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The thyroid gland is a small, butterfly-shaped gland at the base of your neck. This small gland has a big effect on your body. The hormones it produces affect almost all bodily processes, including metabolism, fertility and sexual function, internal thermostat, mood, and more.

The American Thyroid Association estimates that more than 12% of Americans will develop a thyroid condition at some point in their life, although up to 60% of those with thyroid disease are unaware of their condition. Women are more likely than men to have thyroid problems, with around one in every eight women developing a problem at some point in her life.

Hyperthyroidism, in which too much thyroid hormone circulates in the body, is a common thyroid condition, affecting more than one in every hundred Americans. While there are many effective treatments for hyperthyroidism, uncontrolled hyperthyroidism can lead to serious, even life-threatening problems. Read on to learn more about what hyperthyroidism is, what the symptoms are, and how to live with this condition.

How the Thyroid Works

The thyroid gland is part of your endocrine system. The endocrine system is the network of glands throughout your body that produces hormones – powerful chemicals that help to turn on or off all of the various functions in the body. The thyroid is a particularly important element of the endocrine system, producing hormones that affect brain, heart and kidney function, as well as skin maintenance, digestion, fertility, temperature regulation, muscle strength, and more.

In order to produce thyroid hormones, the thyroid uses iodine from our food to create two hormones: triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4), which affect the function of all the cells in the body. The thyroid also produces a more targeted hormone, calcitonin, which helps regulate the amount of calcium in your blood.

The pituitary gland, which is located in the brain, tells the thyroid how much hormone to produce by releasing thyroid-stimulating hormones (TSH). When everything is functioning as it should, the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland carefully monitor hormone levels in the body. The pituitary releases TSH to stimulate the thyroid to produce just the right amount of thyroid hormone. These hormones then circulate in the blood and are taken up by various organs to help run just about every system in the body.

Symptoms of Hyperthyroidism

While the thyroid gland usually keeps our metabolism and other functions humming along correctly, sometimes it goes haywire. When the thyroid produces too little hormone, it causes hypothyroidism, in which everything in the body slows down. People with hypothyroidism gain weight, feel cold, fight fatigue and depression, and more.

In contrast, with hyperthyroidism, too much thyroid hormone is present in the body, causing bodily functions to speed up. Symptoms include:

Weight loss, despite increased appetite
Diarrhea
Lighter or missed periods
Rapid heartbeat (tachycardia), irregular heartbeat (arrhythmia), and/or a pounding heart (palpitations)
Anxiety, irritability and/or nervousness
Uncontrolled sweating and heat intolerance
Difficulty sleeping
Thin, brittle hair
Fatigue
Red, swollen skin on the shins and feet

In some cases, people with hyperthyroidism caused by an autoimmune condition known as Graves’ disease will develop an eye condition known as Graves’ ophthalmopathy. In this condition, the same autoimmune antibodies that cause the thyroid to overproduce thyroid hormone also cause inflammation in the tissues behind the eye. This can cause bulging eyes, dry eyes, watery eyes, and eye pain and inflammation.

Graves’ ophthalmopathy usually develops soon after hyperthyroid symptoms, but it can develop years later. In some people, eye irritation will be the first sign of a thyroid problem. Many cases of Graves’ ophthalmopathy will resolve on their own, but all cases should be monitored by an eye doctor, as it can cause vision loss in extreme cases.

If hyperthyroidism goes untreated, a number of complications can result, including:

Heart problems - Hyperthyroidism increases the heart rate. Over time, this stresses the heart, increasing the risk of heart disease, stroke and congestive heart failure.

Brittle bones - When your body has high thyroid hormone levels, your bones can’t properly absorb calcium, which can lead to osteoporosis.

Thyroid storm (thyrotoxic crisis) - In rare cases, the body produces far too much thyroid hormone, leading to a potentially life-threatening condition marked by rapid heart rate, sweating, high fever, and confusion. Thyroid storm requires immediate medical treatment.

Who Gets Hyperthyroidism?

Hyperthyroidism can develop in anyone at any age, but it occurs most often in women, and the risk rises after age 60. In older people, the symptoms of hyperthyroidism can be subtle, and doctors sometimes mistake it for depression or dementia. If someone has uncontrolled hyperthyroidism and gets pregnant, hyperthyroidism can sometimes affect the baby.

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When psychologist Carol Dweck began her research career, she was fascinated with why some children, when faced with failure and setbacks, were able to bounce back and keep going while others were crushed. Through her research, she came to realize that the resilient children (and adults) shared one thing in common: they believed that they could grow in intelligence, skills and abilities throughout life. This worldview, which Dweck calls a “growth mindset”, helps build resilience because it suggests that growth is always possible, and therefore, a setback is never permanent.

Dweck has spent over 30 years studying the growth mindset and its opposite, the fixed mindset. She discusses her research findings in her book, Mindset, The New Psychology of Success. Since her research on mindsets has become popular, many more psychologists have supported her thesis, and many schools, universities, and corporations have adopted her ideas as part of their curriculum and training programs. Let’s look at Dweck’s theory of mindsets in more detail.

