Prof.

Yassine Hicham - CPGE – École Royale Navale

CPGE 1st Year: MPSI T.2|Unit 2|Lesson 1

 Thematic Outcomes
Theme Media & Society
Subtheme Social Media & Personal Development
Topic Want success? Two things you should focus on instead of social media
Expected Learning Outcome Students can talk about the impact of social media in developing personality.

Want Success?
Two things you should focus on instead of social media
John P Weiss. Sun 25 Nov 2018

Every Monday and Wednesday, I pay a guy to push my heart rate into the stratosphere and turn my muscles into 1
mush. His name is Tyler, and he’s my personal trainer. 2
For years, I worked out on my own. Haphazardly. I’d run a bit here, lift some weights there. I seldom warmed up 3
and frequently forgot to stretch. Afterwards, I’d come home and reward myself with a beer. 4
When I was younger, this exercise approach basically worked. I built some muscle and stamina. However, as I aged, 5
injuries started to mount. My shoulders became stiff. I gave myself tennis elbow from too many curls. 6
Last year, I finally bit the bullet and coughed up some dough for a twice-weekly trainer. That’s where Tyler comes 7
in. He went over my entire health history, injuries and fitness goals. Then he measured my body fat, fashioned a 8
training plan and we were off to the races. 9
Now, every Monday and Wednesday, whether I want to or not, I’m at the gym. We focus on core training, sort of like 10
CrossFit. After the workouts, I’m exhausted, but it’s a good kind of exhaustion. 11
When I get home, I stretch, shower and drink lots of water. No more beer. In fact, I eliminated alcohol and caffeine 12
from my diet completely. 13
When you pay for a personal trainer, it’s harder to flake on workouts. Paying makes it more of a priority. While 14
everyone else in the gym is snapping Instagram photos or getting lost on Facebook, Tyler is putting me through the 15
paces. Now, even when I work out alone, I always leave my iPhone in the car. 16
What does any of this have to do with social media? Mostly, that there are no short cuts to any place worth going. 17
Social media sucks a lot of time out of your day. It may be entertaining, and it can be helpful to market your business 18
or art. But it distracts you from achieving greater, personal success. 19
The authors Gary Keller and Jay Papasan wrote the book The One Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind 20
Extraordinary Results. The book drives home the importance of priorities. Some of the points they touch on include: 21

 Achievers use a success list, not a to do list. They have a strong sense of priority. 22
 If you want extraordinary results, you need to narrow your focus. 23
 Do your most important work, your “one thing”, when your willpower is strongest. For many people, that’s 24
early in the day. 25
 Ask the question: what’s the one thing I can do that will make everything else easier? 26
Essentially, the authors suggest that in every aspect of your life, prioritize the one thing that is most important. For 27
most of us, social media is probably not what’s most important. 28
Prof. Yassine Hicham - CPGE – École Royale Navale

A Seemingly Invaluable Tool 29

Apart from mindless entertainment, social media has become a seemingly invaluable tool to promote your business, 30
entrepreneurial ambitions and creative pursuits. 31
Everywhere you look these days, you’ll find online life coaches, aspiring writers and artists, as well as all manner of 32
businesses leveraging social media to promote themselves. Yet, for many of them, the stuff they’re peddling is not 33
that unique or valuable. It doesn’t stand out from all the other noise. 34
Technology has removed the gatekeepers of the past. Anyone can create an online platform for their art, music or 35
business. They don’t have to convince agents, editors or investors any more. 36
Unfortunately, there is no quality control. As a result, many aspiring writers, artists and entrepreneurs have their 37
hearts broken. They spend a lot of money on fancy websites, logos, photos and newsletter services. 38
They launch their websites, post like crazy all over social media, and wonder why the response is crickets. It’s sort 39
of like building a fancy sports car, with a spectacular paint job and accessories. Except the car doesn’t have an engine. 40
Sexy on the outside, but don’t look under the hood. 41
Social media success is a side-effect of quality, not the cause. You can pretty your Instagram account all you want, 42
and upload all kinds of lovely pictures on your Facebook page. None of that stuff, by itself, will make your art or 43
business take off. 44
If you want to be successful with your art or business, stop spinning your wheels on social media. Instead, focus on 45
these two things: 46
Rare and valuable. 47
Produce things that are rare and valuable. Instead of wasting all day grooming superficial stuff on social media, pour 48
your energy into mastering a difficult skill. If it’s not difficult, it won’t be rare. You won’t stand out, and success will 49
elude you. 50
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2018/nov/25/social-media-success-personal-growth

 Strategic Skills

Task 1: Critical Thinking

1. How can social media –long after being encroaching upon the human psyche– be a positive catalyst
for human change, any change?
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Prof. Yassine Hicham - CPGE – École Royale Navale

Commentary
Study the posters carefully and write a commentary. Do NOT exceed a 75-word paragraph. (+/-10%)

Illustrations: John P. Weiss

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 Linguistic Skills
Translation
Doc # 2 Modulation

Language Point
Doc # 3 Gerund and infinitive

Writing
Doc # 4 Persuasive Writing in detail