7/21/2010
Generation Y (aka the Millennials): Just the facts | The Jury Room
Members of Generation Y (as with other generations before them) have been derided and maligned. People love to generalize about ‘ the younger generation’, and do it all the time. And it’s been going on for centuries.
“The children now love luxury; they have bad manners, contempt for authority; they allow disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise. Children now are tyrants, not the servants of their households. They no longer rise when elders enter the room. They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up dainties at the table, cross their legs, and tyrannize their teachers.” Anonymous (widely mis-attributed to Socrates)
And one of my personal favorites from Clarence Darrow:
“The first half of our lives is ruined by our parents and the second half by our children.”
Those older demean those younger (and the youth are not particularly admiring of their elders). Whether we do this in our personal lives or not, is naturally, a personal choice (and just as naturally, has consequences for our relationships). But in the courtroom and in voir dire, it is wiser to make choices based on what we know to be true of human nature rather than what we assume or choose to believe.
Here is (courtesy of the Pew Research Center) what we know now about Generation Y—the newest members of the jury panel.
- The oldest members are approaching 30 (the youngest are approaching adolescence).
- They are more inclined to trust institutions than either Gen X or Baby Boomers when they were coming of age.
- They are the most ethnically and racially diverse cohort of youth in the nation’s history: 18.5% are Hispanic; 14.2% are Black; 4.3% are Asian; 3.2% are of mixed race; and 59.8% are White.
- They are the least religiously observant/practicing cohort since religious behavior was added to survey research.
- They are the most politically progressive of any age group in modern history.
- They see social networking as normal and everyday activities and internet use as routine (e.g., tweeting, texting, Facebook, YouTube and Wikipedia).
All of these factoids have relevance for voir dire, case presentation and witness preparation. Millennials are often frightening for litigators because they are so ‘unknown’. Yet, many of them are old enough, sufficiently well educated, and assertive enough to be forces in the deliberation room. It is unwise to assume “young people are bad for plaintiffs” just as it is unwise to assume “women are good for plaintiffs” or “women are tough on crime”. It simply all depends.
We will watch as more substantive research emerges on Gen Y/Millennials. Undoubtedly we will write a paper on attitudes and values and litigation advocacy with Gen Y as we did with Generation X (http://www.keenetrial.com/articles/htm). In the meantime, watch yourself. Bias is often a subtle and insidious thing. Seeing this generation as different from those that have gone before (as indeed all generations have been) can help you avoid pigeonholing assumptions.
Related posts:
via keenetrial.com
Entrepreneurship: Becoming Famous | Millionaire Books for Millionaire
Entrepreneurship: Becoming Famous
Everyone has an equal chance for fame… now I’m starting to doubt on that.
Well, can we actually believe that all of us can be famous someday? Maybe with a good streak of luck and some real hard work then we might all come to the point of becoming famous. However, not all of us have luck. And though many of us have dreams of comfortable and luxurious life, the majority of us cannot stand up from our asses and make something useful.
It is easy to dream dreams and wish wishes. But it is never easy to create wheels to drive our dreams nor our wishes to their realizations. Success never comes overnight. It has to be built somewhere and it has to be willed to come.
Success is one element wherein active participation from the aspirant is very badly required. No one can be famous without doing anything, may it be good or bad. And no oaf can be turned into a mogul without having to spend time devising ways and mustering courage to be one. Someway, we all must invest on some things that would cause us to be productive.
Braving the world of entrepreneurs is such that one has to really muster all the resources he has, risk it all in one chance and take the consequences in return. The bad thing though is that risk, by nature cant be equated at any assurances. You just have to take the risks and accept what they are or leave them and be forever resentful that you didn’t even took time and see what truly lies ahead your muddled living.
Fame, on the other hand, is corollary with success. In most cases, people who are successful are equally famous. They are distinguished through their achievements, which if we truly are to analyze are standing above those achieved by common people. Their accomplishments paved their way to becoming famous entrepreneurs. This is almost inevitable as all people who have done great jobs normally received favorable acceptance in a group or community. Thus, they are elated to heights not reached by those who did not shed time to make their parts.