Fixed versus Growth Mindset

Imagine two students, Susan and Beth, waiting for their teacher to hand back their midterm test. It’s an important part of their mark, but there’s still half a semester to go. They both need to get a good mark in this course to get into the program they want to take next year. They get their tests and look at their marks. They both got a C.

Susan looks at the test, her heart sinking, and thinks, “I’m so dumb. I’m terrible at this course. I’ll never amount to much. I guess there’s no point studying for the rest of term.”

Beth is also upset and disappointed. She looks at her test and thinks, “Wow. I really need to pull up my socks. I’ll have to study more for the next test. Also, I really didn’t get that one concept. I’ll have to talk to the professor and get some extra help.”

Which of these students is most likely to improve in the class, and go on to the program they are working toward?

The answer, based just on this moment, is of course Beth. But what is it about her response to a bad mark that suggests that she’s more likely to succeed?

This example illustrates the mindset of the two students. Susan is demonstrating a fixed mindset, while Beth is demonstrating a growth mindset. Let’s take a look at what these terms mean.

Fixed Mindset

People with a fixed mindset believe that people are born with a certain mix of skills, abilities, intelligence and character, and no amount of work or effort can change these basic facts about a person.

When someone has a fixed mindset, they tend to see the world in binary fashion. There are winners and losers, smart people and dumb people. For example, in the story above, Susan assumes that the midterm test has assess her abilities and found her wanting. There’s nothing she can do, so she might as well give up.

People with a fixed mindset often:

Believe effort is a sign of stupidity (because smart/talented people shouldn’t have to try)
Believe that success or failure defines them
Are reluctant to try challenging activities (in case they don’t do well, and thus prove themselves to be not smart/talented/gifted)
Ignore feedback (because they can’t change anyway)
Feel that feedback is a personal criticism
Feel threatened by others’ success

When someone has a fixed mindset, they are eager to demonstrate their good qualities. A child with a fixed mindset wants to show how smart, talented and good they are. After all, if these qualities are fixed, they want to be on the winning side.

Ironically, this need to demonstrate their skills can lead to rejecting opportunities to improve. For example, Dweck’s research has shown that when children with a fixed mindset are given a choice between repeating an easy puzzle they’ve already mastered and tackling a new puzzle that they could learn from, these children generally choose to repeat the easy puzzle. Why would anyone redo something that’s easy? Because if they try the new puzzle and fail, it might reveal that they aren’t smart after all.

Growth Mindset

In contrast to those with a fixed mindset, people who have a growth mindset believe that one’s talents, intelligence, skills, abilities, and even character traits and interpersonal skills can be developed over time. In this world view, challenges are embraced, and setbacks are viewed as opportunities for learning and growth.

People with a growth mindset don’t see the world as divided into success and failure, winners and losers; they see setbacks as a sign that more effort and perhaps a different strategy is needed to achieve their goals. Of course, setbacks can still sting for a person with a growth mindset, but they don’t see setbacks as failures – just as a sign that they need to work harder.

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How Routines Help You Become More Productive and Less Stressed

Mark Zuckerberg wears a grey t-shirt and jeans every day. Barak Obama always wears a grey or navy suit. Fashion executive Jenna Lyons always eats the same lunch, while writer Danielle Steele always has the same breakfast. Why are these famous and successful people so "boring"? The answer is, they’ve learned that creating a simple daily routine to cover the basic stuff of life leaves them free to work on the important, interesting and creative challenges that make up their life work. 

Each day, we are forced to make thousands of decisions - from what to eat, to what to wear, to what to buy. By streamlining some of those decisions into simple, repeatable routines, we can free up time and energy to do things that really matter to us. Read on to learn more about the power of routines, and how they can help you be more productive and less stressed. 

=> What Is a Routine? 

A routine is any set of actions that are repeated, habitually and without much thought. Routines come in different sizes. They can be as small and simple as the few keystrokes it takes to turn on and unlock your computer, or as large and complex as the daily schedule that keeps you and your family fed, cleaned, clothed, and attending your work, school, and leisure activities.

For most of us, our days are made up of various routines, stitched together. We have a routine upon waking, a routine for getting to work, a routine we do when we get to the office, a routine at the gym, and so on.

By their very nature, routines happen on autopilot, freeing our minds for other things. After all, can you remember in detail exactly how you got to work this morning? Or did you just get there somehow, without really remembering all the steps? If you are like most people, your commute to work happens automatically. You walk to the bus or pull onto the highway while thinking about other things. It’s precisely this automatic nature of routines that makes them powerful. Once we make something a regular habit, we no longer have to concentrate on it.

So, the key to harnessing the power of routines is in recognizing those portions of each day that have become routine. The next step is to analyze those routines. Are they helping you, or hurting you? Recognize what works and what doesn’t, then change your routine to improve your life in whichever way you choose - whether you want to finish your novel, get in shape, organize your life, or just have more time for your kids. 

=> Examples of Routines That Work

Many successful and creative people have harnessed the power of routine to get their work done. 

