The Science of Unhappiness: Why We are Unhappier than We’ve Ever Been, and What We Can Do about It | Page19

August 4, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

In How the Mind Works, Steven Pinker sums up the essence of happiness as being happy with what we have. Today, many of us have more than any generation ever before: more health, more wealth, and more means by which to actualize our dreams. And yet we’re not the happiest people that ever were.

In his book, Happiness, Richard Layard shows how, paradoxically, we’re less content today than our ancestors were just a few decades back. Of course, this is no coincidence.

We humans are ambitious, competitive animals: no matter what we achieve, we get used to it quickly and crave more, and even people who win the lottery don’t stay elated for very long. Our thirst for more might be the reason why humans have shaped the planet like no other species has. In the modern world, however, it is also an inbuilt obstacle to feeling permanently pleased.

Epson Is About to Solve the Most Annoying Problem With Inkjet Printers | Bloomberg Business

August 4, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Ticking off one’s best customers every few months isn’t a flawless corporate strategy. It tends to incite strong feelings, at best, and massive class-action lawsuits, at worst. Epson seems to have finally realized as much.

After decades of selling cheap printers that require a steady stream of expensive ink cartridges, the company is smashing its business model to bits. In September the Tokyo-based tech giant will offer a new line of consumer printers in the U.S., each with enough ink to print at least 4,000 documents. When the well finally runs dry, customers will be able to refill it with a bottle, just like a baby.

The machines even have a trendy name: EcoTank.1

The new Espon printers can be fed by bottle. Source: Epson

“It’s a really big advantage to the end user,” says John Lang, Epson’s chief executive officer for North America. “That anxiety and that fear of running out of ink—it’s amazing to me that that was so prevalent.”

What To Do When a Business Vacation is Over | Small Biz Trends

August 3, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

After a much deserved vacation that is full of fun and joy, returning back to your regular routine can lead to distress.

While almost no one likes going back to work especially after a relaxing and peaceful business vacation, you should face the reality and do your best to adjust and be productive again.

In order to prevent the post-vacation syndrome, you have to do a little bit of planning and accept that the vacation is over so that you can get back to the right mindset.

Below are some helpful tips which will help you to resume your regular routine.

SPENDING: Cutting costs | Money Cnn

August 3, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The most common spending problems are caused by a house that’s too large, a car that’s too luxurious or a credit-card lifestyle that’s too lavish for your income. Those who see a virtue in moderation may have had budgeting in mind.

Whatever your situation, here are some common ways that people can reduce monthly bills.

1. Eliminate trivial but needless costs

Look first for small savings — not because they’ll end your budget problems, but simply because they’re easy to find and take advantage of. For example, swear off that mid-afternoon, expensive premium latte. Shop for clothes and household furnishings only during sales. Keep your house warmer in summer and cooler in winter. Take on chores that you usually pay someone else to perform, such as mowing the lawn or shoveling snow.

Seemingly inconsequential savings do, in fact, add up.

How to Start a Service-Based Business | Business News Daily

July 31, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

On the surface, starting a service-based business like public relations, consulting, writing or coaching seems easy enough. You have the skills to deliver high-quality work and results, so you set up a nice website and spread the word among your network contacts that you’re looking for clients.

But running any type of business, especially a service company, is never “easy.” There will be long hours, difficult clients, frustrating projects and many other obstacles along the way. But for those who have what it takes to persevere, the rewards of turning your passion and skill set into a viable business far outweigh the challenges you’ll face.

So, what is it really like to start and run a service business? Entrepreneurs who have done it weighed in on the challenges and advantages, as well as the best practices for getting your company off the ground.

Remote Workforce | Business Tips

July 31, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

It’s estimated that “regular telecommuters will total 4.9 million by 2016.” In addition to that, some “50 million U.S. employees hold jobs that are telework compatible, although only 2.9 million consider home their primary place of work (2.3 percent of the workforce).”

