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“Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else — you are the one who gets burned.”
— Buddhist proverb
It’s been a warm and sunny birthday week. I can’t help but feel grateful. I consider myself incredibly lucky. So here’s to laughing more, stressing less, and embracing the journey. Getting older may have its challenges, but it sure beats the alternative. And I plan to fully soak up this next trip around the sun!
Thanks for reading!
🎶 What I’m Listening To
Today I’ve got Chris James queued up for listening to while I work. What are YOU listening too today?
👆 Last Week’s Most Clicked
📰 News & Notes
Do Animations Improve Learning?
Andrew Watson examines the mixed research on animations in education. It highlights that while some studies suggest animations can hinder learning, others show benefits, emphasizing the need for educators to consider their material’s specific context and cognitive demands when deciding to use animations.
🎯 Take away: The effectiveness of animations in learning is context-dependent, requiring designers to carefully assess their use based on the material’s complexity and educational goals.
How to Make Your Own GPT: A Step-by-Step Guide
Have you seen that OpenAI has rolled out custom versions of ChatGPT that you can create for a specific purpose—called GPTs? Vicki Davis outlines the steps to create a custom GPT for learning purposes, focusing on defining its functionality, customizing content, and conducting tests to ensure its effectiveness and alignment with educational and ethical standards.
🎯 Take away: Creating a custom GPT for educational use involves careful customization and testing to meet specific needs and ethical guidelines.
Designing to Persuade: 5 Elements of Messages that Resonate
In today’s world, crafting persuasive messages is vital to stand out. The key components of effective persuasion include a clear and well-articulated message, an emotional hook that resonates, a specific understanding of the target audience, a direct and actionable call to action (CTA), and an aesthetically appealing package. These elements are grounded in psychological and marketing theories and ensure your message captures attention and influences behavior. From the ‘chunking’ of information for clarity to employing storytelling for emotional engagement and tailoring content to the primal brain of the audience, each aspect plays a critical role in enhancing the persuasiveness and impact of your message.
🎯 Take away: Craft persuasive messages that are clear, emotionally resonant, tailored to your audience, actionable, and visually appealing.
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🧰 Tech Tools & Tips
If tools are your jam, check out my new Work Smarter newsletter.
AI for Busy Readers
This artificial intelligence tool makes your writing more effective by applying the science of Writing for Busy Readers. (Tune into the podcast below to learn more.)
http://writingforbusyreaders.com/ai
AI Educator Tools
A well-organized repository of AI Tools to help you find the AI tools you need.
Canva Pro is the design software that makes design simple, convenient, and reliable. Create what you need in no time! Jam-packed with time-saving tools that make anyone look like a professional designer. Try Canva Pro!
🎧 Podcast
This is the conversation that caught my ear this week. Check out previous episodes in the Friday Finds podcast playlist.
The Power of Brevity
Todd Rogers, co-author of “Writing for Busy Readers” explores the importance of mapping information out before you write and offers helpful tips and tricks to achieve success in your written communications.
🧳 Where’s Mike?
- ATD ICE, New Orleans, May 19-22
If you or your event needs a speaker or workshop that is highly interactive and super practical, we should talk.
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Friday Finds is an independent publication that I produce in my free time. You can support my work by sharing it with the world, booking an advertising spot, or by buying me a coffee.
Mike Taylor 