Early to Bed, Early to Rise, Early to Create a Bestseller

While many writers disdain the tyranny of "office jobs", some of the most successful writers in the world maintain stricter schedules than most bosses would ever hold them to. For example, Japanese writer Haruki Murakami gets up at 4 am every day and writes for five or six hours. In the afternoon, he runs, swims, or both, then reads and listens to music. He then goes to sleep every day at 9 pm. Murakami maintains this schedule for six months to a year at a time, while he is working on each book. 

Even more disciplined than Murakami is American novelist Danielle Steele, who has written 179 books and counting. Steele is at her typewriter every single day by 8:30 am, nibbling on the same breakfast each day: toast and a decaf iced coffee. She keeps typing for hours, claiming to work as much as 24 hours straight when the words are flowing. Note that while this particular schedule may work well for Steele, sleep experts recommend that adults get at least seven to eight hours of sleep every night in order to be as healthy and productive as possible. 

Boring Outfits, Creative Minds

While many creative professionals and entrepreneurs take wild risks in their work, in their personal lives they trust in a regular routine to relieve stress and free up mental space for more important decisions. Choosing a daily uniform is one common way that creative people limit the decisions they have to make each day. 

We mentioned Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, who is famous for his limited wardrobe of grey t-shirt, jeans, and a hoodie. While he has been seen in a suit on rare occasions, he mostly sticks to his uniform. He claims that by always wearing the same thing, he reduces the number of decisions he has to make in a day so he can focus on more important matters. 

While Mark Zuckerberg’s wardrobe is particularly limited, he isn’t alone in limiting his clothing choices. Designer Vera Wang, despite creating some of the most beautiful and extravagant wedding dresses in the world, limits her own wardrobe to a handful of basics, all in black. Designer Michael Kors also keeps to a sleek black wardrobe of blazer, t-shirt, pants and loafers. 

Simple Meals Save Time

Many people tend to eat the same breakfast and lunch day after day, but Norwegians take "boring" meals one step further. In Norway, almost everyone brings exactly the same type of lunch to work each day, and this habit may be one reason why Norway has one of the highest scores for quality of life in the world. Everyday around noon, almost all Norwegians reach into their packs for their matpakke, a stack of several slices of brown bread with a thin layer of butter and a slice of cheese, meat pate or smoked salmon. This stack of open-faced sandwiches is always simply wrapped in brown paper.

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Self-discipline is the key to success. It is the force that helps us stay focused on our studies when we’d rather be partying. It’s the force that keeps us going to the gym when the couch beckons. It’s behind the determination to build the 147th prototype when the 146th version didn’t work.

In other words, self-discipline is the quality that pushes us to complete the tasks we know we should do in order to achieve our goals, rather than give in to momentary distractions that take us off course.

Fortunately, self-discipline is a skill that can be learned, and improved, by anyone willing to try. By developing your sense of self-discipline, you can become healthier, achieve more in school and work, and reach your goals – whether you want to learn a language, master the guitar, climb a mountain, or just get out of the door on time in the morning.

The Benefits of Self-Discipline

Self-discipline, also known as self-control, is a quality that can help us make better choices in everything that we do. Studies show that self-discipline can help make us healthier, happier, and more successful throughout our lives. Here are just a few examples:

Higher self-control in childhood results in better physical health as an adult.
Teens with more self-discipline are less likely to use drugs or alcohol or indulge in risky sexual behaviors.
Children with higher self-control do better in school.
In a study spanning twenty years, children who had more self-control in school became adults with more career success.
Employees with more self-control earn more and have higher status jobs than those will less self-control.
Self-discipline increases happiness and wellbeing.
People with more self-discipline report better relationships with their friends and family.

In short, the research is clear that self-discipline positively affects just about every aspect of life. Self-discipline is so beneficial because it helps us make better choices at every turn, in all areas of our lives.

Fortunately, self-discipline is a skill, not just an inborn quality, and anyone at any stage of life can improve their self-discipline and begin to reap the benefits.

How to Develop Your Self-Discipline

Just as there are many exercises in the gym that can strengthen your body, there are many exercises that can help you build self-discipline.

Luckily, the practice of self-discipline is self-reinforcing. As you build your focus and work steadily toward your goals, your sense of achievement will make it easier and easier to stay disciplined. The following list offers just a few of the ways that you can work to improve your self-discipline.

Set Clear Goals

Self-discipline is willingness to do the thing you should be doing. So, to improve it, first you need to decide what it is you should be doing. What are your goals? Whatever you want to achieve, start by writing it down as a SMART goal. A SMART goal is Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Timely.

For example, let’s say you want to get fit. That’s a wonderful goal, but it’s not SMART. How will you know when you are “fit”? How long will it take? How will you judge your progress?

In order to have a truly motivating goal, narrow it down. For instance, if your general aim is to get fit, a SMART goal might be: “I will run a 5 km race in three months.” This goal is:

Specific (a 5km race)
Measurable (did you run the race or not?)
Achievable (whereas running a marathon in three months would be too much)
Timely (you’ll do it in three months)

Now that you have a SMART goal, how your self-discipline will help you is clear. You’ll need to complete your weekly training plan in order to meet your goal. Your self-discipline will be needed every time your schedule says you need to run, yet you are tired, or sore, or the weather’s bad, or the TV is interesting.