What makes successful entrepreneurs famous is not the name they bear. Well somehow the name has the parts on it. It is not also the companies they were able to build. Or is it the people that they were able to develop. What make them famous are their successes behind those successes. One good point to argue is their personal development after having to go through all the hardships of entrepreneurship.
Now can you ask yourself, will I make it to the entrepreneurial world? The answer lies only on you.
If you said yes then it is proper to say that the stage is now open for you to take the risks, make the changes and be the person you have dreamed and wished to be all your life.
I think it is worth repeating that being an entrepreneur entails that you become a good risk taker. If you already have this quality on you then the lesser work you have to put. However, if not then courage must be integrated in your personality. It takes so much will for one to actually be able to gather his strength and manipulate the risks towards his own advantage. We cannot teach risk-taking here, you have to know where does the vein starts. Find it in you.
Just a word to remember though, don’t be too brave in taking risks.
Remember that when starting with your business, the fastest way to kill yourself is to be overly confident against the risks that face you. You have to test grounds first and see if you can cross the water with all things that you have. Equate the chances of failure against success and make decisions according to your sound, calculated judgement. Keep in mind that most entrepreneurs, before even reaching the point of fame, have already self-destruct or died of natural death. Don’t be like most of them. Keep faith in your pocket, have enough load of strength and believe that you can be a master to failures.
You see, at the end of the day, anyone truly ahs the equal opportunity for fame. Only we have to take our parts on living that opportunity.
Learn about grass cutting equipment, how to cook cabbage and other information at the Gardening Central site.
Diversity and Entrepreneurship by Andrea Smith-Hunter (Paperback – Univ Pr of Amer) Best Prices
Find More Entrepreneurship Articles
Millionaire Books LinkIf this information resource is useful, use this link for future reference.Bookmark & Share
Tagged as: Becoming, Entrepreneurship, famous
Peer Power: CEO and Entrepreneurship
This blog is about the power of peers in the IT space. It is designed as a place to share things I have learned the past 24+ years running a business as well as meeting the growing demands of business owners we experience leading the Heartland Tech Groups - a peer group network for IT business owners. Check out more at www.htgmembers.com.
CQ Politics | Lending Fund Will Be Offered as Amendment to Small-Business Bill
CQ POLITICS NEWS
July 21, 2010 – 1:22 p.m.Lending Fund Will Be Offered as Amendment to Small-Business Bill
Senate Democrats will strip a $30 billion lending fund from a small-business bill this week, then add it back next week as an amendment, according to one of the fund’s main champions.
Sen. Mary L. Landrieu , D-La., said the amendment vote would help highlight Republican obstruction of a program that was built on the public-private model they often tout.
“It’s using the power of the private sector community banks to lend to healthy businesses,” said Landrieu, who chairs the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee.
The fund would direct money to well-capitalized banks, which would get preferential interest rates from the government if they increased lending to small businesses.
Majority Leader Harry Reid , D-Nev., could act later Wednesday to set up a Friday vote to limit debate on the small-business bill — or earlier, if Republicans agree.
The exact procedural maneuvers to set up votes were still unclear, but Landrieu said the addition of the fund would be the only substantive amendment allowed and that it would attract the 60 votes needed to surmount a filibuster. Democrats control 59 votes, and she expects enough Republicans to join them to attach the amendment.
“The package will be whole when this is adopted,” she said.
The bill also includes a $12 billion in tax incentives and enhancements to government programs that assist small businesses.
