by admin | Mar 17, 2020 | Charity, Coronavirus, COVID19, Lincolnshire, lincolnshire Business, Lincs Connect, Networking, Uncategorized
Ring Any Bells?
I often channel hop when listening to my car radio between clients and recently I happened upon a programme on the BBC World Service. The general gist of the programme revolved around the psychology of giving to charity. Obviously all charities rely on us for donations and fund raising events but the programme got me thinking; Have we become numb to the pleading of charities? I know that many of you will give regularly to your chosen charity, some of you may volunteer while others might be supporting the charities by shopping in the charity shops or taking part in the many events that are held each year.
Who Or What Is To Blame?
Have we become numb to the fundraising calls of the local charities? Are we becoming numb to their pleading without even realising it? Perhaps you may recall the horrendous pictures on our TV screens of the ‘flies in their eyes’ images of starving children in African countries who were too weak to even blink. This is going to sound dreadful I know but perhaps those images have lost their impact now. Charity adverts have evolved and may now include images of children in school wishing they could get a better education to have a better chance of fending for themselves in future years. The programme considered both images and the psychological impact of each. Both images raise funds for the charities but neither image is more effective than the other. Rather, some people are pre-disposed to giving to one image over the other with the net result being ‘both images work’.
These are just examples of course as there are a huge number of charities working in different ways to raise funds in order to help people and animals. How would it work though if there was just one charity in the world? Would that charity cease to exist as a result of its own success? Perhaps, but that’s just hypothetical of course because the reality is that there are thousands upon thousands of charities around the world. In fact, these charities make so much ‘noise’ that perhaps we are losing touch with what they are trying to do. By ‘noise’ I mean TV advertising, radio advertising, newspaper advertising and of course the huge bombardment that we get on social media. That’s a “huge bombardment” of ‘everything’ and not just from the charities. Are we in danger of suffering from information overload and therefore switching off from the issues that really matter to us?
Lincolnshire Charities
We have lots of different charities in our region but we should all be thankful that they exist. We have the Lincoln YMCA @YMCALincs who look out for and care for many vulnerable people. They truly deserve our attention as they help to get people off the streets, into accommodation and give them a new start in life. If you haven’t heard of Leonie’s battle yet you need to give her a follow on twitter @chillibean2018 and follow her journey as she undergoes surgery and intensive physiotherapy to help her walk after having ben born Quad Cerebral Palsy. Such a brave little girl and a dedicated Mum who is constantly fund raising in order to pay for her life changing surgery. At the other end of the age scale you’ll find @AgeUKLindsey who are an independent charity offering advice and support for the over 50s. I wonder if we all realise how lucky we are to have such a huge number of heroes in our County who spend valuable time looking after others?
What’s next?
Surely a blog of this sort in March 2020 can’t go out without mentioning Coronavirus (COVID-19). This dreadful virus has touched everyone here. A global pandemic which is having a huge local impact. On a personal note I have cancelled group exercise classes and in my role at LincsConnect I’m seeing first hand how worried people are becoming. This pandemic isn’t just affecting health (although that is a huge worry) but the disruption it is causing is having a massive negative impact on businesses both large and small. I’ve seen a huge increase in businesses and charities posting to the #LincsConnect hashtag in order to get their messages around the County. Some are offering support, some are informing us of changes while others are asking for help. What can be done?
You’re Not Alone
Those of you who know me on twitter as @MANDARINLEISURE will no doubt remember that I post a positive and (hopefully) uplifting post each morning along with an excerpt from a song. I wake each morning (that’s always a good start)! with a tune in my head. It happens every day and I have no control over which song it will be. That’s my ‘ear worm’ so, being a friendly sort of chap, I have to share it. Well why should I have to suffer alone? It’s become a daily ritual now and I know that people from around the world are looking out for it and joining in with the fun. Here’s an example for you. Let’s see if you can guess the song:
Thinking of all the charitable work that’s going on around the county perhaps ‘now’ is the time to be thinking about how we can help each other. @LincsConnect has nearly 11,000 ‘local’ followers. If each one of them visited the hashtag #LincsConnect a couple of times a day to see who they could support we would all benefit hugely. It’s all very well posting your message (on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter) using the hashtag #LincsConnect to tell people what you are doing, what you need or how you can help but it won’t do you any good at all if no one is bothering to look at the hashtag to see what or who they can support. I’m sorry if that sounds abrupt but the truth is, we are in deep trouble and we need to pull together to get through this problem safely.