Visualize Your Goals

One reason why humans struggle with self-discipline is because we tend to put a greater value on present enjoyment than on future accomplishments. So, we might wish to be fitter and healthier in three months, but then skip a run because it’s raining and the couch is comfy.

One way to overcome this tendency is to clearly visualize the joy of reaching your goals. For example, when you sit down to study Spanish, summon a vision of sitting in a bar in Spain, talking and laughing with the locals. When it’s cold and you don’t want to go to the gym, imagine the thrill of crossing the finish line of your race. When you struggle to concentrate on your presentation, imagine how good it will feel to watch your client sign the contract.

Whatever your goal is, the more clearly you can imagine how good it will feel to achieve it, the more you can bring your future joy into the present. This will make the hard work feel much easier.

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Do you feel overwhelmed, stressed, and unsure about the future? You are not alone. Studies show that Americans are feeling remarkable levels of stress. While everyone experiences stress from time to time, when stress levels stay high for a long period, serious health consequences can result.

If you are experiencing stress and chaos in your life, it’s important to identify the causes and take steps to lower your stress level, take care of yourself, and build strength and resilience going forward.

Read on to learn more about the physical impact of stress, and simple practices you can adopt to help you cope better.

The Emotional and Physical Toll of Stress

In a 2019 Gallup survey of moods around the globe, 55% of Americans said they had felt stressed the previous day – much higher than the global average of 33%. People under 50 and those with a low income had the highest levels of stress. 

In addition to stress, many people are also experiencing other negative moods. For example, loneliness is a significant issue that has roughly the same health impact as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Loneliness increases the risk of heart disease by 29%, and the risk of stroke by 32%. Sadly, in the US, 40% of adults sometimes or always feel that their social relationships are not meaningful, and almost half say they feel lonely or socially isolated at least some of the time. 

Both stress and loneliness can contribute to more serious mood disorders, including depression and anxiety. Rates of anxiety are growing, and it’s worse for children than adults. Estimates suggest that as many as 32% of adolescents experience anxiety. Among American adults, around 40 million (or 18% of the population) have an anxiety disorder. Depression is also very common, with around 17 million, or 7% of Americans, experiencing a major depressive episode each year. 

In addition to the increased risk of mood disorders, stress also affects our physical health. In the short term, stress can cause headaches, muscle pain, digestive problems, trouble sleeping, and a lowered immune system. Stress can also worsen asthma, arthritis, and skin problems such as acne, eczema, and psoriasis. In the long term, stress increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and dementia. 

If thinking about the negative effects of stress is increasing your stress levels, that’s normal. Fortunately, stress, while serious, can be managed. Stress reduction starts with simple self-care such as getting enough sleep, exercise, healthy food, and connecting meaningfully with others. Once you have the basics down, soothing practices such as meditation, connecting with nature, and practicing gratitude will help you build the internal resources to keep your calm, no matter what life throws at you.  

Identifying What Makes You Worried and Stressed

In small doses, stress can be healthy and inspiring. When you stare down a difficult run on the ski hill, wait behind the curtain before you step out to give a speech, or walk into a new job for a first time, the butterflies you feel in your stomach are caused by stress. A little stress fires us up and gets us ready meet new challenges head-on.

Unfortunately, too much stress has the opposite effect, and can result in serious health consequences, as discussed above.

Humans tend to feel stress any time we experience change or loss. Common sources of stress including negative events, such the loss of a friend or family member, a serious health problem, a traumatic event such as a crime or natural disaster, or financial difficulties. Positive events such as starting a new job, getting married, or moving homes can also be very stressful because these events involve both the uncertainty of new situations, and the loss of the familiar.

Work and school are major sources of stress for Americans, with 40% of Americans experiencing stress at work, and 80% of college students saying that they feel stress sometimes or often. Stress at work and at school can have many causes, and many are similar: worries about performance, interpersonal struggles with colleagues and bosses (or fellow students and teachers), financial worries, and overwhelm from too much to do and too little time to do it.

Worry about the news and world events, as well as the personal effects that larger forces may have, are also major sources of stress. For people in marginalized and minority communities, worries about the news may be more urgent: these groups are more likely to be affected in difficult economic times, and are likely to experience more negative effects from climate change and pollution.

Whatever the cause of your stress, it can be managed. Simple self-care strategies can help you manage stress and perform at your best. In addition to following the self-care suggestions laid out in the next section, consider talking to a therapist or a life coach about your specific stressors. These experts can help you navigate your specific situation and teach you coping skills that are tailored to your own strengths and weaknesses.

If you are in serious distress, speak to your doctor. There are many treatments that can help manage the negative effects of stress on your body, and help you feel better soon.

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Introduction

Chances are, you’ve heard about the benefits of using CBD. Perhaps you even have a friend or family member who has turned to CBD in order to help manage their pain.

What you may not know is how CBD actually works, how it can help with different types of chronic pain, as well as a myriad of other ailments, and what formats are available and how to choose the best one for you.

This is why we’ve written this special report, CBD for Beginners.