Republicans have criticized the proposed fund, calling it similar to the Troubled Asset Relief Program enacted in 2008 to bail out the banking sector. They say they worry that the money could be used for purposes other than lending to small businesses.
via cqpolitics.com
City Brights: Erica Sandberg : Preparing kids for life: Q&A with Catherine Hutton Markwell, CEO of BizWorld
Preparing kids for life: Q&A with Catherine Hutton Markwell, CEO of BizWorld
In my experience as mother to one child, sister to six, and aunt to many, I have found that most kids have a natural desire to set up shop. Not out of greed, but because it's just kind of cool to do something fun and earn some pocket change in the process. I firmly believe that linking creativity and pleasure with work early on is critical.
Enter Catherine Hutton Markwell. She is the CEO of The BizWorld Foundation, an education non-profit that she re-launched in 2003 with Tim Draper, founder and Chairman. To date, BizWorld has inspired over 250,000 children worldwide through entrepreneurship, business and financial programs.
Erica Sandberg: Why is helping kids start their own business and get smart about money important to you?
Catherine Hutton Markwell: Entrepreneurship is what started this country and what solves the big questions we have currently: energy, education, finance etc...in all these areas will have smart entrepreneurs changing and improving how we live.
ES: Why do you think it's so important for kids to develop their own business?
CHM: Kids are born with an entrepreneurial spirit. It is up to us to foster that spirit. Not all children become entrepreneurs but all will be involved in business and the more the know about the world of business the more successful they will become.
ES: Are there any misconceptions are out there about kids and work that you'd like to dispel?
CHM: "5th grade is too young to teach business" From the moment you give your kid an allowance they are part of the economy and making buying decisions and being influenced by business. When you explain business to children as a product of their daily lives they get it and the ones that become entrepreneurs are the ones that see opportunity and how to improve on what they see.
ES: How did you come up with the idea for BizWorld?
CHM: Tim Draper's daughter asked him what he did everyday...how do explain venture capital and entrepreneurship to an eight year old....show by example. When we collaborated in 2003 we moved from volunteers teaching the program to classroom teachers delivering the curriculum. This is what changed everything. Teachers are hungry for innovative curriculum content and once the program was re-designed to meet more teacher needs it has become a staple in many classrooms through-out the US and aboard.
ES: So it's just in the public school system?
CHM: No, the curriculum is taught in all different settings from public, charter, private, after-school and camps. If you have 10 hours of time during your year you can implement the program...the best implementation is 2 hours a day over five days.
ES: Ever experience resistance to personal finance education or entrepreneurship - if so, from whom?
CHM: The main resistance is from not understanding the content. We show them how business is social studies, how entrepreneurship is English language arts, and how finance is math. You need to show the correlation to standards and why it matters. Once teachers are trained, they easily see the standards come alive and the importance of engaging in these hands-on programs.
ES: Which BizWorld programs are you most proud of?
CHM: They are all special but our rising star is truly BizMovie. BizMovie incorporates business and technology to create a modern approach to learning business and engaging children in a very dynamic and engaging experience. In BizMovie children still create business but this time it revolves around technology and computer programing in the movie industry.
ES: How are you funded?
CHM: We are funded in may ways from from individual donors to corporate foundation. The donations range from $10 to $100,000 and above. Recently we applied for the i3 Federal Education Innovation Grant which would make an huge impact on our outreach...fingers crossed!
ES: And finally, any success stories to share?
CHM: We have so many good stories....one of my favorites is about this very shy, 4th grade student who was the VP of Finance for her team. When the company president was worried if he needed to go back to the VC for more funding, the shy, 4th grader raised her hand and said that according to her math they were in good shape with cash and did not need any more VC money. The president then shouted "I LOVE YOU" and as she blushed and smiled broadly, she felt valued for her input. Her financial expertise truly helped the company.
ES: Thanks Catherine!
What about you - do you agree that helping kids in this way is positive? Let me know your take.
