Study: Poor Writing Skills Are Costing Businesses Billions | Inc.com

April 6, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Communication is an essential skill for any business, but what’s shocking is how much time and money businesses are spending each year to bring employees up to a basic proficiency level. Writing seems to be one of the skills requiring the most remedial training.

A study from CollegeBoard, a panel established by the National Commission on Writing, indicates that blue chip businesses are spending as much as $3.1 billion on remedial writing training–annually. Of this budget, $2.9 billion was spent on current employees–not new hires.

Think it’s from lack of education? Think again.

Why Everyone Must Get Ready For The 4th Industrial Revolution | Forbes

April 6, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

First came steam and water power; then electricity and assembly lines; then computerization… So what comes next?

Some call it the fourth industrial revolution, or industry 4.0, but whatever you call it, it represents the combination of cyber-physical systems, the Internet of Things, and the Internet of Systems.

In short, it is the idea of smart factories in which machines are augmented with web connectivity and connected to a system that can visualize the entire production chain and make decisions on its own.

And it’s well on its way and will change most of our jobs.

Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, has published a book entitled The Fourth Industrial Revolution in which he describes how this fourth revolution is fundamentally different from the previous three, which were characterized mainly by advances in technology.

How Dirty Are Public Restrooms, Really? | Live Science

April 5, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Ah, spring — time to get out of the house and be on the go. But when you’re out and really have to, you know, go, is that rest-stop bathroom the place to do it?

Yep. Public toilets might get a little grimy, but they’re very unlikely to pose any threat to your health. Most bacteria that could be any danger to people perish quickly on barren bathroom surfaces. And a functioning immune system (plus hand washing!) will stave off most of the rest.

“The restroom isn’t that dangerous,” said Jack Gilbert, a microbiologist at Argonne National Laboratory in Illinois. “The organisms which can grow there have a very low probability of being able to cause an infection.”

How It Feels to Go Viral, Then Watch Your Content Get Stolen All Over the Internet | Adweek

April 5, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

On a Tuesday morning in December, I uploaded my late-night talk show’s 449th video to YouTube, then went about my day.

By the afternoon, I was thinking this one—a mockumentary called “Instagram Husband” created for our Springfield, Missouri-based show, The Mystery Hour—might be different. The next day, when it hit 1 million views, I knew it was different. And by the time the next week rolled around, I didn’t know which way was up anymore.

When I came up with the idea for “Instagram Husband,” I had a vague sense it had the chance to go viral, because when I shared the idea with people they enthusiastically related. I thought people I know would share it, the team that helped create it would share it, fans of my show would share it, and it would be a nice little feather in the cap. I never would have guessed just how big it would become.

How to Be a Grown-Up: 7 Things No One Ever Told You | Page19

April 4, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Thresholds. Sometimes we’re carried over. Sometimes we hesitate just outside. Sometimes we’re pushed through by circumstance or happenstance or others’ whims. And sometimes we step over into the dark unknown, armed with nothing but a figurative box of matches and a flinty sense of hope.

Thresholds mark the space between where we were and where we’re headed. One of the most exhilarating and bewildering is the time that comes after you get your degree and before so-called “settling down.” You’re blazing a trail in your first career, learning what you want, experiencing loves that just might last, and maybe even thinking about buying a house.

We all come to the critical lessons in our own time, but just as pre-reading helps us integrate what we learn, previewing a few key learnings from the age of the Adult-in-the-Making can make the most of your time in the liminal. Here, I’ve put together seven solid pieces of advice from the books that I wish I’d discovered in my twenties (and one that I actually did!).

20 Tricks That Can Make Anyone An Excel Expert | Lifehack

April 4, 2016April 7, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

After Microsoft developed Excel to the 2010 version, it offered more surprises than ever. In order to deal with tons of big data, you can’t ignore the important role Excel plays in daily work. However, both for beginners and advanced users, there are still many useful tips and tricks that are inevitably overlooked. Here are 20 useful Excel spreadsheet secrets you may not know. Please note that all these functions are based on Microsoft Excel 2010.

Quitting Your Day Job? The Basics on Benefits Coverage for Entrepreneurs | Business News Daily

April 1, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

If you’re planning to leave the corporate world to become an entrepreneur, you’ve probably thought a lot about how you’ll make ends meet without a salary. You’ve made a meticulous budget for your personal and business finances. You already know how you’ll cut costs and keep your startup lean. You’re prepared to live off your savings or take on credit card debt until you start turning a profit. But have you accounted for all the other expenses that come with being self-employed?

How to Get People to Ask Questions | Getentrepreneurial.com

April 1, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

One of the elements of a truly engaged workplace is the asking of questions. The fact is that most people are afraid to ask questions; whatever natural curiosity we had as children tends to get discouraged in most large organizations. Leaders assume following the status quo is the right way to go and are not interested in trying to challenge anything, especially if it seems on the surface to be going along just fine. And the lower-level employees just try to do what’s asked of them and stay out of trouble—believing that people who ask questions may be sticking their necks out.

Getting people to ask questions requires effort and energy. It means changing what may have been part of a process for years. Change is almost always very hard. Questioning actually means choosing the path of resistance, instead of the path of least resistance. But when people get into the habit and realize they won’t get their heads chopped off for asking questions–that in fact their questions will be welcomed–everything gets better.

What is the Difference Between a Line of Credit and a Loan? | Small Biz Trends

April 1, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Small business owners may need funds for several reasons. Luckily, there are a number of financing options available today that can help businesses secure funds on time. Two of the most common options are a line of credit and a loan.

In a nutshell, a business line of credit is often the best option when you have short-term and occasional credit needs. A small business loan, on the other hand, is best to meet long-term credit needs. Let’s break down the difference between a line of credit and a loan to see how they differ and help you meet your credit needs.

The ‘Internet of Things’ Is Changing the Way We Look at the Global Product Value Chain | Entrepreneur

March 31, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The traditional product value chain has been shaken up with the unstoppable spread of globalization and the universal commodification of goods and services. Globalization has forced companies to adjust and respond.

In fact, Internet of Things (IoT) products are playing a pivotal role in the alteration of B2C relationships, delivery channels and product pricing, and their continued proliferation is shaping the very nature of how we look at the product value chain.