Throughout the coming chapters, we’ll cover all these topics and more. We’ll also discuss some common myths and misconceptions CBD so you are better informed about the many benefits of CBD and how it can improve the quality of your life.

Let’s begin!
CBD Explained

CBD stands for Cannabidiol. It’s one of over a hundred compounds produced in the resinous flowers of the cannabis plant. The gooey resin is concentrated on the dense clusters of flowers (commonly called buds) of the plant. These are covered by tiny, mushroom-shaped structures known as trichomes.

These trichomes protect the plant from heat and UV radiation. They’re glandular, and create a treasure trove of medicinal compounds, including CBD, THC, and various aromatic terpenes.

The trichome oil also has antifungal, antibacterial, and insecticidal properties that repel pests and predators. The stickiness of the resin also helps by trapping insects.

And contrary to popular belief, CBD isn’t the compound that makes you feel “high” – that’s called tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). CBD is non-addictive, so you don’t need to worry about developing a “habit” from its use.

CBD oil comes from these resinous trichomes of the cannabis flower. However, there are many different strains or varietals of the plant, and the amount of CBD in the flowers depends on which strain you harvest.

Low-resin industrial hemp, which is legally defined as Cannabis with less than 0.03 percent THC by dry weight, has fewer trichomes (and thus, less oil) than high-resin strains do.

However, most high-resin strains nowadays are THC-dominant with little CBD. Therefore, it’s important to choose an appropriate CBD-rich Cannabis strain

Once you have a CBD-rich source, you then extract the oil. There are several ways to do this and each has its pros and cons.

The purpose of this extraction is to make the CBD and other beneficial components of the flower available in a highly concentrated form. Because the cannabinoids are naturally oily, separating the CBD from the plant material creates a thick, potent oil.

CBD is soluble in both oil and alcohol. Thus, the process of extraction usually uses a chemical that can dissolve an oil or alcohol-based compound. These chemicals include supercritical CO2, ethanol, hydrocarbons like butane, and common olive oil.

CO2 extraction is one of the safest methods, and it’s the one most commonly used commercially. Under high pressure and fluctuating temperature, CO2 becomes a liquid which can flush out the active ingredients of the plant matter.

This method is very effective because each compound in the oil can only be extracted by CO2 under very specific temperatures and pressures. This means you can fine-tune the process to extract pure CBD instead of a chemical stew.

Ethanol extraction has been used in many cultures for centuries. In 1854, the US Pharmacopeia recommended ethanol-based tinctures of “Indian hemp” to treat many ailments (including anxiety, depression, pain, and even muscle spasm).

Until 1937, when the Marijuana Tax Act was passed, these tinctures were commonly sold and used by the public, and in recent years, ethanol extraction has once again become popular.

Today, food-grade grain alcohol is used to create very potent, high-quality CBD-rich oil suitable for oral ingestion.

Hydrocarbon extraction (such as butane, hexane, or propane) has some major advantages as well as disadvantages compared to the other methods.

When done properly, this technique is very effective at separating cannabinoids and terpenes from unwanted plant components like chlorophyll.

However, the hydrocarbons are highly flammable. The potent concentrates of this extraction method, which are inhaled or “vaped,” can be very harmful to the user, especially if they have compromised immune systems.

Finally, olive oil extraction is simple and cheap – and you can do it at home if marijuana is legal in your area! Heat the plant matter in the oven. This will turn THCA into THC and CBDA into CBD. Steep the flowers and leaves in the olive oil.

Then sift, strain, and separate the oil from what’s left of the plant.

Note: This process doesn’t strain out the THC, so this product can produce a “high.” Cannabis-infused olive oil is perishable and should be stored in a dark, cool place so it doesn’t spoil.

How CBD Can Improve Your Life

CBD has been used as a medicine in many cultures for thousands of years. So, how can it help you?

Many consumers today are looking for safer alternatives to prescription drugs and their often harsh side effects. CBD has been proven to provide relief from many chronic conditions without any harmful side effects.}

Let’s take a closer look at just a few ways CBD could help improve the quality of your life:

Chronic Pain

CBD creates anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving effects that quickly help with pain management. It’s been studied in relation with reducing cancer pain, neuropathic pain, fibromyalgia, arthritis, migraines, and other body pain, particularly back and neck pain.

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Introduction

Virtual meet-ups are a great way to connect with friends and family regardless of distance or how busy life can be. With the current climate, being able to contact family through video conference services has become even more important.

But here’s the problem:

Video-conferencing can seem rather intimidating at first, especially if you haven’t used it often, if at all.

There are so many features, options and settings that it’s easy to get confused and overwhelmed. But the truth is, it’s nowhere near as difficult as it may look.

In fact, you’ll be able to master services like Google Meet with no prior knowledge just by reviewing the information contained in this special report!

Why do so many people prefer Google Meet?

To start, they offer a free version with the option to upgrade for as little as $8/month. And Google Meet provides you with advanced security ensuring that you and your loved ones can communicate without concern of interference.

And since Google Meet integrates with Gmail and Google Calendar, it’s easy to stay organized as well as set reminders so you never miss a call.