Posted By: Erica Sandberg (Email) | July 21 2010 at 01:25 PM
| Comments (0) : Post Comment
via sfgate.com
Low Risk Entrepreneurship As a Retirement Plan | The Entrepreneur School Blog
Low Risk Entrepreneurship As a Retirement Plan
Wednesday, July 21, 2010 | Written by Jacob Dearolph
Posted under: Entrepreneurship Stories | Tags: business idea, low risk, retirement | No CommentsI woke up the other morning to the sound of chainsaws and loud thunderous sounds vibrating up through my floor. I remembered that my neighbor across the street had a large tree limb that had fallen in a recent storm and thought that that neighbor was cleaning up the tree. I also remembered that the neighbor immediately behind me, had a large 110 ft tall tree that was primarily dead. We had recently talked to that neighbor about tearing down the tree and learned that she was already in the process of collecting bids.
So I grabbed the dog and walked outside just in time to see a huge limb falling 100 feet to the ground. It was the 110 foot tree behind us. I watched for a few minutes as four guys started dismantling this behemoth of a tree. Among the four guys there was an older gentleman perhaps in his 60s. He came over and introduced himself. I guessed that he was the business owner. After talking briefly, I learned that he had worked with AT&T for the length of a normal career 25 to 30 years.
Upon retirement, he decided he wanted to run his own business. And, so he started a treat cutting business. I found this a little remarkable given that the average person working an average career term of 30 years would be around mid 50s. Scaling trees seems to be a young man’s game; but, what do I know. I believe he’s been in business for 10 to 15 years. And he says he stays very busy. He wasn’t the guy in the tree but he was very active in managing the crew of guys.
I thought this was an interesting story relating to our low-risk entrepreneurship principles. I don’t know the full story behind this business owner: Did he need to work; did he just want to continue working; did he not have any retirement;or did he really just want to start a business?
In any case, assuming he didn’t financially need to work what better time to start a business. Theoretically he could have saved up some money through a Roth IRA or a 401k, perhaps earned a pension or a health care plan from the company. In addition to the aforementioned items he acquired a set of skills over 25 or 30 years that he could deploy. Lastly, basically having littlie financial need, the business owner now had plenty of time given he was retired.
Again theoretically speaking, he had money, time, and desire – I would have to say this would be one of the best times to start a “low-risk” business.
Related posts:
- Low Risk Business Idea
- Health Insurance for Entrepreneurs
- Who Broke Capitalism? The Risk Curve Is Upside Down
- Book Proves Entrepreneurship is NOT Risky!
- We need your help! Let us write a book about you!
Posted under: Entrepreneurship Stories | Tags: business idea, low risk, retirement | No Comments
This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 21st, 2010 at 7:47 pm and is filed under Entrepreneurship Stories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.Leave a Reply
The Entrepreneurial Mindset: 8 Rules for Getting it Right
Check out this website I found at powerhomebiz.com
The Entrepreneurial Mindset
Business Lessons From
"The Entrepreneurial Mindset"New entrepreneurs can learn much from habitual entrepreneurs. That's the premise of Rita Gunther McGrath and Ian MacMillan, authors of The Entrepreneurial Mindset: Strategies for Continuously Creating Opportunity in an Age of Uncertainty.
McGrath and MacMillan define "habitual entrepreneurs" as those who have made a career out of starting new businesses and launching new products. Habitual entrepreneurs find opportunities while others fail to act during times of uncertainty.
"In a world of uncertainty, our guiding philosophy is: Take Charge. If nobody knows what the future will hold, your vision of how to navigate it is as good as anyone's. The future may as well belong to you," write McGrath and MacMillan.
Successful habitual entrepreneurs experiment intelligently. They don't view every business move as a do-or-die endeavor for their company. Habitual entrepreneurs focus ruthlessly upon priorities and ruthlessly weed out unprofitable endeavors. They balance current, profitable, business operations with an eye to future opportunities.
Because the endeavors of start-ups are fraught with uncertainly and, thus, are not well-suited to Net Present Value Calculations (where estimates of future cash flows are made and these estimated cash flows are discounted back to the present to determine the worth of the venture), McGrath and MacMillan suggest entrepreneurs view their endeavors as a portfolio of options. Entrepreneurs create "opportunity portfolios." Each option is pursued or abandoned as conditions warrant.