I’m No Expert But…
I’m not an economist. I’m not a high flying business executive. I’m not an ace charity worker. I am just ‘me’ but I can see how we can start to help each other. I’m not talking about getting bread and milk for those who are in isolation. That has already been broadcast across social media (I’ll post my version of the form for you to print and utilise) and is certainly going to help many people. What I’m talking about is using and looking at the #LincsConnect hashtag to see who is in need. Trust me, when you help others you’re more likely to have that help reciprocated when you need it most.
STOP!
Perhaps if those companies who only post their own messages and never look to see how they can help others changed their habits during this period of uncertainty we could start to achieve more. There is an old saying: “What goes around, comes around”. NOW is the time to be supportive of others, to be charitable, to look to see what can be done for others because together we can be absolutely AWESOME!
Take a look at this video to see how you can help on Twitter: How To Search #LincsConnect
For Those Of You Who Are Able
As promised, here is the form for you to print and utilise. Please use it wisely.
What Next?
I’ve heard people asking “What will life be like after the virus”? There will be no income and (according to some) no hope! My answer to that is this:
Life after the virus will carry on. There will be an income because we will carry on working. I have hope and that hope is based on my belief in you.
Todays blog was a little different but I think it’s an important one. What do you think?
by admin | Mar 12, 2020 | Hashtags, IT, Lincolnshire, lincolnshire Business, Lincs Connect, Lincs Police, LincsConnect, LincsPolice, Mandarin Therapies, Passwords, police, Security, VPN, Website
How secure is secure? Information on your computer, smartphone or TV could be at risk. There is some fantastic support around to help and guide so read on to discover what I’ve found:
How secure Is Secure? – Suspicious emails
Having had a few comments on my blogs my suspicions were raised as I noted the addresses of the emails. It’s nice to think my posts have reached a large global audience .de (Germany) and .xyz (who knows where?) but beware! Don’t approve comments without first checking their credibility. How? I put the question out to social media and as a result I received an interesting tweet from Liam @ZaddleMarketing
Liam advised me not to click any links or email addresses in those suspicious comments, confirming my fears that these posts were SPAM. A good security plugin for my WordPress site will solve the problem. Thank you Liam for your sound advice.
There are lots of good people on social media who can be trusted of which Liam is one. It’s always best to ask the question of your contacts if ever you’re in doubt.
Thank You Kerrin
Thank you Kerrin @Kerrinwilson999 for your hospitality (and the lovely cake of course). It was lovely to meet you and I’m looking forward to extending the reach of LincsConnect to include regular posts by you and your team. Thankfully I have already had some security tips from some of your colleagues and that information has proved invaluable. Hopefully you’ll enjoy my short post here today and will have time to add a comment too.
Meetings always seem more productive with cake!
Getting It Right By Chance
I’ve heard that smart speakers listen to our conversations. It’s not uncommon for adverts to pop up on our social media platforms directly relating to a conversation the previous day. It’s extremely uncommon (I’m led to believe) that an iMac can be infected but if it’s going to happen to anyone, it’ll happen to me!
Technology and I don’t always gel I’m afraid. Having feared the worst following a rash of phishing emails (ransom emails sent to my inbox supposedly from my own address) it was time for action. The safest solution was to contact Lincolnshire Police Cyber Crime Unit who responded very quickly with a visit to my office.