But Google Meet does so much more than that! In this special report, we’ll cover everything you need to know about this popular platform so you can take advantage of its many benefits with connecting with friends and family.

Let’s begin!

Google Meet 101

Getting started with Google Meet is as easy as going to meet.google.com. You can use your computer or laptop, your tablet, or even a smartphone.

You can access Google Meet via a web browser from your computer or you can download the Google Meet mobile app, available on both Google Play and the App Store.

Note: You’ll need to sign in with an existing Google account or you can create one free in just a few minutes.

Once signed in, you’ll be able to either start a new meeting or copy/paste a meeting code someone has given you to join an existing meeting.

You can also visit the settings link at the top right and check your audio and video levels to make sure you look and sound your best, prior to joining or creating a call.

And just so you’re fully aware, Google Meet’s free option gives you up to 60 minutes of screen time per session, with up to 100 participants. There are also other options, with longer meetings and more participants but you’ll need to upgrade your account to access those features.

Here’s what you get with a free basic account:

You can use Meet from a browser or mobile app.
You can send invites to up to 100 friends and family.
You can see English subtitles whenever anyone speaks.
You can share your computer screen with everyone in the meeting.
You can adjust the layout of your virtual meeting room for your convenience.

If you’d like to start your own room, simply click on the “New Meeting” link. This will bring up a choice of three options. We’ll talk about the other two later – for now let’s focus on “instant meeting.”

Click that and you’ll be asked to allow Google Meet to share your microphone and video camera. This is essential because without these permissions, nobody can see or hear you.

Once you give your permission, you’ll see yourself on the screen inside your meeting room.

Your room will look a lot like the old “Brady Bunch” TV show opening. It will show a tile or thumbnail image of everyone in the room. It will also have various features at the top and bottom of your video image.

The most important options are at the center bottom. These are the microphone, the “leave call” button, and the video camera.

Clicking on the microphone once will mute you, which means no one will be able to hear you or anything going on around you.

You’ll know if you are muted because the button will be bright red with a line through the microphone icon. Just click it a second time to un-mute so you can speak.

The “Leave Call” button is how to end your participation, so don’t click that until you’re ready to exit. And the video button turns your camera on and off.

This is useful if you have to do something else where you’re able to remain on the call but not the camera. When your camera is off, others in the room will either see a blank screen with your name, or your profile image, if you have added one to your Google account.

Another useful button is available at the top right of your screen: the chat button.

It looks like a little cartoon speech bubble and when you click it, the chat screen will pop up to the side of your room. You can type whatever you need to say at the bottom, then either hit your “enter” key, or the little arrow symbol beside your words.

Chat is useful when sharing information like web links or comments you don’t necessarily want to interrupt the speaker with.

There’s another little button beside the chat. That looks like 2 little heads beside each other and clicking that reveals a list of everyone who’s in the room and on the chat screen.

Once you’ve gotten the hang of entering and leaving the room, and can mute and unmute yourself, you’re ready to go.

Now, let’s look at some basic and more advanced tips and tricks for Google Meet.

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Introduction

If you want to be in business for the long run and stay relevant, you are going to need to keep tabs on the social media landscape and join social networks that are going to take you into the future. That’s exactly what Snapchat does. This platform is one of the social media outlets that have come from a constantly evolving world of social media and it uses a novel and never-before-seen method of communicating – a way of communicating that shows where the future of social media is headed.

Snapchat Is All about the Next Generation

Do you want one really great reason to join Snapchat? There are way more than one but if you need just one, think about the fact that Snapchat has become one of the most popular social media applications for people aged 12 to 24 years old. As you can see, that means that the next generation of buyers and the generation after that are all going to be potential Snapchat veterans and if your brand is on Snapchat and has been from the beginning, there is a good chance that you’re reaching a lot of these young people.

Snapchat Creates Excitement

Another great reason to join is that the way that Snapchat works is extremely fun and promotes serious interactivity between users. Snapchat is an exciting way to use social media and brands are capitalizing on these young people’s desire for exciting content by providing them with things like behind-the-scenes information about an event or brand, special promotions, discounts or giveaways that they couldn’t find out about from any other source. Because of the way that information is communicated and how quickly it disappears, Snapchat promotes excitement with every single post.
Snapchat Can Increase Your Online Presence and Gain You New Followers

Snapchat is also a great way to increase your online presence. You may already have profiles on websites like Twitter and Facebook, and you probably have a Pinterest account and other social media as well. But whenever you join a major social media network you’re going to be expanding your online presence and you will gain followers all around as a result, as well as retain followers better on your other social media networks. In fact, you will have a significant number of people coming to follow you on Snapchat from your other social media profiles as well as having people find that your Twitter and Facebook because they followed you on Snapchat.

No matter how you slice it, Snapchat is one very possible future of social media. Making sure that you are prepared for the next generation of buyers is something that every business should be doing and when you see a social media platform like Snapchat that is gaining popularity so fast – to the tune of 200 million active users per month – you need to get involved as quickly as possible and start using it to build your business even bigger.
Chapter 01 - What is Snapchat?