The goal is to learn as you go and effectively convert assumptions to knowledge at a low cost. For example, via Stepping-Stone Options, McGrath and MacMillan say, "You start with small, exploratory forays into less challenging market niches and use the experiences gained there as steppingstones to build competencies in increasingly challenging and attractive market arenas that you discover as you go."
The Entrepreneurial Mindset gives the example of The Kyocera Company, which entered the industrial ceramics business by focusing upon lower-end, niche-based, ceramic products, such as ceramic scissor blades. Using the knowledge of ceramics acquired making scissor blades, the company successfully moved into more profitable ceramic markets, such as semiconductor-chip substrates.
McGrath and MacMillan point out that many companies have difficulty managing their opportunity portfolios. In particular, many companies try to undertake too many product launches and pursue too many forays into test markets at the same time.
A company must effectively allocate both physical assets and personnel resources. As the authors note, a software engineer, working on a six-month project, who is given three more, similar projects, takes two years to complete all four projects. And, in businesses where speed to market is a key success factor, there is a world of difference between completing a project in six months versus two years. In two years, you probably will have missed the market entirely, and all work on all projects might well have been in vain.
McGrath and MacMillan suggest that you map out all of your company's projects and the monthly, people-hours demanded by each project so that you don't take on too much.
Similarly, companies aren't always effective in deciding when the commitment to a business foray should be increased or abandoned. In fact, sometimes, abandoning an activity that has been the central, historical focus of a business is required if it appears that the future profitability of the endeavor will be low. Making such an entrepreneurial, organizational change is demanding.
To ruthlessly focus upon performance, entrepreneurs need benchmarks and guides to help them evaluate how they are doing. Ratios are one key tool used by entrepreneurs to benchmark performance.
McGrath and MacMillan write: "The reason key ratios are such a powerful device for directing entrepreneurial thinking is that they help align the efforts of everyone in the company around a common set of measures. Describing and consistently using these ratios makes abstract statements about strategy more concrete for people and helps focus their energies. Kept simple and meaningful, key ratios can be crucial."
Superiority to the competition will be reflected in a key ratio. If it isn't, how does the superiority convey any real value to the company? McGrath and MacMillan suggest that entrepreneurs identify seven to ten benchmark ratios specific to their industry. And, don't just look at the more obvious and common financial ratios.
The Entrepreneurial Mindset discusses General Electric Financial Services, which is especially effective in collecting delinquent accounts. At one time, GEFS' bad-debts-to-book ratio was nearly 30 percent below industry norms, meaning GEFS was collecting far more delinquent accounts.
Favorable operational ratios don't just materialize of their own accord. Something must happen to improve the ratio. McGrath and MacMillan define this "something" as "entrepreneurial insight." Entrepreneurial insight is the crucial ingredient behind entrepreneurial success. Entrepreneurial insight is seeing something about an industry or a market that others miss or fail to understand.
With GEFS, the key insight was acquired by studying the behavior of people whose accounts might default. GEFS found that after a period of about ten days, the probability of collecting a delinquent account dropped significantly as people's feelings of guilt over not paying the debt wore off.
Using this, and other insight into potential defaults, GEFS specially trained people to follow-up on delinquent accounts. GEFS developed an automated system to ring the delinquent account holder's phone at regular intervals. Then, when the phone was answered, an automated system put the call into the hands of a person trained to handle the situation.
McGrath and MacMillan write: "Keeping your entrepreneurial insights to yourself is key here. Most reasonably competent competitors can match whatever you do in terms of benchmark processes or technologies, but without the entrepreneurial insight behind the competence and without the deep familiarity that comes from experience, competitors can only grope their way toward your competitive position."
The authors astutely observe that while it is relatively easy to reverse-engineer a product, products bundled with services are much more difficult for competitors to replicate.