A fundamental change in the workplace such as this one can have a profound impact on the economy and job market. But what is driving this trend and why should we be kosher with this latest development?

3 Strategies to Grow Your Business with Gratitude | Getentrepreneurial

July 30, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

You’re increasing your sales. Your team is more productive. You get out of the office earlier to do what you love with those you love…

…and yet there’s something missing. You struggle to keep all the business plates spinning simultaneously. It’s exhausting most days. Your family and friends ask, “Are you okay?”

The missing something is Gratitude.

Here are 3 Strategies to Grow Your Business with Gratitude:

Gratitude Focuses on the Positive

You see what you look for.

Is your default zoom set on what’s wrong with your business? That’s exhausting.

Of course all of our companies have room for improvement. Systems and strategies can be tweaked for greater efficiency. If that’s all you see when you look at your business, you completely miss what’s working positively.

Why Local Reviews Are Becoming a Best Online Marketing Strategy for Small Businesses | All Business

July 29, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Among the relatively newer tactics to emerge in the online marketing world are ones that work on both an SEO and a social level—all while promising their own, independent benefits.

Local reviews are exactly what they sound like—reviews of your business written and posted by real customers on third-party directory or review sites like Yelp or TripAdvisor. Cultivating these local reviews by giving stellar service and making your presence on these review sites known (as directly soliciting reviews is a violation of most directory sites’ terms of service) holds numerous benefits for your business, and is becoming one of the most successful and most important online marketing strategies today.

So what is it that makes local reviews such an important and useful strategy?

How College Loan Relief Firms Prey On Desperate Borrowers | Forbes

July 29, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

In February 2014 Kim Kotary was living in Queens, N.Y., working 25 hours a week in three part-time jobs at nonprofits and as a freelance crafts teacher and designer, and worrying how she’d ever pay off the $20,000 she borrowed to earn a master’s from New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology back in 2002. So when she heard a radio ad offering information about how those working for nonprofits could get student debt forgiven, she called the 800 number. A phone rep told her Broadsword Student Advantage could get her monthly payments suspended, based on her poverty-level income, and help her apply to get her debt forgiven after ten years.

Kotary agreed to pay Broadsword $500 and signed its forms online, without, she admits, reading them closely. On top of the $500, Affordable Life Plans, a Securities & Exchange Commission-registered investment adviser, started taking $29.95 a month from her bank account. Then, last August, Kotary lost her main part-time nonprofit gig. Finally, this past March, after 13 months of paying, she discovered she wouldn’t be eligible for the debt forgiveness unless she worked 30 hours a week in the not-for-profit sector, and that she could have applied for forgiveness herself, for free, at http://www.studentloans.gov. “When I found out it was free, it really pissed me off,” says Kotary, 43, who has stopped the monthly payments. “I was told that they could help me save more than they charged me for the services.”

Proceed with Caution When Employment Involves Immigration | Payroll Link

July 28, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Discrimination in employment practices can land your business in legal hot water, even if it’s not intentional. What matters is the result of certain actions. In broad terms, discrimination is defined as changes in an employment practice — such as recruitment, hiring, job assignment or promotions — that have the “purpose or effect of denying employment or promotional opportunities to a class of individuals,” stated the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). It’s important to note that by this definition, the employer’s intention may be irrelevant if the “effect” is discrimination.

Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the U.S. Attorney General has authority to bring suit against an employer “where there is reason to believe that a pattern or practice of discrimination exists.” Authority to prosecute employers also resides in anti-discrimination provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).

Here’s a recent example to illustrate this concept. In June, the DOJ settled an “immigration-related discrimination claim” against a major national retailer. According to a DOJ announcement, the retailer had “required a non-U.S. citizen, but not similarly-situated U.S. citizens, to produce specific documentary proof of her immigration status for the purpose of verifying her employment eligibility.” In other words, additional documentation was required of this applicant compared to others.