A full inspection of my computer confirmed that the emails were really just phishing emails and should be deleted. A nagging feeling that something wasn’t right remained after several other incidents with my computer. As a result I contacted Apple who decided a full restore and section by section re-build was required. I’m happy now that my computer and details are safe once again. If you’re worried about your online safety and security don’t hesitate to contact a professional for help.
What If…?
What if it’s true that the smart devices can leak our information? A recent BBC Panorama programme about Amazon revealed that they knowingly and openly harvest and use our information. I don’t think the machines (or people) are listening to every conversation but when key words are detected the link is made with you and your devices.
Recent news reports highlighted that smart devices can be hacked and accessed remotely. The video doorbells, video baby monitors and even smart TVs and smart fridges are all susceptible to hackers. Accessing our personal data can be very upsetting and worrying of course so we need to protect ourselves.
Basic Protection
How secure is secure? If we can access any devices from our smartphone it’s a fair bet that the unscrupulous criminals can do the same. The smart fridge, smart monitor and smart TV come with factory settings and passwords. These settings can be found easily online so to prevent hacking make sure you change the passwords immediately.
Hacking your fridge isn’t too much of a problem of course but accessing your router from your fridge or your smart TV etc may be more sinister.
How Secure Is Secure? Passwords
The obvious and most basic form of self protection is strong passwords. Do change the passwords from factory settings to something that you can remember. Family, friends or pets names do not make good passwords. These names are likely to crop up on your social media pages at some point so can easily be guessed.
Random passwords are by far the best option. For the best security have different passwords for different logins. There are some very clever Apps around that can store your passwords for you but I’m sure you’ll have a system that works for you.
Privacy
You can secure your devices by making sure they are protected by a security password, facial recognition, finger print and VPN (I’ll cover VPN later).
It’s better to be safe than sorry! Keeping your personal information safe should be a high priority and simple precautions may be all you need.
If you have data stored on you mobile device make sure it’s protected with a security code and backed up regularly. Some devices can be deleted remotely; Check so see if you can do that with your own device and make sure you learn how to do it.
How Secure Is Secure? Two Factor Authenticaton
Added security comes with two factor authentication – that’s when you get an alert on your chosen device to tell you that someone is accessing your other devices. My iPhone will prompt me to confirm that I am who I say I am when I log onto my computer. As a result I have to type in a ‘one time’ code before the computer will let me in. It takes seconds and provides an extra level of security.
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How Secure Is Secure?
Change your passwords from factory settings to secure ones that aren’t easily guessed. Use a different password for every device. So you’re good to go….? Well, not quite! Your router may not be secure so if you’re not sure ask your provider to guide you through changing the factory set password.
You’re ‘almost’ there… You’re now safe in your own home but not when you’re out and about if you’re using public WiFi. How secure is that system? Your final piece of security is VPN.
VPN
What is VPN? This is the explanation from Wikipedia: “A virtual private network extends a private network across a public network, and enables users to send and receive data across shared or public networks as if their computing devices were directly connected to the private network.” You might want to look this one up for yourself.
A ‘belt and braces’ approach to security but if you have any private or confidential information on your devices do read a bit more about it. It is a ‘paid for’ service so you’ll need to be aware of that and you’ll also need to be aware that not all internet routers are capable of installing it. Once installed on your home router ‘all’ devices using that WiFi connection will be protected under the higher level of security. I have it installed and the one I chose covers six devices. I have it on my iPhone and iPad so that I know I’m secure whenever I log into a public WiFi system.
It’s Good To Share
All of this information comes from trusted people I’ve spoken to who have been kind enough to guide me. I’m not an expert but some of the things I’ve learned along the way and printed here will no doubt be useful to you. If you are able to share other tips that may be useful for other users feel free to add a comment and send a message on twitter or Facebook using the hashtag #LincsConnect
Helping each other is always good of course. If you need additional help contact your Internet Service Provider (ISP) or local IT specialist. If you’re worried about cyber security contact @lincspolice and ask about their Cyber Security courses. I’ve been on one and can highly recommend it. After all, these are the experts who really want to help you to prevent crime.