While you can expect your competitors to mimic your product's best features, McGrath and MacMillan strongly emphasize that you must carefully examine the features of your own products and services.
Using all meaningful sources of input, McGrath and MacMillan describe the process of "attribute mapping," which divides a product's features into the customer's perception of the desirability of the feature. Attributes could range from "nonnegotiables" (features expected by the customers) through "differentiators" (features that positively differentiate your product from the competition) and "exciters" (features customers find positively delightful) to "tolerables" (features not really liked, but not hated either) and "enragers" (features customers absolutely hate, fear, or despise).
Enragers must be eliminated, while exciters to drive customer purchasing should be sought. McGrath and MacMillan point out that there is no definite correlation between the expense of creating a feature and the customer's perception of its value. McGrath and MacMillan write, "Exciters are often technically simple, relatively low-cost advances that greatly add to the offering's convenience or ease of use." And, many features that are quite costly often go unappreciated by the customer. Nixing such features might offer big cost savings.
McGrath and MacMillan profoundly observe: "Trying to achieve perfection is a mistake because the translation from what your business has to offer to what the customer wants or needs can never be perfect."
Developing a product is often like a blindfolded archer shooting arrows downrange at a target. Trying intensely to hold the bow steady makes little sense when you can't see the target! Your point of aim might be wrong. Plus, it's tiring! Better to just point in the general direction and let the arrow fly. Then, fire again in a relaxed manner. You can peek through the blindfold via attribute mapping.
Learning how consumers contemplate, select, use, and dispose of a company's products is another major focus of The Entrepreneurial Mindset. Via such "consumption chain analysis," entrepreneurs can find ways to positively differentiate their products from the competition.
If you want to understand how other entrepreneurs think and how companies achieve market superiority, you will definitely want to read The Entrepreneurial Mindset: Strategies for Continuously Creating Opportunity in an Age of Uncertainty.
Peter Hupalo
via thinkinglike.com
Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Legalization - Business Opportunities Weblog
Hello and Welcome! This website is not like all of the others. Since 2001, we've posted 17,321 different business opportunities and ideas, so you're sure to find something here to inspire you!
Why Would Someone Write A Book That Gives Away Their Secrets? (Used Books: Big Profits Part 2)
Reviewer’s Note: Books like this always make me wonder. If Adam Bertam is making [...]
-->Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Legalization
June 22, 2010 by Dane Carlson | 12 Comments
American entrepreneur Adam Dunn built a $3 million “pot empire” in Amsterdam, and has now returned to the US to do the same thing here:
Small businesses have become the latest engines for medical marijuana advocacy in the U.S., according to Dick Cowan, the former director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML).
“The thing that’s really driving legalization is entrepreneurialism,” he said. As the CFO of Cannabis Science, a pharmaceutical startup based in Colorado Springs, he has a vested interest in seeing the industry succeed.
“I think it’s great that Adam is back here,” Cowan added. “He’s a very shrewd, successful businessman.”
Part of entrepreneurial shrewdness is knowing when to seek out new opportunities. For the savvy weed farmer, some places in the U.S. offer possibilities that aren’t available in Amsterdam.
In Government | 12 Comments
Related Businesses in the Directory
Related Posts
- USA Mobile Drug Test Franchise Opportunity
- Armless Man Gets 5 Years In Jail
- The Drug Test Consultant
- Immigrants: The New, High-Tech Entrepreneurs
- Need Prescription Drug Patient Assistance?
- Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Sickens Rural Pharmacies
- Wall Drug - Started As A Home Based Business
- Can A Microbiz Help You Enjoy A Better Retirement
- More Maruti Driving Schools In India
- Any Lab Test Now
http://save.ingdirect.com/promo/promo_set.asp?p=%9A%5BXlm%B2n&Redirect=19" target="_blank" />
12 Replies
Please leave a response to this post.