Snapchat is a very powerful social media platform that has become very popular as of late. Major brands are not only starting to get their presence onto Snapchat but also advertise on the platform through Snapchat’s discovery system. Snapchat is similar to other social media applications in that you create a profile and then have followers or fans that you communicate with. However, that is pretty much the extent of the similarities. Snapchat is remarkably different in the way that users communicate with each other and in the ways that information is shared.

How Snapchat Works

Snapchat is a program that works with a very specific media for communicating with other users. There are a couple of differences that make this program unique and one of the most interesting social media platforms in use today like using photos and videos to communicate with other people. While Twitter, Facebook and most social media platforms mainly communicate with text, the only text that you will find here is the captions on pictures and videos. Another difference was Snapchat is that when you post your pictures and videos they will only last from 1 to 10 seconds with just a single exception, which we’ll get into later.

It might be difficult to understand how this works if you’ve never used the application. Just imagine that someone you are following on social media posts something and you get an alert. You go to their feed and check what they have posted and it is either a picture with a caption or a short video, or if you didn’t get there fast enough, you missed out. That’s basically how Snapchat works and you have followers and friends on the platform just like you do with other social media websites.

What’s the Point of Snapchat?

Snapchat is leading the way into the future of social media. This platform is going to be one of the big ones that will serve the next generation of consumers. The app is already being used by most teenagers and even Facebook has seen the value of Snapchat and offered $3 billion for the company. However, the creators of Snapchat believed in their company enough that they refused Facebook’s offer. Facebook has people who analyze a great deal of data in order to predict future trends and if they think Snapchat is valuable then brands should be jumping on as quickly as they can.

So, what’s the point of Snapchat? To socialize. To build a following. To communicate with other people who share interests with you or have an emotional investment in what you are posting. On one hand, Snapchat is just a social media platform but on the other hand it may be the application which leads the charge into the future where social media posts will be less text and more pictures and video. Brands like Mashable, National Geographic and Comedy Central as well as several dozen others see enough value in Snapchat to advertise with the application as part of the discovery feature and thousands of others have joined the platform as well. If you have a brand – it should be on Snapchat.

Chapter 02 - Getting Your Brand on Snapchat

The first thing that you’re going to need to do if you want to reap the benefits of the Snapchat application is get your brand onto the platform. This chapter will explain exactly what you need to do to create your Snapchat account and how to fill out your profile information correctly so that your Snapchat is ready to use and you can start getting followers and marketing your brand in new and interesting ways.

Signing up

Obviously, the first thing that you’re going to want to do is download the Snapchat application. You can add this app to either your Android or your iOS device. There is no support for Windows operating systems as of yet or any of the lesser-known ones. Once you have Snapchat downloaded on your phone or mobile device, launch it and you’ll be taken to a screen where it will ask you to either sign in or sign up. You are going to sign up with the following information:

Email Address

You want to use an email address that you actually check. In fact, this may be a good time to use your main email address – or the one for your business. Whatever you do, don’t just make one up because you will have to verify your account.

Sample Content Preview

You’re sure to have heard the word “chatbot.” You may also understand what a chatbot is – perhaps you know it has something to do with AI or machine learning. Or you may know it’s a way for businesses to engage directly with millions of customers without their physical presence.

So, what exactly is a chatbot? What do they do? How can they benefit your business? When should you use a chatbot, and when shouldn’t you?

We’ll answer all these questions and more in this comprehensive guide to chatbots. By the end of this guide, we aim to provide you with an understanding of what chatbots are, what they do, how they can benefit your business, and why and how to measure their performance.
What Are Chatbots and What Do They Do?

A bot is software that performs automatic tasks. It’s a computer program that communicates with people through the internet.

A chatbot is a developed program that can have a “conversation” or a “discussion” with humans. For instance, any user can ask the chatbot a question, and the chatbot will respond or perform the appropriate activity.

Chatbots are programmed to answer certain questions in specific ways. However, they aren’t limited to this functionality, because chatbots can access and use all of a company’s resources to answer dynamic questions. Also, chatbots can use many systems and files simultaneously to find answers.

Chatbots interact in a format similar to chat platforms such as SMS text, website chat window and social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook to receive and respond to messages.

The simplest way to think of chatbots is as a virtual assistant on messaging channels like Facebook Messenger. By leveraging the power of AI, chatbots help businesses to engage with customers, build loyalty, automate routine tasks, and provide excellent customer service.

The work of a chatbot is to interact with website visitors like a human would and answer any questions they may have.

Thus, chatbots are typically used to automate customer service interactions for brands with a high volume of online inquiries. Also, you can use them to make it easier for prospective customers to get timely answers to their queries.

To scale your business, you need to leverage chatbots to streamline customer communications, marketing, and sales.

How Chatbots Benefit Businesses

Running a successful business requires you to be as productive as possible so expenses are lower and profits are higher. This is an obvious, basic fact of doing business.

However, many business owners don’t use the tools needed to make this happen. One new tool that’s gaining popularity but is not adequately used by all businesses, is the chatbot.

Chatbots’ simulation of human language and behavior offers many benefits to brands, including:

Save Time

One of the primary benefits of using chatbots in your company is that they save time.