Back Soon
Thank you all for taking the time to read my ramblings. I’ll be back soon with more blogs of course but keep watching as they are about to evolve into something quite unique.
Best wishes
by admin | Mar 9, 2020 | Chocolate, Food, Lincolnshire, lincolnshire Business, Lincs Connect, LincsConnect, Networking
Chocolate
Chocolate tasting in Lincolnshire with Katherine Laverack. Do I have your attention now? I suspect there aren’t many people who don’t like chocolate but apologies to those of you who don’t like it or can’t eat it. However, when we’re out shopping it seems very difficult to avoid it. So much so that we hardly even register in our mind that it’s there!
If you’re like me you’ll enjoy sitting down to watch something on TV and will quite possibly end up eating more of it than you really should. That is of course until you’re educated in the art of real chocolate eating…
Louth Chocolate Tasters
They say ‘ignorance is bliss’ and that may be true but once you’ve been educated there is no going back. I’m a chocolate lover so imagine my excitement when I was invited to join Kathryn @KathrynLincs for a chocolate tasting evening. The group meets in Louth for a chocolate tasting evening but other venues are available as well as online courses.
Let’s get to the important bit – ‘chocolate’. The meeting was held in The Brown Cow Louth at 7.30pm. It all sounds very formal doesn’t it? in reality it’s just a group of very friendly people with a common love of chocolate.
I had no idea what to expect but I took my seat and waited in quiet anticipation. Well, that’s not quite true. We were all getting into conversations with people around us and there was a very friendly buzz in the room.
Meet the members
If any of you have been to a wine tasting event I suspect you’ve a good idea how my chocolate tasting evening was going to go. We each had a couple of information sheets with details of the evenings chocolatiers as well as a separate page for making notes. You’ll see my note page below with my scribbled reminders on. It doesn’t look very pretty but then my hand writing never is!
Note taking for future reference and comparisons
As you can see from the heading on my note paper, the focus for the evening was Canadian chocolate. Perhaps I should elaborate; This was some of the finest Canadian chocolate and the selection certainly surpassed my expectations.
From Canada To Lincolnshire
Let the tasting begin
If you hadn’t already noticed from my notes above, would you have known that you’re actually meant to suck the chocolate in order to experience the full flavours? Being used to the standard Cadburys or ‘posh’ Belgian chocolates my instinct was to put the chocolate in my mouth, chew it and swallow. It’s a good job Kathryn was on hand to educate me in the finer art of chocolate tasting!
One Square Or Two?
Actually, a platter was handed around the table and we each took ‘half’ a square of chocolate to smell and taste. This may sound a little odd but the idea here is to taste the chocolate not gorge on it. We each made our own notes (in my case, ‘scribbles’) and discussed what we had found.
I’m sure my notes are very sparse compared to the regular club members. Following the discussion around the table I soon realised that I had not noticed some of the key flavours of each of the samples. Other members were detecting berries and other subtle flavours that I had missed but immediately recognised as soon as they were pointed out to me.
All of the samples on offer were dark chocolate and of varying percentages but it soon became apparent to me that not all dark chocolate is bitter. The Soma Arcana is 100% and not to my taste. I did get the flavours but it wasn’t a chocolate that I would buy. Well, we can’t please everyone all of the time can we?
I did have a favourite though and that was the Sirene Dark Milk Guatemala at 65%. It’s almost identical (to my amateur pallet) to the Sirene Chabil but smother and without the Cardamom. I did say ‘almost’ identical didn’t I? I’m sure the seasoned chocolate tasters will allow me my novice opinion.
The Debris
After nine samples of half a square each and one hour forty minutes later the evening came to an end. Needless to say, there were a few empty wrappers left over but very little chocolate. A thoroughly enjoyable evening in good company and held in a private room in The Brown Cow pub, Newmarket in Louth. Our hosts were Kathryn www.cocoaencounters.co.uk and Lindsay www.spirechocolates.co.uk and I’m truly grateful for my invitation and education.
Trust me, once you’ve experienced one of these evenings you’ll view your chocolate consumption in a completely different light.
