“Everything Facebook has done has been about giving all people around the world the power to connect,” Zuckerberg said. “There are huge barriers in developing countries to connecting and joining the knowledge economy. Internet.org brings together a global partnership that will work to overcome these challenges, including making internet access available to those who cannot currently afford it.”
Californians willing to pay for infrastructure improvements | California Economy, California Economic Summit
A whopping 80 percent of survey respondents expressed a willingness to pay at least something to better maintain and improve California’s infrastructure, including paying increased gas and property taxes. Where respondents varied was on how much and by what method everyone should pay. 21 percent of survey takers felt tying who pays to who uses the infrastructure would be the most fair.
Life After Kickstarter | Ypulse
Kickstarter has become an entrepreneurial epicenter, helping innovators earn the money to make their dreams become reality. But what happens after the kick start winds down? The crowdfunding industry raised $2.7 billion in 2011 and is expected to have doubled by the end of this year. For the new products and brands that raise funds on the platforms, expectations are sky high for delivering on crowdfunding promises and raising the bar for innovation with each new project. What is life like for the little brands suddenly launched into the world with the funds they asked for, and an audience of expectant consumers?
BofA Intern Death and Wall Street’s Culture | Daily Intelligencer
There’s a game played among young Wall Street analysts, usually late at night after everyone but the janitors have gone home. It goes by various names, but the one I’ve heard most often is “Misery Poker.” The rules are simple: If your workload is worse than your colleagues’, you win. So “I’m staffed on two deals, and I haven’t left before midnight in a week” might prompt a raise of “Oh, yeah? Well, I’m staffed on three deals, and I stayed past 2 a.m. six nights out of the last eight.”
Usually Misery Poker is played with a wink to its ridiculousness. These are 22-year-old investment bankers, after all, not battlefield medics or single moms working three jobs. All of them are being well compensated for the pain they endure. But last weekend, when a London-based Bank of America intern dropped dead, reportedly after pulling three all-nighters in a row, we learned what happens when a game of Misery Poker goes high-stakes.
What CrossFit Can Teach You | wonderbranding
CrossFit is a fitness lifestyle that has taken the world by storm over the last few years. In some ways, it’s a throwback to old-fashioned fitness, using moves that incorporate cardio activity with strength training moves like pull-ups and push-ups. From garage set-ups to larger spaces, CrossFit “boxes” as CrossFitters like to call them are popping up all over.The brand has grown exponentially, with no advertising. People are addicted.CrossFit is the perfect example of a stripped-to-the-bone strategy for cult branding
Here’s What Brick-And-Mortar Stores See When They Track You | Fast Company
So, is the tracking most stores are doing creepy? Decide for yourself. This article collects sample dashboards that show what information stores see about consumer when they use these services.
Read Article.
Million-Dollar Startup Secrets | AllBusiness.com
Most small businesses never reach $1 million in annual sales. Instead, they struggle just to survive. Of businesses started in 2004, barely more than half — 56 percent — were still around in 2009, a study from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation found.
In fact, cracking the $1 million barrier at any point in a company’s lifetime is a major achievement. U.S. Census data from 2007 shows that more than three-quarters of the country’s 6 million firms with employees made less than $1 million in revenue. And most solopreneur businesses don’t earn anywhere near that much: According to IRS data for 2008, the average solo business brought in less than $60,000.
Given these sobering numbers, reaching seven figures in a business’s very first year — and with a startup’s often-scarce resources — is nothing short of extraordinary.
Your Nail Polish Could be Toxic | GreenPacks.org
Did you know your favorite nail polish contains toxic chemicals? Going by recent research, the nail polishes you commonly use contain at least three harmful chemicals.
Investigators at the California Department of Toxic Substances Control sampled as many as 25 brands of nail polishes commonly used in California salons and found that 10 of 12 samples that claim to be free of toluene actually contained the substance in a serious level.
They also discovered that five of the seven samples that claim to be free of the “toxic trio” actually contained those in dangerous levels. The three toxins – dibutyl phthalate, toluene and formaldehyde – may cause serious health problems, including asthma, birth defects, cancer, and other chronic health conditions.
My Samsung Phone Made Me Cool — Daily Intelligencer
But what reviewers tend to miss is that a feature doesn’t have to be particularly useful or functional to inspire curiosity and intrigue. If they brighten up the humdrum experience of using a phone, even superficially and occasionally, that might be enough.
Entrepreneur’s Guide to Effective Time Management | BusinessNewsDaily.com
Innovators like Henry Ford have attributed their success to good time management. Nevertheless, a recent study found that 72 percent of small business owners are working longer days and on more weekends, while half of those surveyed find there’s not enough time to get things done. With time being the most valuable commodity for small business owners, a time-management plan is essential to running a business and achieving a work-life balance.
Here’s how other entrepreneurs, from freelancers to small businessowners, effectively manage their time and how you can create your own time-management plan for life and business.
