Make It With Michael

By Justin Kerby Ah, that elusive creative spark. It often seems like just when you need it the most, it’s the hardest to find. It can show up without warning (often at 3am) or leave without permission (often after a manager asks for your ideas). And it can be the hardest of all to manifest first thing in the morning when your caffeine hit is still kicking in and your inbox is full of new emails. The good news is, researchers have unearthed some surprising facts about the human body and brain that can help you maximize your creativity in the morning. It turns out that there are several things that we can do each and every day to boost our creative output and keep the ideas flowing. Here are seven essential hacks to help you supercharge your morning routine and expand your creative output. 1. Stop hitting the snooze button Sorry, but this one is a non-negotiable. If you want to be creative in the morning, the first thing you have to do is wake up early. You can’t write a novel, pa...

By James Mulvey If you’re like me, you skipped, slept, and talked through every high school math class. Years later, you have to explain things like “we gave you $50,000 to spend on Facebook ads—what’s the return on investment [ROI]?” or “what’s our average growth rate for website traffic this quarter?” Thankfully, the internet has given us a lot of tools and ROI calculators. Tools are helpful—but it’s embarrassing if you don’t really know the simple math behind ROI calculations. And if a spreadsheet breaks or tool gives you an error, you have no way of double-checking a report before sending it to your boss. Use these four ROI formulas to better prove and analyze the ROI of your social media and digital channels. I’ve also included links to further resources, so that you become a master of these simple and powerful ways to calculate your ROI. 4 ROI formulas to prove the value of social media and impress your boss 1. How to measure your (true) ROI Marketers make a common mistake...