Tweets
danec on June 22nd, 2010 1:38 pm
Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Legalization http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2010/06/22/entrepreneurialism-driving-drug-legalization/
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
banditblogger on June 22nd, 2010 2:34 pm
Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Legalization http://ow.ly/17Qqv6
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
angelicacolon12 on June 22nd, 2010 2:43 pm
Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Legalization – Business …: Blog entry about Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Lega… http://bit.ly/burdwl
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
JimKukral on June 22nd, 2010 3:18 pm
Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Legalization http://bit.ly/b5zkMs
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
Bora_Restobar on June 22nd, 2010 4:11 pm
Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Legalization: American entrepreneur Adam Dunn built a $3 million “pot empire” in A… http://bit.ly/dbFwms
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
jenlock1014 on June 22nd, 2010 8:56 pm
Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Legalization – Business …: Blog entry about Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Lega… http://bit.ly/bSW3aK
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
HighTimez94 on June 22nd, 2010 9:27 pm
Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Legalization – Business …: Blog entry about Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Lega… http://bit.ly/bSW3aK
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
mayfrost65 on June 22nd, 2010 10:30 pm
Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Legalization – Business …: http://url4.eu/4tjc9
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
nancyfrank36 on June 22nd, 2010 10:30 pm
Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Legalization – Business …: http://url4.eu/4tjcB
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
alexis_flem on June 22nd, 2010 10:30 pm
Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Legalization – Business …: http://url4.eu/4tjcD
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
jakerise on June 23rd, 2010 1:56 am
Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Legalization – Business …: Blog entry about Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Lega… http://bit.ly/cXwhwO
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
RockinBizOpps on June 23rd, 2010 2:57 am
Entrepreneurialism Driving Drug Legalization – Business … http://bit.ly/bLpp9z
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
Leave a Reply
Special Focus
Comment on This Story / Send This Article to a FriendSpecial Focus
The generation gap finds its way to work
7/21/2010
by Brittany Berrens
Twentysomethings sometimes get a bad rap. Touted as being “all about me,” and always in search of instantaneous results, these members of the Millennial generation, born between 1980 and 2000, grew up with a keyboard in hand and a phone in their ear.
Members of the Baby Boom generation may be inclined to complain about the Millennial work ethic, their casual dress, their methods of communication or even their sense of entitlement. But like it or not, Millennials are up-and-coming business professionals and they’re invading the workplace.
Brad Gingras is the youth services manager with the Northwest Wisconsin Concentrated Employment Program. He’s spent quite a bit of time getting to know this generation and watching how they’re adapting in the professional environment.
There is a noticeable generation gap developing in workplaces between Millennials and members of the Baby Boom, or post World War II, generation. The most noted difference: technology skills, said Gingras.
“One of the major differences for so many of the Millennials is as long as they can remember technology has played an incredible role in their life. Some may not even remember world without email,” he said.
Millennials agree. Twenty-four-year-old Mike Malone works at marketing form WestmorelandFlint in Duluth. For him, technology creates the biggest divide between him and older colleagues.
“We are a lot more well adapted to technology. We grew up with a keyboard in our hand. They’re getting there, but they’re definitely not there yet,” said Malone.
Twenty-five-year-old Sara Rolfson reported similar workplace experiences. The Sheraton Duluth sales manager recognizes the fact that co-workers her age are ahead of the curve when it comes to computers.
“We grew up doing everything on a computer and they grew up with a typewriter,” said Rolfson.
But the technology divide is bigger than simply possessing the ability to send an e-mail or set up a presentation online, Gingras says technology has changed the mindset of this younger generation.
“Everything is a click away, and because of that what some of us are experiencing now is we want results pronto. We live in a world with basically a short attention span,” said Gingras.
Technology has created a generation of multi-taskers. Not only can a Millennial be reading a book and watching television, but they can hold a text message conversation in between. This, says Malone, is evident in his work environment.
“I start one thing then I get a phone call and get started on something else. We’re watching TV, eating dinner, typing on our computer. That’s just what we do. Their generation just doesn’t do that,” said Malone. “I don’t see it as a problem but I think they look at us like we’re crazy.”
