Author: knjohn

Complaining Rewires Your Brain for Negativity, Science Says | Inc.com

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Why do people complain? Not to torture others with their negativity, surely. When most of us indulge in a bit of a moan, the idea is to “vent.” By getting our emotions out, we reason, we’ll feel better.

But science suggests there are a few serious flaws in that reasoning. One, not only does expressing negativity tend not to make us feel better, it’s also catching, making listeners feel worse. “People don’t break wind in elevators more than they have to. Venting anger is…similar to emotional farting in a closed area. It sounds like a good idea, but it’s dead wrong,” psychologist Jeffrey Lohr, who has studied venting, memorably explained.

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How A City Is Slashing Gun Crime With A Paid Fellowship For Would-Be Shooters | Co.Exist

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A few years ago, the city of Richmond, California, embarked on a radical new approach to gun violence. Instead of simply arresting, prosecuting, and jailing its shooters, it started helping them. It formed a fellowship program, introduced intensive mentoring, and asked these “high risk individuals” to agree to wide-ranging life-goals.

The strategy appears to be working. Since 2007—the year it launched its Office of Neighborhood Safety (ONS)—there’s been a 76% reduction in firearm-related homicides and a 66% reduction in firearm-related assaults. Helping young men break a cycle of hopelessness and nihilism gets results, officials say.

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Centenario is most powerful Lamborghini |Business Insider

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423367Lamborghini unveiled its new Centenario supercar today at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show.

The uber-aggressive, carbon-fiber-clad beast is a celebration of company-founder Ferruccio Lamborghini’s 100th birthday.

The Centenario is also the most powerful road car in company history.

Under the hood you’ll find a naturally aspirated 770 horsepower V-12 engine. It’s the most extreme version of Lambo’s iconic V-12 that has ever been deployed in a road car.

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Net Neutrality Is in More Danger Than Ever | WIRED

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net-neutrality-1024x768IT’S BEEN A year since the Federal Communications Commission adopted the Open Internet Order, theoretically ushering in the age of net neutrality. Under the order, Internet service providers are banned from discriminating against certain types of traffic or charging deep-pocketed Internet companies to have their content funneled through so-called “fast lanes.” Net neutrality advocates hailed the FCC’s decision as a victory for equal access and free speech, an Internet where money can’t buy privileged placement on the network.

But the battle is far from over. In fact, the FCC’s decision has catalyzed the forces that oppose government-enforced net neutrality. Regulators may be pushing for a more open Internet, but its prospects are in greater danger than ever.

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How Chris Rock Turned Girl Scout Cookies Into the Oscars’ Biggest Brand Winner | Adweek

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While most people watching Sunday night’s Oscars knew host Chris Rock would come up with a hilarious, cutting response to the #OscarsSoWhite controversy—and weren’t disappointed—no one expected that he would engineer the night’s biggest, and sweetest, brand spotlight for one of the most high-profile Girl Scout cookie sales in history.

An hour and a half into the ceremony, Rock explained that because of his Oscar hosting duties, “I’ve been away from my two daughters at a very important time in their life. I have missed most of Girl Scout cookie season.” After explaining that his younger daughter, Zahra, lamented coming in second during her troop’s cookie sales, he told the audience, “I want you to reach into your millionaire pockets, and I want you to buy some of my daughter’s Girl Scout cookies.”

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Leap Day: The Story Behind This Quirky Calendar Event | Live Science

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Monday is Feb. 29 — the bissextle or “leap day,” an artifact that dates back to the year 46 B.C.

Back then, Julius Caesar took the advice of the learned astronomer Sosigenes of Alexandria, who knew from Egyptian experience that the tropical year (also known as the solar year) was about 365.25 days in length. So to account for that residual quarter of a day, an extra day — a leap day — was added to the calendarevery four years.

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Citigroup receives FIFA corruption subpoena | CNN Money

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U.S. banks are now being questioned in the FIFA corruption scandal that has rocked the sports world.

Citigroup (C) said in a recent securities filing that it has been slapped with a subpoena from U.S. officials investigating alleged “bribery, corruption and money laundering” at FIFA.

Anti-money laundering laws require banks to alert authorities about shady transactions like the ones at the heart of the FIFA scandal. Senior FIFA officials used various U.S. banks — including Citi, JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and Bank of America (BAC) — to transfer and receive $150 million in bribes and kickbacks, authorities alleged last year.

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5 Important Lessons New Female Leaders Need to Learn | Business News Daily

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Women have long been told that thinking and acting “like a man” in the workplace is the only way to get ahead and to be taken seriously. This mentality may have prevailed decades ago when women were just gaining a foothold in the professional world, but modern women have learned that career success is not about adjusting to the male-dominated status quo. It’s about changing that status quo by embracing what makes the female perspective unique, and overcoming the doubts that keep women from reaching their full potential.

This is especially true of young female professionals who are just beginning their careers and have aspirations of rising through the ranks in their industry. Women who want to lead may find themselves up against superiors who question their priorities or blame disagreements on them being too “emotional” or “aggressive.” Worse yet, these women may have trouble find the leadership opportunities they’re looking for in the first place.

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Why Paying Fixed Bonuses is Hurting Your Business | Page19

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Hi there! My name is Sina. Among other things, my mission is to make Blinkist the best place to work in Berlin. Tasked with reviewing our incentive strategy, I realized something: we were doing it wrong—and everybody else is, too.

In many industries it’s common practice to award employees a contractual bonus in the form of an annual one-time payment, tethered to company KPIs. It’s actually so commonplace that many founders introduce these same old corporate procedures in their otherwise modern and progressive ventures.

Unfortunately, what’s good for the goose isn’t always good for the gander. Oldschool incentives in a 21st-century business create an ideological discord that negatively impacts individuals and overall company culture. So what seems like a well-meant motivating measure is actually an expensive misunderstanding that hurts startups and other developing, aspiring companies.

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