A MINDFUL APPROACH TO SOCIAL MEDIA, AN EDUCATION IN CYBER CIVICS

By Katie Duffy Schumacher
Publication Date: Tuesday, July 12, 2016
ISBN-10: 0692731814
ISBN-13: 978-0692731819
Paperback | $14.95
Kindle | $9.95

Don’t Press Send: A Mindful Approach to Social Media, An Education in Cyber Civics is a clear and kind approach to aid in preventing the misuse of social media. From the onset, children today grew and evolved with increasingly sophisticated smartphone technology and social media. Author Katie Duffy Schumacher advocates that although adults may feel that they will never be as tech-savvy as the younger generation, they should not shy from their responsibility in the proper protocol and encourage and enforce respectful and safe use of cyber technology.

Don’t Press Send features helpful strategies for parents and educators when it comes to navigating unfamiliar online territory: teaching their children to be respectful of their peers and understanding the power of the written word, developing mindful healthy habits to support electronic engagement, and more. The book serves as a guide for parents to help their children think mindfully about their choices, both on social media and offline. Key things such as, what parents should be communicating when handing their child a cell phone for the first time.

Author Katie Duffy Schumacher comments on the importance of an education in cyber civics, “we have to help our children push past the emotional barrier that the screen creates and internalize that on the other side of it is another living, breathing, feeling human being; a person who must be treated with kindness. Online or off, the rules should be the same. If you aren’t comfortable saying something face to face, then you should not be posting that online or texting it to them.”

The book, Don’t Press Send, removes the guesswork when it comes to communicating electronically and offers guidelines for adults to broach with minors. It gives parents and educators a way to manage their children and students’ activities and behavior in the cyber world. It enforces the concept of leading by example, encouraging children to think mindfully about their choices on and offline, and provides them with the strategies to foster kind and healthy interactions online. The author recommends having this conversation both at home and in schools, to reinforce the ramifications of privacy breaches, cyberbullying, and cyber mistakes that could damage reputations and have serious offline consequences.

Children feel safe, secure, and less anxious when they know what the rules are, irrevocably. This is the objective of Don’t Press Send, to educate and empower children to use technology responsibly and with good intent.

Important topics that are discussed in Don’t Press Send: A Mindful Approach to Social Media, An Education in Cyber Civics include:

• Cell phone directives for parents beyond the rules “don’t break it” or “don’t lose it”
• Strategies that will help to create a kind cyber community by strengthening children’s empathetic skills
• Reinforcing the emotional skills, discipline, and mindfulness that will result in kind and careful online communication to foster a more thoughtful and safer cyber community for all
• How to embrace a healthy balance with technology by teaching kids to being mindful before they press send on a post

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Katie Duffy Schumacher has used her years as a teacher, her mindfulness training, and her on the job experience as the mother of three teens to develop the Don’t Press Send Campaign, and the popular app by the same name. As a frequent lecturer, she has been able to spread the message of kind and careful communication to thousands of students, parents, and educators, inspiring them to incorporate a mindful approach to social media. In July 2016, Ms. Schumacher penned her first book, Don’t Press Send: A Mindful Approach to Social Media, An Education in Cyber Civics, to give parents the tools and strategies they need to arm their children to create a better cyber community.

For more information about the Don’t Press Send book and initiative, please visit www.DontPressSend.org

Don’t Press Send: A Mindful Education to Social Media; An Education in Cyber Civics is now available in paperback and Kindle versions on Amazon.

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Book Review: The Destiny of Humanity by Jonathan Bannon Maher

“I am confident this book will surely attract much public attention to the important task of building a peaceful and prosperous world for all.” – Norodom Sihamoni, King, Cambodia

“A pointing of horizons and goals to which we must be aware. The quest for harmony and a blend of attitudes that could reach the heights of the global and total dignity of human beings.” – Jose Maria Pereira Neves, Prime Minister, Cape Verde

“It is the kindness of people like you that continually renew my confidence about what we as Americans can achieve together.” – Jill Biden, Office of the Vice President, United States

“A brilliant look at where we are headed as a species shared in the context of an authentic personal background story.” – Panayiotis P. Georgotas, Amazon Customer

4 Ways Young People Can Impact The World
‘Why Wait To Make A Positive Impact?’ Entrepreneurial Activist Asks

The younger you are as a registered voter in the United States, the less likely you are to cast your ballot, and the more you may have to lose by not doing so.

According to the latest data from the United States Census Bureau, voters aged 18 to 24 have consistently been the demographic with the lowest turnout, demonstrating an overall trend toward disengagement. While the line chart spiked in 2008 for President Obama’s first election, the trend has once again headed downward.

“Midterm elections yield disproportionately low participation among young voters, at a time when each additional vote yields the greatest impact,” says Jonathan Bannon Maher, a former candidate for the United States Senate, and author of “The Destiny of Humanity,” a book endorsed by Kings, a Prime Minister and a Second Lady (www.jonathanmaher.com).

“Debt from wars and unadjusted retirement benefits is piled onto the shoulders of our future. Adults make the choices and kids get sent the unpaid portion of the bill with interest. It seems even informed, motivated youth often feel powerless to make a meaningful impact. If they were to believe they can drive broad positive change, they’d be more inclined to communicate their thoughts to decision makers and participate electorally.”

Maher reviews four ways young people can get involved and affect positive gains.