When you use chatbots on your website, they can deliver fast, automated answers to most queries. Using chatbots reduces the waiting time so that customers don’t have to wait a day to get responses.

This way, you can serve many customers while boosting productivity and reducing operating costs.

Save Money

Chatbots are cheaper than hiring many customer support agents to offer fast customer communication, because hiring more support agents means additional costs and time. The costs are in terms of:

Salaries
Training
Infrastructure

By investing in chatbots, you can lower these costs.

According to reports, every year there are 265 billion customer requests and companies spend over $1.3 trillion to serve these requests. However, leveraging chatbots can help you save up to 30%. This is because chatbots speed up response times and can answer up to 80% of routine questions.

Offer 24/7 Automated Customer Support

No one likes waiting and neither do your customers. In fact, 91% of customers who are unhappy with a brand leave without complaining. Chatbots can help engage customers 24/7 with immediate answers to all the frequently asked questions. Offering excellent customer service round the clock will naturally have a positive impact on your customer satisfaction and retention.

Sample Content Preview

When it comes to getting the word out about your solutions, you have a lot of options for content publishing, from white papers to case studies to eBooks. Each has its benefits and drawbacks, and each can work to deliver your goals and objectives if you take the time to understand them.

White Papers

Businesses use white papers to engage with their audience and industries by teaching new information using a lot of facts and figures to influence the audience. White papers are valuable educational materials that can be used internally and externally and work in both businesses to business (B2B) and business to customer (B2C) situations. White papers drive top of the funnel needs by quickly improving awareness of the problem and the solution you offer.

Case Studies

Case studies prove your assertions by using facts, figures, and visuals to drive home what has worked for a given customer. Case studies show through storytelling, moving from problem to solution that gives the background and the results in a compelling way. Case studies are very effective because they easily illustrate the effectiveness of a solution using hard data.

eBooks

eBooks aren’t hard-selling documents. They usually take a short time to create, can be marketed easily, and are valuable to most audiences, whether they are B2B or B2C. They are cost-effective and easy to compile. For example, you can sassily create an eBook from previously written blog posts that tie together and deliver a message. You can include URLs and encourage your audience to get on your list, join your communities, and buy your products and use your services – all through eBooks.

These three content types are well-known yet subtle marketing tools that you need to use to ensure that your content marketing strategy will be successful. Plus, every single piece of marketing collateral you create can be reused, repurposed, and reformatted to increase the return on investment exponentially for all three types of long-form content marketing, while grabbing your audience’s attention and keeping it due to the design and information inside.

What Is Included in a White Paper?

A white paper is a datacentric multipage document that is written in a formal way, helping the reader understand the issue, solve their problems, or make the right choices. A white paper (sometimes written “whitepaper”) uses a lot of research and data to persuade the readers on behalf of a specific recommendation or solution.

A white paper is a great way to showcase your expertise and to market yourself to your audience without being in high pressured sales mode. Instead, you provide information that highlights the expertise, knowledge, and value of the solutions you are recommending.

Choosing Your Topic

When you decide that you want to create a white paper for marketing purposes and educational purposes for your business, it’s imperative that you first choose a good topic. Like anything else, when choosing a topic, you want to consider your audience and your expertise, and you want to create a white paper that is focused on the solution for the one specific problem that you’re highlighting within the white paper.

Preparing Your White Paper

A white paper needs to include a lot of data and research to make it a true white paper. Therefore, to prepare you need to conduct comprehensive research that includes references from internal documentation as well as industry resources that are authoritative in nature as well as reliable and credible. It will help to create a thorough outline or mind map (depending upon your preference) to ensure that you include all the information needed.

Formatting Your White Paper

The format of a white paper is consistent with most business reports and documentation, with the addition of a conclusion that is more of a recommendation at the end to guide readers toward making a purchase.

White papers take a considerable amount of time to research, develop, and complete. However, a good white paper can increase opportunities for your business and makes for great evergreen content that you can use throughout your content marketing efforts. This makes the hard work totally worth it in terms of your return on investment.

Sometimes the conclusion for a business report is written at the beginning of the document, but in the case of a white paper, the conclusion or thoughts and opinions of the writers are placed at the end. The final section is supposed to be the deciding moment for the reader, and the white paper takes the reader on a journey through awareness, consideration, and decision right in one report.

The main point is that you need to make your white paper persuasive and easy to understand for the reader. For this reason, you’ll need to format the document in an orderly way by choosing an accurate title, including an abstract or brief overview of the white paper’s main points, and so forth, which allows the reader to understand that this is the right document for them to read.

Then you need to state the problem and provide background information; all the original research, secondary research, and information should be communicated here. Finally, you’ll want to offer up the solution at the point of decision making, along with the major findings repeated in the conclusion. Of course, always provide a list of references. It helps to follow industry guidelines on formatting, using either MLA or APA citation formats.

White papers take a lot of understanding and knowledge of research methods, data collection, and subject matter expertise. Investing in creating white papers will pay off, though, in many ways (as mentioned before), because its content that can be reused, repurposed, and reformatted for use all throughout your marketing funnel. You can see an example of a white paper here, called The High Cost of Doing Nothing.