Have you ever wished you could find a way to look better on video conference calls (Zoom, etc.)?

There are are a number of things that can contribute to this, and one factor is to switch to a better camera.

Today I’ll be sharing how you can use your Android-based mobile phone as a Webcam on your PC.

The short answer is an old Android phone (Huawei Y6) is connected to my laptop (Predator Triton 300) via USB cable, and to turn it into a Webcam I use an app called Droidcam.

In fact, I liked it so much that I’m now using the Pro version called DroidcamX which unlocks HD mode.

If you want more details and know 3 things I like as well as 3 things I don’t like about it so that you can assess for yourself if using your phone as a Webcam on your PC will be worth-it, then read on.

Why should you use your phone as a webcam? Here are 3 things that I like about it:

1. Your phone already has a better camera. In case you didn’t know, the most popular webcam as of this writing (2020) is the Logitech C920. And this is a webcam that was released way back in 2012. In the same year, the Samsung Galaxy S3 and iPhone 5 were released. How much better are mobile phones today compared to those phones back in 2012?
2. Potentially minimum to no cost. If you have an old Android phone that is newer than the S3, and can capture HD videos, then chances are you’ll have a better camera compared to your laptop’s built-in webcam. And you probably no longer need to purchase a “better webcam” than the one you already have if there’s an old phone somewhere inside your drawer collecting dust or acting as paperweight.
3. Better camera angles. Compared to your laptop’s built-in webcam that looks up at your nose and exposes your double-chin, you can mount your mobile phone on a tripod so you can raise it higher to simulate a more natural face-to-face view. Sure, you can prop your laptop on some books to raise the built-in webcam’s camera angle, but it would render your laptop’s keyboard barely usable if you want to type notes while in a video conference meeting. Having your mobile phone as a separate device gives you better versatility to get what you think is the best camera angle.

Why should you not do this? Here are 3 things that I don’t like about it:

1. It’s not plug-and-play. There’s a fair amount of setting up that you need to do to get it to work the first time. Details on the Droidcam website. Plus every time you turn on the computer, you need to re-establish the connection with your mobile phone. Some people might not have the patience for it. But for me, not only have I gotten used to it just fine, it takes less than a minute for me to set up, and it’s become part of my ritual before I begin working for the day.
2. It hinders portability. If you keep going around from one room to another, or one location to another, it’s quite cumbersome to lug around a tripod and a phone stand. What I do is I just set this up at my home office where I spend majority of my work time anyway, then if I have to go around, I bring with me just the laptop and I make do with the built-in webcam.
3. Latency only if you use wifi to connect your mobile phone to your PC, where you end up with jittery video. For latency-free video, you must hard-wire the mobile-phone to your PC via USB cable.

The verdict?

Have you ever noticed that in video conference calls (Zoom, etc.), those who joined using their mobile phones usually have the sharpest images, while those joining using their laptops have the most grainy, unflattering images?

However, if you join using your mobile phone, there’s no way for you to see screenshares properly due to the small screen size.

So using your mobile phone as a Webcam on your PC gives you the best of both worlds – a great camera for the best possible image of you, while having the convenience of your usual monitor for screensharing.

If having a professional image is important to you, then this is probably the best and budget-friendly setup you can do, next to using a proper DSLR video camera which will give you that creamy bokeh effect.

What do you think? Are you willing to try this out? Or have you been using it already? What do you like about it? Comment below. I’d love to hear from you.

The post HOW TO Use your Phone as a Webcam on your PC appeared first on Robbie Agustin.

For today’s #thankfulthursdays I would like to give gratitude to Deborah Torres-Patel for this piece of advice.

In a previous article I’ve talked about How to Instantly Overcome your Fear of Public Speaking. But Deborah’s advice sums this up entirely.

What she says is that this piece of advice is worth millions of dollars as it has been utilized by professional public speakers across the globe.

And that is:

“Public Speaking is just talking to one person at a time in front of other people.”

Let me give you a specific example based on my own personal experience.

In the past, my weakness was really about public speaking. I was afraid to go onstage and talk in front of other people.

Public speaking gave me a lot of anxiety. I used to stutter a lot, plus I had a very monotonous voice. All while I had butterflies in my stomach.

That’s one of the reasons why I did networking.

The money was one factor, but I was also amazed at how the speaker had so much confidence. His stage presence was on point. I wanted to be that good at public speaking.

Fast forward to 2018, I have since long left the world of networking, but I still carried with me the lessons I have learned at public speaking.

