myself and my wife to his benefactor he said,” these are the people who most helped me graduate”.

That graduation night I finally asked “ Electric” why he had never asked me for money or clothes.

“ Mr. D, you gave me the most valuable thing any person can give—your time ,your knowledge and your respect. I thank you and Mrs. D. from the bottom of my heart.”