Like many academics and teachers, over the past two weeks I’ve spent WAY TOO MANY hours transitioning from face-to-face to online teaching. In the process, I’ve experienced several epic fails, and, although I’m tempted to list them, instead, I’m following the principles of positive psychology and listing my successes. Woohoo!

Let me explain the woohoo. According to B. J. Fogg, a positive habit researcher, we should make gestures and say things like “Yessss!” and “Woohoo” to help instill the habit. He says that doing so releases dopamine in the brain and consequently serves to reinforce the habit you’re trying to establish. Despite the fact that I despise the over-focus on neurophysiology in general and the over-focus on single neurotransmitters in particular, I’m still going with Dr. Fogg’s recommendation.

Aside from painful and exhausting failures, my decision to use the words Moodle, Zoom, and Powerpoint as profanity, and the virtual absence of technical assistance, I’ve had three big successes. All three came in the form of videos. All three are now available on Youtube.

First, as many of you may know, at the end of an especially long and failure-filled day, I recorded myself doing a mood-enhancing happiness dance to M.C. Hammer’s “Can’t Touch This.” Not surprisingly, my students ignored my efforts to regale them with erudite knowledge, but they universally lauded, shared, and liked my happiness dance video. Here’s the link to this 1 minute sensation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fippweztcwg

Second, in an effort to bring life to powerpoint lectures, I interspersed various videos of myself making profound comments. Generally, the response to these videos was a collective “ho-hum.” However, my use of two action-figures, Captain America and Freud  to illustrate the pain of unrequited friendship and romantic love garnered rave reviews. You can view this masterpiece in less than 4 minutes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkDdG3aMr94

Third, inspired by Nick Heath’s Twitter-page, instead of a traditional (and boring) Moodle-based quiz, I decided to organize and deliver a Livestream Happiness Pub Quiz using Zoom. My discoveries: I loved doing the (Sober) Happiness Pub Quiz, and got great and positive feedback from the 30 participants. Although Zoom failed to record the session (Zoom does some things very well and other things, very badly or not at all), I made a rough and embarrassing recording using my iPad. This 55 minute soon-to-be viral classic is available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8auhzm1SFx8.

I present these video resources to you not because I’ve become a successful online instructor, but because I’ve become–through repeated failures and frustrations–a better online instructor who can now brag about three strategic successes.

Have a fabulous weekend, while staying safe, being socially distant, and regularly washing your hands and your brain.