Do It Yourself
If you would like to set up a group in your area please get in touch with Kathryn who will be more than happy to help you. You can book a course of your own by contacting Katherine on twitter @kathrynLincs or by email at cocoaencounters@gmail.com. You don’t need to be an expert but it’ll help if you like chocolate.
Visits
Would you like me to visit your place of work or group? I’m sure you’ll have something very interesting to share with the County and I would really be pleased to help you spread your message. You can contact me through the website www.lincsconnect.co.uk via Twitter @LincsConnect or through Facebook Lincs Connect. I’ll be waiting to hear from you.
by admin | Mar 9, 2020 | Hashtags, Lincolnshire, lincolnshire Business, Lincs Connect, LincsConnect, Networking, Uncategorized
Don’t Underestimate The Power Of Social Media
I suspect we will all agree that social media can be a very powerful tool. Using it to showcase your work and advertise your skills is obvious of course but many forget to use it to network too. Networking on social media is easy and quiet individual. Those of you who know me as @MANDARINLEISURE will no doubt be familiar with my early morning music quiz where I post lyrics from my daily ear worm (I always wake up with a song going around in my head). It started out by accident but has become a daily ritual and gets lots of engagement from around the world. It increases my ‘reach’ and makes me a good account in the eyes of the twitter bots. Following up with conversations and light hearted chatter keeps the connections alive and, I’m pleased to say, has resulted in me making some very good friends as well as a few business connections and commissions.
Grow Your Business On Social Media
Some big businesses are extremely good on social media of course. I recently had cause to tweet @AppleSupport following an issue I had with my iMac and the response and service I received were second to none. Thank you Apple for your care and attention. Obviously Apple are a very big company and probably have a vast social media team looking after their customer enquiries. That doesn’t mean they ‘have’ to be good at it though. However, they ‘are’ very good at it and we can all learn lessons from their forward thinking and caring ethos.
Good Manners Cost Nothing
Alas, not all larger companies are as good as they could be. I recently had an enquiry from outside of the County and I happily gave two separate recommendations. Neither of the recommended companies bothered to thank me for those recommendations until I publicly tweeted my disappointment at their lack of response. As a sole trader I look forward to recommendations, retweets, shares, and comments from all businesses but I do wonder why so many larger local businesses refrain from sharing or commenting on other peoples hard work.
Does Social Media Work?
Hand made ‘Ribcage Light’
Of course it does! This morning I tweeted a request for some original local pictures depicting local business. My request was answered within seconds by @ArtedlyLight who design and make bespoke lights. Not mass produced lighting but hand crafted, made with love, feeling and a lot of soul for each client.
Social media shares and good old fashioned recommendations will help small companies like this (and me) to become larger and more profitable companies. A more profitable company might employ staff then more staff and become a larger business. It’s important to remember though that this small business is ‘here’…. ‘right now’! Small businesses like ours have more chance of growing if we work together and share each others work to reach a wider audience.
Please take a look at www.light-artedly.co.uk to see what Emma and Jim provide. Obviously they are ready to take your commissions but will be happy to have your recommendations too.
Share And Share Alike
When you’re using your social media please don’t be one of ‘those’ companies who just posts their own work and expect everyone else to share it for you. Be an ‘Apple’ or better still, be a @LincsConnect. To see what other local businesses are doing on social media make sure you regularly search the #LincsConnect hashtag. Look what’s going on, share a few messages and make some positive comments. You’ll quickly learn who the supportive businesses are and you’ll form bonds. It’s good to share and if you get the chance, it’s good to support with a purchase too.
Let’s all work together
by admin | Feb 29, 2020 | Authors, book fest, books, Children, Illustrators, lincolnshire Business, Lincs Connect, Schools
A reading, writing and illustrating treat
I’m hoping this is going to become an annual event in Scunthorpe as it’s promising to be a real boost for authors and illustrators as well as local publishers. If you have a children’s book in your head and wonder what you can do with it, this event may be just what you need. Perhaps teachers would like to get involved too by taking their children along to be entertained and enthused at the North Lincs Kids Book Fest.
