Today the world is changing faster than we can keep up with.
We have new technology, new cars, and new diets, all that is fed to us as consumers while we have difficulties adjusting to these new trends.
At the same time we are missing out on meaningful connections. We forget about our families, we forget about our friends except for the ones on Facebook of course.
Galya Westler is the founder of Plazus Technologies Inc. and 2Galvanize Web & Mobile Solution Ltd, a company based out of Vancouver Canada, pivoting from being a service company to a product company called Plazus- a mobile social app builder (kinda like creating mini facebooks for businesses)
Her goal in life is to inspire people to achieve their career goals and particularly women around the world to be as strong and as influential as they can be to then set examples for others to follow.
Coming up on May 28th, Galya will be presenting her talk titled “social media obesity is the new addiction” at TedXStanleyPark which dives into the issue of social media overuse, and our disconnect with our surroundings.
Tell us about yourself
For starters I am a technologist, team leader, and a practical woman. I have created been involved in creating over 100 websites, B2B solutions and in particularly apps and private social networks for businesses. Seeing a need in the market for businesses to create their own “Facebook” ecosystem outside of Facebook.
Asides from that I am a workaholic, social media addict, public speaker, and I also run the Vancouver Entrepreneurs Toastmasters public speaking club, with over 70 members and guests. I know it sounds like a lot but I am crazy this way and like to keep busy.
What was your inspiration behind 2Galvanize and how did you start?
I graduated from software engineering university in Israel, and I have to say that Israel is one of the most stimulating countries, with high end talent, and plenty of competition. These young minds are starting off in the army, with the best training, and many times they go off and start their own successful startups.
Being pretty fast, and efficient, I hit the corporate glass ceiling fast in the IT market, having 80-90% success rate in tech projects I led. During which, I started to think also “why am I making money for someone else”? So I started 2Galvanize out of my desire to be involved with as many projects as possible and to set an example prove that for others to seize opportunities in life.
How has social media impacted our daily lives and what can be done to fix it?
Well my talk at TEDxStanleyPark addresses this issue, and is one that affects a large portion of the population today. Social media Companies use techniques that hook people into their platforms, and Facebook is a classic example. It works because when people go online, and people start following them, and getting likes they feel like superstars and they get sucked into it and they love the attention, they crave it as a matter of fact.
Some research suggest that we stop using social media all together to overcome that addiction. I think that it is not the way to go about it, and that we should use it wisely to create meaningful connections instead. My company Plazus.com helps create communities online that connects businesses, people, and like minded individuals to create real authentic relationships. This approach emphasizes an actual trend of the micro social networks instead of the traditional macro ones.
Has speaking at TEDx ever been a goal of yours, and what does it mean to speak this year?
Any person who is an intellectual is recommended to watch a TED talk everyday they are just that impactful. Listening to thought leaders around the world like Steve Jobs can only add value. TED talks are like the news, it is where people can do, and learn about new inventions, terrifying disasters, and how we should deal with these everyday problems.
Anyone who has something to share to the world should use TED as their platform if their message is worth spreading and unique .
For me, I think it would be cool if my talk at TEDxStanleyPark ends up reaching TED.com site.
If you had to describe Roger Killen in one word, what would it be?
I have known Roger for years; he is the founder of my toastmasters club and my friend. He is such a hard worker, and is accurate in everything he does. He puts a lot of pressure on all that are involved in making TedxStanleyPark a legendary event and to be at a very high level when performing, but he is just like a caring parent. It is not popular being strict, but it is the right thing to do when you are the producer of one of the biggest events in town.
Lastly, what is your favorite spot in Vancouver to catch the sunset?
It would definitely have to be Kitsilano since I live right by it.