•  Encourage your friends to vote. Yes vote yourself, but encourage friends to do so as well, to demonstrate your support in numbers.  Whereas Obama inspired young people to vote in numbers not seen since the early 1970s, enthusiasm fell precipitously for midterm elections in 2010. Only 49 percent of young people, ages 18 to 29, were registered to vote in the 2010 midterm elections, 45 percent of whom said they weren’t interested. Twenty-four percent didn’t know how to register.

“Registering to vote is a straightforward process,” Maher says, “and you can learn more at your state’s elections office website or at rockthevote.org”

•  Volunteer for a candidate’s campaign. If this seems overly ambitious, you may not be giving your political views enough credit.

“My advice is to review as many candidates as you can find online, and support those with the courage, intelligence, and heart to identify and resolve problems, even if they have limited traction. If feeling particularly ambitious, expand your search to include those who have expressed an interest.”

Research candidates nationally and those whose campaign offices are within driving distance, and find someone whom you can feel enthusiastic about supporting. If you haven’t found anyone, keep looking.

•  Articulate your views to lawmakers in writing about a personally important issue. If promoting a candidate is just too much, don’t give up. Whether you know it or not, you are most likely passionate about at least one issue, whether it’s the environment or education. If you don’t know who represents you and your community, you can find it at the following site:openstates.org/find_your_legislator/.

“Politicians and their staff can be profoundly influenced by logical heartfelt correspondence, even if a direct response isn’t provided,” Maher says. “But no one responds to communications they don’t receive.”

•  Follow news sites on social media. Grand gestures can sometimes make a big impression. However, smaller measures can plant a seed that takes root in important ways, too. If you care about the world but want to learn more, start small. Simply by reading well-researched articles from well-educated journalists and public intellectuals, you’ll notice your feelings come out. “Researching an issue from all perspectives will allow you to be most persuasive,” Maher says. Following a site or opinion-maker that inspires you will keep you engaged. From there it may only be a matter of time before you decide to make a difference.

About Jonathan Bannon Maher

Jonathan Bannon Maher (www.jonathanmaher.com) writes network intrusion detection and prevention software for the Pentagon. In his free time, he writes investment management algorithms and works on startups. In 2012 at age 29, he ran for the United States Senate. Prior to that, Maher wrote software used to purchase and manage billions in assets at a hedge fund. His music has been licensed by MTV, VH1, and Discovery Networks, and he’s written two books, including “The Destiny of Humanity,” endorsed by world leaders, and “Building a Successful Organization”. He graduated from the University of San Diego with recommendations from the President and Dean.

Amazon Buy Link

Privacy Concerns

Are Businesses
Crossing Lines
by Tracking Employees?

Expert Cites Benefits
& Ways to Ease
Privacy Concerns

Nearly 10 years after real-time package- and people-tracking went viral with the advent of GPS-enabled cell phones, small businesses face two big concerns.

“One is expense. Small businesses, especially those still recovering from the worst recession in modern history, can’t always afford to provide their employees with GPS-equipped smart phones,” notes location-based services specialist George Karonis, founder and CEO of LiveViewGPS, Inc., provider of Mobile Phone Locate tracking service,  (www.mobilephonelocate.com).

“The second issue is privacy. People generally don’t want their employer to be a ‘big brother’ boss who can track their every move. It’s not because they’re doing something they shouldn’t, but because it invades their space, and the information could be misinterpreted or misused.”

But employee tracking has plenty of obvious benefits to small business owners:

• Provide baseline information. It gives businesses solid data to analyze for initiatives such as improving efficiency. Businesses with lots of workers in the field making deliveries or service calls can optimize routes and schedules.

• Improve customer service and satisfaction. Tracking helps a business tell people waiting somewhere for a delivery or service exactly where their package or service-person is and how long the wait will be.

• Improve response times. On-site coordinators can re-route workers in the field to respond to unscheduled calls in the most efficient way possible.

• Reduce costs. The greater efficiency provided by tracking helps lower costs by reducing both downtime and overtime.

So how can businesses circumvent affordability and employee privacy concerns?

One way is to accomplish both is to use a service that doesn’t involve extra equipment, including software, or a contract, Karonis says.

“If you’re not loading apps or software onto someone’s personal phone, it’s less intrusive for the employee and he or she will be more willing to allow use of their own phone. There’s also no added drain on the battery, because there’s no app constantly running in the background, and no hitch-hiking on their data plan or incurring a data charge,” he says.

“If you make it non-intrusive employees won’t tend to feel that you’re invading their privacy.”

Using a service that charges per location, with no requirement for a time-specific contract, is also more cost-efficient for the business, Karonis says.

“For the small business that’s merely seeking to improve efficiency and customer service, constant tracking isn’t necessary. That’s more appropriate in a situation where employers have large number of people constantly in the field, for instance, UPS. Or, employers who feel the need to monitor unproductive employees,” he says.

There’s a growing backlash as the public is subjected to more and more stalking – from cameras mounted at traffic lights to social networking sites recording shopping habits and topics of conversation, Karonis notes.

“We’ve reached a crossroads where we need to find a balance between surveillance that provides legitimate business advantages and surveillance that invades people’s privacy,” he says.

“It really is possible to strike that balance and, in a small business that thrives on trust, mutual respect and fully invested employees, it’s essential.”

About George Karonis

George Karonis has a background in security and surveillance, and has specialized in location services since 2005. A self-professed computer geek, one of his chief concerns is balancing the usefulness of tracking with the protection of individuals’ privacy. He is founder and CEO of LiveViewGPS, Inc.