Every day is a learning day
Every day is a learning day for children and adults alike of course but when you have some experts on hand to help you expand your creativity wouldn’t it be a good idea to go along to see what they have to offer?
The event is being brought to you by Rabbit Hole Brigg and Pink Pig Farm and will be held at Pink Pig Farm (The North Lincolnshire Kids Book Fest 2020 – follow the link to book and for more info).
A few words from Nick…
I’m sure you will agree it’s best to hear direct from one of the organisers so here’s a summary by Nick from the ‘Rabbit Hole Brigg’
Who will be there?
I understand that there will be quite a few authors and illustrators on hand over the weekend but these are the ones I have information on:
“All of these authors and many more will be at the Pink Pig Farm on 7 & 8 March as will The Rabbit Hole. For more information about these guest authors please feel free to look at their personal websites.
“The Rabbit Hole Brigg are passionate about trying to get more authors and illustrators into this area and we are very excited to be taking this first step towards our goal of hosting an annual event”
For more information please email therabbithole.brigg@outlook.com ot telephone Nick on 01652 408534
More to come…
This is my longest blog so far but there is much more to come. If you would like to have your local event/interest/hobby/charity featured here please email me through the LincsConnect website.
Thats it for now, but keep watching for the next blog as it’ll be here soon.
M
by admin | Feb 26, 2020 | book fest, books, Chocolate, Lincolnshire, lincolnshire Business, Lincs Connect, Lincs Police, LincsConnect, LincsPolice, Networking, police, Scunthorpe
Meetings always seem more productive with cake!
An unexpected perk
It’s an unexpected but very welcome perk of the job. I’ve been lucky enough to meet some lovely people through #LincsConnect and the past few days is no exception.
I’ll be writing in more detail over the next few days about each of my meetings but first let me state quite categorically that feeding me at a meeting isn’t a requirement…. but I am, of course, always very appreciative and it would be rude to say ‘no’ wouldn’t it?
I was invited by Kathryn of Cocoa Encounters to visit the Louth Chocolate Tasters meeting on Monday evening. Well, would you turn down an invitation like that? Probably not – so neither did I…
I’m going to be writing all about it later but if you’re feeling a little intrigued you can follow Kathryn on Twitter for updates and info @KathrynLincs
I’m not giving too much away but this is all that was left at the end of the evening:
Anyone for cake?
Sorry, that’s probably another silly question. However, it was a very pleasant surprise and totally unexpected. A 10.00am meeting at Police HQ today (actually, it was about 10.15am because yours truly managed to take a wrong turning) with Assistant Chief Constable Kerrin Wilson. Despite being a little late (a detail that was graciously overlooked) I was treated to a slice or two of orange drizzle cake to go with my cup of coffee. Thank you Kerrin, you’re very kind.
I’m looking forward to seeing what #LincsConnect can do to help @lincspolice in the not-too-distant future and I have to say, if Kerrin’s enthusiasm is anything to go by we can look forward to some quality updates very soon. Why not give @Kerrinwilson999 a follow on Twitter and don’t forget to say “Martin from @LincsConnect sent me” I’m afraid it may not get you a slice of orange drizzle cake though but it’s the thought that counts isn’t it?
At the very least, I can offer you a picture of the cake. You’ll thank me for it later when it doesn’t affect your waist line.
Meetings always seem more productive with cake!
Looking forward, I’ll be writing more in depth blogs about the Louth Chocolate Tasters as well as my meeting with Kerrin. There is also a blog to look forward to about the ‘Book Fest’ which is being organised by Rabbit Hole Brigg and Pink Pig Farm which I think is going to be a huge success and an annual fixture in the Scunthorpe calendars.
That’s it for now folks. Take care of yourself and don’t forget to take care of others too. The #LincsConnect hashtag is here for you to use on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram so be sure to visit it to see what’s going on.
M
