Can Procrastination Actually Be Good for Your Productivity? | AllBusiness.com

May 4, 2020May 3, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Everybody procrastinates from time to time, and most of us are always trying to find ways to procrastinate less. Procrastination is, for the most part, an inherently unproductive action. The basic idea is to avoid or delay a task, usually an unpleasant one, which hurts you in two main ways:

You compromise your ability to complete the task.

In some cases, the task gets harder to complete when you procrastinate; for example, you may have fewer options if you wait longer to complete the task, or you may have less time and fewer resources to work with.

30% Find Resetting Passwords as Stressful as Retiring | Small Business Trends

May 4, 2020May 3, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Password Statistics

The study found that 30% of people find resetting passwords to be hugely stressful. So stressful in fact, that it is comparable to the stress of retiring. 67% of respondents agreed that losing passwords is as stressful as dismissal or changing jobs.

Thought of Retirement is Stressful

It is no secret that the thought of retirement is stressful for many. A study conducted in 2018 found that 39% of small business owners say they are not confident they can retire. The research found the principle apprehension about retirement is due to financial reasons. Both small business owners and employees have concerns that they will not be financially prepared for retirement. The majority of respondents said being able to save more would increase their confidence about retirement.

The Difficulty of Password Management

Comparing losing passwords to the stress of retirement acutely shows the apprehension associated with having to reset passwords. NordPass’ study sheds light on why password management is so difficult. 66% of the survey’s respondents say it is because they have too many accounts to manage.

First home solar pavement installed on a driveway | Inhabitat

May 1, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Solar tiles aren’t just for roofs anymore. Platio, a Budapest, Hungary-based tech company, has just installed the first solar pavement for use on a residential driveway.

“Roofs are not the only surfaces that can be used for solar energy production,” said Platio co-founder and engineer Imre Sziszák. “Paved areas absorb solar radiation all day long as well. The walkable solar panels of Platio can utilize this new source of clean energy.”

The system consists of interlocking units called Platio solar pavers. Each paver is made from 400 recycled PET plastic bottles for a product more durable than concrete, according to the company’s product video. Pavement can be installed in sizes of 10 to 30 square meters and is suitable for driveways, terraces, balconies and patios.

5 Benefits of Strategic Partnerships | business.com

May 1, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Strategic partnerships have mutual benefits and can lead to long-term profits.

Strategic partnerships occur when two businesses combine forces to expand their brand reach.
Co-branding opportunities add value to your company, increase brand awareness and create brand trust.
Successful strategic partnerships include Spotify and Google, Sherwin-Williams and Pottery Barn, and McDonald’s and Coca-Cola.

3 Signs it’s Time for You to Change Your Brand Packaging | The Startup Magazine

April 30, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Your packaging is arguably the most important part of the product. The packaging is the key to selling the product in the final stage of the sales funnel, and it protects the product on the shelf and in the customer’s home. It can also easily cause the product to be lost in the crowd, or you to lose the sale if you haven’t kept up with the times. This is why you should always consider whether your packaging is up to par, and whether it could use a redesign. Here are three signs that it is time for you to change your brand packaging.

The Boss: Male investors didn’t get my billion-dollar idea | BBC News

April 30, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The BBC’s weekly The Boss series profiles different business leaders from around the world. This week we speak to Katrina Lake, founder of online fashion business Stitch Fix.

For the first six years running Stitch Fix, Katrina Lake wasn’t comfortable with being labeled a female business leader.

“I didn’t join the women in business clubs, and I just never thought of myself as a quote-unquote feminist,” she says.

How Entrepreneurship Can Help Millennials Build Wealth and Cut Student Debt | Inc.com

April 29, 2020April 28, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

It’s a favored tradition amongst well-established generations to look at younger generations with contempt. People love to tease millennials — calling them lazy, entitled, and self-involved — but research by Boston Consulting Group shows that these stereotypes are unfounded.

Yes, there are generational differences — driven largely by technology and social trends — but millennials as a whole are ambitious and idealistic. Not only do they want to “make the world a better place,” but a new report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that millennials work significantly more hours and have higher levels of education than previous generations.

Considering that education costs have risen 65 percent and food costs have increased 26 percent since 1996, it’s clear that the struggle is real. Many millennials live in survival mode, trying to keep up with basic expenses.

How to Make Better Coffee at Home | WIRED

April 28, 2020April 27, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

MANY OF US are sheltering in place, which probably means forgoing that morning trip to the coffee shop. Fear not though, it’s possible to make coffeehouse-quality coffee in your own kitchen.

Engineering a better cup of coffee isn’t difficult. But first you need to figure out what “better” means to you. There is no single right cup of coffee, there’s just the best version of what you love. Do you love your coffee rich and dark—thick enough to stand a spoon in, as my grandfather used to say? Or do you prefer something brighter, more of a medium roast that doesn’t overwhelm you with bitterness? Or perhaps you prefer a light coffee with some cream and sugar.

6 Strategies You Need to Run Your Company Through Uncertainty | Entrepreneur

April 28, 2020April 27, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Well, I didn’t expect this to happen — and I’m guessing you didn’t either. If you’re a small-business owner, you need a plan more than ever. These are the strategies I’m relying on as a small-business owner to help me lead through this extremely uncertain time.

1. Time

You need to give yourself a little time to process the impact this coronavirus will have and the challenges and opportunities that it has created for you, your business, your family and others. Most of us will be a little dazed for a while. Unfortunately, just because some of us have more time on our hands doesn’t mean we’ll spend it productively. Right now, I’m mostly focusing on taking a deep breath.

Jaunt’s ROSA gyrodyne: The first eVTOL air taxi that actually looks safe | New Atlas

April 27, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

This eVTOL air taxi design looks like a weird helicopter/plane hybrid, but it’s the safest of all the eVTOL designs we’ve ever seen, and it has another killer advantage in that it requires no special certification. That’s huge news in the emerging 3D commuting market, because it could make this thing much, much cheaper to get off the ground.

To understand why this thing is such a great idea, let’s recap two of the main hurdles that every other eVTOL designer is facing: safety and certification. The safety issue seems huge to us, although many of the eVTOL manufacturers we speak to don’t seem to see it as insurmountable. In a total failure scenario, all eVTOLs designed around multiple small rotors have a bit of an issue: they’ll simply plummet to the ground.