I have gained a lot of confidence, I no longer stuttered, my tonality has become very lively, and I have learned to harness the energy of having butterflies in my stomach, and turn it from nervousness into excitement.

But there was still a missing factor – establishing a connection, making you, as a member of the audience, feel as if I am speaking directly to you, and no one else.

And that is what Deborah has summed up nicely.

Simply put, all you have to do to establish a great connection with every audience member, is to take it as if you are talking to one person at a time, but only that you’re in front of other people.

So the way you talk should be as if you are talking to one person alone.

That means, you are not supposed to say things such as:

• “Ladies and Gentlemen”
• “How is everybody doing today”
• “How many of you”

Because those are words that you do not use in a one-on-one conversation.

Instead, talk as if you were addressing one person alone:

• “Hi”
• “How are you doing today”
• “Raise your hand if”

See the difference?

And that is the x-factor that some of the best public speakers in the world have, that others don’t.

How about you, what are the common words that some people wrongly use to address the audience as a crowd, and how do you think you can rephrase them to talk to one person alone?

Respond with a comment.

The post Public Speaking is just Talking to One Person at a Time in front of Other People appeared first on Robbie Agustin.

After all the feedback, responses, and inputs I got, I’m very close to finishing the long-awaited program which will be called TRAIN MY PROCESS IMPROVEMENT PERSON. I have been working on this for almost a year, and I’m planning to release it in the next few weeks.

This program will be entirely focused on how you or your process improvement person can acquire the highly-valued skillset of being able to find and solve for opportunity areas to improve, streamline, and automate areas in your business to reduce cost and increase revenue – skills that are absolutely essential in the field of Management Consulting.

It will include a private coaching community as an add-on, which will allow you to:

1. Get to talk to me, Robbie Agustin, the creator of the program
2. Get to connect with other people in the community to cross-pollinate ideas and share best practices
3. Get your specific questions answered

It will be a complete brain-dump of everything I know about Business Optimization. If only I can do a download straight to your brain like The Matrix, I would. But our technology today isn’t exactly there yet.

This program will cover all of the strategies I’ve used to optimize the Fortune 500 businesses I have worked with, where normally the opportunity to learn these skillsets are only made available to those who can be backed by large corporate funding.

But I would like to change all that by making all this available to entrepreneurs and employees like you, to help take your business and/or career to the next level, and get you one step closer to achieving the life you have always been dreaming of.

However, I need your help. Before I finalize everything for production, I would need to make sure I’ve covered everything.

That is where you come in.

Please take a few moments to answer this. We’ll, there is really just one thing I want to ask you.

When it comes to Business Process Improvement, what’s your BIGGEST CHALLENGE or FRUSTRATION that I absolutely need to answer in the program – TRAIN MY PROCESS IMPROVEMENT PERSON?

Reply with a comment.

The post I need your help – TRAIN MY PROCESS IMPROVEMENT PERSON appeared first on Robbie Agustin.

Lately I noticed that after one of my talks about Automation, Agile, or Robotics, people come to me and ask how I seemed so good onstage. Then they ask me how they can conquer their fear of public speaking.

If you’re in the same boat, then I have something that might be of value to you. But first, let me ask you a question.

What goes through your mind before going onstage? Fear of making a mistake? Feeling conscious about your looks? Butterflies in your stomach? You wanna know what’s common about all those thoughts? They’re all about YOU.

Well let me ask you something my friend, why are you there in the first place?

It’s because you have something of value that you will convey to your them!

Tip: It’s not about YOU, it’s about your AUDIENCE.

Put yourself in their shoes. You’ve been part of the audience before haven’t you? What goes in in your mind? I’m pretty sure it’s mostly thoughts like what’s listed below.

What your audience wants:

• What’s in it for me? What can I get out of this?
• Will this be worth my time and effort?
• Will I be entertained?
• Will I learn something?
• Will I get my money’s worth?
• Otherwise, why else should I be here in the first place?

If you, as the speaker, sometimes feel like you want to walk-out or wonder what you put yourself into, think about your audience for one minute and not about yourself.

Conclusion:

If you have something of value to share to them that will make a difference in their lives, then you will be doing them a disservice by entertaining your selfish thoughts. It’s not about you, it’s about your audience.

Call to action:

So, do you think this mindset shift will change the way you think on your next speaking engagement? Comment below. Share your thoughts and let’s talk.

The post How to Instantly Overcome your Fear of Public Speaking appeared first on Robbie Agustin.