Personal – Alex Calinescu

Driving as a kid

Posted on October 20, 2018October 20, 2018 by Alex Calinescu in Uncategorized

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I have always been passionate about cars and driving, My first memory of driving was sitting on my dad’s lap and steering and shifting gears as he pressed the clutch. He would pull over on our backroad and let me drive down till we reached our house. I loved being behind the wheel, his car was a Peugeot, a French car which was featured in the movie Taxi, a French version of Fast and Furious. I would watch him shift gears and press the clutch, every single car in Romania was equipped with a manual transmission.

Once day, I was up to no good. My dad left the key in car and parked it at the end of the driveway. I was about 8 years old and I thought I could drive the car. I got inside it and didn’t know anything about making the car move, I twisted the key and pressed the clutch… out of nowhere the car launched forward and stalled as the fender scraped our gate. This was one of the craziest ideas that I had ever had. I panicked and ran to the neighbors to ask them to reverse the car back to where it was parked. I scuffed up the side and I tried to wipe off the green paint from the silver fender. Luckily the paint wiped off as I buffed with my t-shirt. A Romanian saying from my grandma is “the devil’s horns were growing on my head” because I was doing bad things.

Image result for stick shift pedal — Clutch Pedal

A couple of years later, I wanted to learn how to drive a manual car without anyone’s help. On my 13th birthday I successfully learned to shift gears. My mom taught me how to slowly let go of the clutch and give the car gas. I think I stalled the car about 5 or so times, this made my mom very angry. 1st gear was hell for me, the car would just jerk forward and or stall. I managed to get up to 3rd gear in the abandoned space where I was driving. I realized once I got out of 1st gear that everything became so much more simple. Since we are from Europe, my moms new car when I was 15 was again stick shift, I had to relearn again how to drive manual on a new car. I was so nervous because stalling a new car was bad for the clutch and I didn’t want to ruin it. My biggest fear was thinking the car would stop when I press the brake while it is still in gear.

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After 5 years of driving manual, I think I got the hang of it pretty well and I learned a few tricks which sadly weren’t so friendly to my clutch because I had to replace the clutch on a 6 year old car, this should have lasted me another 4 years. My favorite thing about driving manual is always being busy in the car and I feel less distracted. I love messing with the clutch and making the tires squeak. Sometimes I wish I could drive an automatic because driving to Philly in traffic is one of the worst drives for a stick driver. I think that in the future I am going to buy another manual car to uphold my European roots, I actually almost bought another manual car this summer but it sold before I could go back.

#Driving #manualtransmission #cars

https://jalopnik.com/5230172/how-to-drive-a-stick-shift-in-ten-easy-steps

http://momvantage.net/2013/07/18/nine-steps-to-help-your-16-year-old-be-a-safe-driver/

Social media engagement

Posted on October 7, 2018October 7, 2018 by Alex Calinescu in Social Media

Since most companies have a social media presence, it is essential to engage with social stakeholders! In todays ever changing environment, having a social media page is not sufficient. Companies must communicate and interact with stakeholders through comments, retweets, likes, shout-outs, and giveaways.

Interactively engaging with the public on social media builds a positive relationship between the company and the consumer. If a customer comments on a company’s FaceBook page and seeks assistance, they expect a response. Disregarded comments may leave the customer feeling ignored, as if the brand does not care. Statistics reveal that approximately 70% of people in the United States are on social media networks. It is reported that about 49% of social media users ranging from 18 to 29 purchase products online after seeing social media posts. 77% of Millennial’s have stated that they have purchased one or more items after seeing an advertisement on social media!

In my perspective, Toyota Motors USA exceeds the standard in social media engagement. Toyota actively posts photos and videos, while also replying to stakeholders and engages with possible future consumers.

Screen Shot 2018-10-07 at 8.08.37 PM.png — Toyota USA Facebook page

While browsing advertisements for Toyota through Facebook and Instagram, I realized that Toyota left no comment noticed! Each person got an individual response from the social media department! This type of engagement can leave the customer feeling valued and relevant.

Toyota is not only commenting on positive experiences but also aiding those who have had mishaps at local dealerships or with their vehicles. If additional contact is needed, Toyota will provide a phone number and name to a special advisor at Toyota USA.

Screen Shot 2018-10-07 at 8.20.38 PM.png — Apple Facebook

While checking out the page of Apple, the tech giant, not one comment or reply from Apple! This is an example of a terrible social media strategy. As you are able to see, the date of their last profile picture update was in 2016… Social media engagement is not one of Apple’s strong suits.

In 2016, T-Mobile launched their “T-Mobile Tuesdays” program in which current subscribers receive free giveaways on Tuesdays. This company is successfully keeping stakeholders engaged and content. The giveaways feature items such as T-Mobile branded merchandise, free movie tickets, $2 Dunkin’ Donuts gift cards and more!

Overall, it is beneficial for a company to actively post, engage with consumers, respond to positive and negative feedback, and hold giveaways. Companies that do not engage with users can negatively impact their reputation in customer service. Remember consumers do purchase products from social media websites directly and if you are interactively connecting with them, you are more likely to retain their relationship!

#socialmedia #FaceBook #stakeholders #Apple #T-Mobile #socialstakeholders

References and Related Articles:

https://www.lyfemarketing.com/blog/social-media-marketing-statistics/

https://standingpartnership.com/three-ways-to-enhance-stakeholder-engagement-with-social-media/

https://www.facebook.com/toyota/

https://www.facebook.com/JohnJLegere/

A Journey Across The Globe

Posted on September 21, 2018 by Alex Calinescu in Uncategorized

I have decided to write about moving to the United Stated, Most of you don’t know that I was born in Bucharest, Romania. A country located in Eastern Europe. I moved here without knowing any words in English. America has been the most welcoming country to my mother and I, she says that feel like she was born here. Although my story of what happened when moved here is a little unfortunate.

It was a cold early morning on December 17, 2007, in Bucharest, Romania. My dad and I were heading to the airport to fly to the United States. This was the start of new beginning for me, full of happiness, new opportunities and ups and downs. I left all of my family and close friends behind not knowing when I would return in order to start a new life with my mother. She had been living in the U.S for only two years; working a full time job so she could raise me on her own. This new country amazed me. Everyone had big smiles on their faces, and people were so polite and kind they made me feel welcomed. I spoke no English, and had only one piece of paper with my name and my address. In 4th grade, I was enrolled into Penn Wayne Elementary School, took an ESL class, and used Rosetta Stone everyday. The only way to express myself was through drawing and gestures, which sometimes did not help. Just three months after moving in with my mom and two days after my 10th birthday, I was awaken by the sound of my parakeet chirping in alarm. It was a nightmare becoming reality, as smoke began to billow from the power outlets and the house started to tremble. My mom and I were unsure of what was happening. We thought that the power adapter caught fire, so we opened all the windows. To our dismay, more and more smoke continued to pour into the house, so we ran outside in our pajamas. The second floor tenants had called the fire department when they spotted a flame by the entrance, but within minutes the entire third floor was up in flames. I can remember my mom screaming and crying while I stood there in awe, too young to be fully aware of all of what was happening. We stood outside in our pajamas at two in the morning watching flames burst out of all the windows. Everything my mom had worked for and earned was now ash and permanently destroyed.

This is what the house looked like, It was in the newspaper with flames bursting out of the windows. It smelled horrible, I will never forget that smell.

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#MovingTotheUS #mystory