Communication
Sarah Shuel
Change: Alter, Transform and Switch; To Become ...

: to make different in some particular : ALTER

: to make radically different : TRANSFORM

: to make a shift from one to another : SWITCH

: to become different

Ahh yes: “Alter, transform and switch, to become different’’.....these words resonate a lot in FIG’s evolution, we’re excited about a little bit of change (and a little apprehensive if we’re being honest!).

Change: Alter, Transform and Switch; To Become Different
Communication
Sarah Shuel
Technology Addiction: Yes, It's a Thing...

In her Wall Street Journal article: Digital Addictions Are Drowning Us in Dopamine, Dr, Lembke, a Stamford University professor and psychiatrist, talks about the scientific biological effects of addictions to our devices. It’s real folks. This is not FIG banging the drum of putting down our phones or any other technological apparatus and talking or connecting with our fellow human beings. No. This is concrete, physiological, measurable, science based fact that continuously interacting with our high-tech electronic leashes, gaming apparatuses and social media actually, physically, alters our brains to crave more of it, thereby de-incentivising us to engage with others on a human level.

Gasp, shock and awe!

Technology Addiction: Yes, It's a Thing...
Communication
Sarah Shuel
Mistakes: Perfectly Human

Mistakes. We all make them, we’re human beings and by definition 99.9% imperfect (with apologies to those of you who think otherwise), which results in, guess what? Mistakes (we make them hourly at FIG)! That gaffes, miscalculations and oversights are a part of our collective experience on this earth. Why (on earth!) is it so hard to admit to making mistakes, take responsibility for these human aberrations and move on after making a miscalculation or error? Hmmmm?

Mistakes: Perfectly Human
Communication
Sarah Shuel
Habits: The Good, The Bad, and the Intangible

We all have habits - some serve us well and some get in our way…...Google states: “A habit is a settled or regular tendency or practice, especially one that is hard to give up.” Establishing a habit usually takes about two weeks to become routine and is subsequently supported and reinforced by practicing it daily.

Habits: The Good, The Bad, and the Intangible
Communication
Sarah Shuel
Life Happens

Ever had a “Monday” on any day of the week? Ever had your day perfectly planned, scheduled and organized only to have all your intended “to-do’s”: meetings, calls, oh yeah, actual “work,” utterly blown up by an unexpected interruption, complication, interference? Ever had someone insert themselves into your day with their drama, troubles or lack of planning (real or self-inflicted), requiring you to shelve your carefully laid out day(s) and requiring you to stop whatever you’re doing for their fire drill?

Yeah, us too.

Life Happens

technology

Technology Addiction: Yes, It's a Thing...

Technology Addiction: Yes, It's a Thing...

In her Wall Street Journal article: Digital Addictions Are Drowning Us in Dopamine, Dr, Lembke, a Stamford University professor and psychiatrist, talks about the scientific biological effects of addictions to our devices. It’s real folks. This is not FIG banging the drum of putting down our phones or any other technological apparatus and talking or connecting with our fellow human beings. No. This is concrete, physiological, measurable, science based fact that continuously interacting with our high-tech electronic leashes, gaming apparatuses and social media actually, physically, alters our brains to crave more of it, thereby de-incentivising us to engage with others on a human level.

Gasp, shock and awe!

FIG Role Model: Sherry Turkle

FIG Role Model: Sherry Turkle

The “Margaret Mead of digital culture,” Professor Sherry Turkle is an incredibly accomplished person.  She is the Abby Rockefeller Mauzé Professor of the Social Studies of Science and Technology in the Program in Science, Technology, and Society at MIT, and the founding director of the MIT Initiative on Technology and Self. Because she has been studying people’s interaction with technology since the birth of the earliest personal computers, she is an incredible source of knowledge on the ways we use technology as a social tool and how it affects us as a part of our psychological lives.

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Spring Cleaning: 5 Negative Social Habits to Throw Out Now

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Spring Cleaning: 5 Negative Social Habits to Throw Out Now

We all have our bad habits. We’re human, after all! However, another great part about being human is the fact that we can decide to work on our bad habits and grow out of them. One of the areas in which people have the most bad habits is in social interaction. Here are five of them you can start working on today.