“They (baby boomers) seem more focused. Younger people are just bouncing around from thing to thing. They are more focused on finishing one thing,” said Wisconsin Public Radio Intern Laura Podgornik.
Differences aside, these young professionals could agree that while there were some challenges to working with older co-workers, there may be significant benefits in the workplace as well.
Both Rolfson and Malone agree that the wisdom and experience that the Baby Boom generation holds is something to value and from which to learn. The two say they’ve learned to spend more face-to-face time with others as opposed to texting or emailing other co-workers or clients.
“My co-worker is really great about networking and going out and meeting people and she communicates in person,” said Rolfson.
“I think some of the other people in my age group prefer the phone conversations or Skype and those kind of emerging medias. For older generations, there’s something about the handshake and those kind of face-to-face meetings,” said Malone.
And perhaps the differences really aren’t that bad. Rolfson noted that while the working styles of people her age were certainly different than those of the Boomer generation, it creates a unique working environment and a well-rounded team.
“When we’re the ones with the gung-ho ideas, they are the realistic ones that are like ‘Uh, no. It’s just not going to work because of this, this, and this.’ There’s a way to find a middle ground. It’s just finding it and working together to find it,” said Rolfson.
Malone offers this advice for the Baby Boomer frustrated by the style of a younger co-worker.
“We operate a lot differently than they do, but it works for us. We have our technology. That’s how we operate. Each generation’s got their characteristics and that’s what works for them,” said Malone. “Before you judge kind of take a look at what we’re doing and if it’s producing results and things are getting done. Then you can’t really second guess it.”
Brittany Berrens is a journalism student at UW-Superior and weekend producer for Fox 21 News.
Previous Special Focus Articles:
- The generation gap finds its way to work -7/21/2010
- Split Rock Lighthouse celebrates 100 -7/13/2010
- I'Falls paper mill turns 100 -2/23/2010
- Is the Internet the future for print? -12/15/2009
- Study documents mystery harbor corrosion -11/25/2009
Locke Announces National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship Members | Department of Commerce
Printer-friendly versionFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
CONTACT OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS
202-482-4883
Council will advise the president on ways to foster entrepreneurship and transform laboratory ideas into new businesses and jobs
U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke today announced the members of the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, a group that will support President Obama's innovation strategy by helping to develop policies that foster entrepreneurship and identifying new ways to take great ideas from the lab to the marketplace to drive economic growth and create jobs. Locke made the announcement at a U.S. Department of Commerce University Innovation Forum at the University of Michigan, where participants discussed the role of universities in innovation, economic development, job creation and commercialization of federally funded research.
“America's innovation engine is not as efficient or as effective as it needs to be, and we are not creating as many jobs as we should,” Locke said. “We must get better at connecting the great ideas to the great company builders. The National Advisory Council will help the administration develop a broader strategy to spur innovation and enable entrepreneurs to develop breakthrough technologies and dynamic companies, and to create jobs all across America.
“I want to extend my gratitude to the leaders selected to The National Advisory Council. Their work will be a key component of America’s economic recovery.”
Throughout U.S. history, basic research in public and private sector research labs has spawned new technologies and inventions that led to new businesses. And those entrepreneurial businesses have been important drivers of job creation. Firms less than five years old have accounted for nearly all net new jobs in America over the last 30 years. Yet, as a share of gross domestic product, American federal investment in the physical sciences and engineering research has dropped by half since 1970.
Since taking office, the president has taken significant steps to turn this trend around. The Recovery Act included $100 billion to support groundbreaking innovations in diverse fields, from healthcare IT and health research to smart grids and high speed trains. Last fall, the president announced a National Innovation Strategy, which called for doubling the budgets of agencies including the National Science Foundation, to better support basic research at our nation's universities. And the president's 2011 budget – while freezing domestic discretionary spending overall – increases funding for civilian research and development by $3.7 billion, or nearly 6 percent.
The National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship will help build on this aggressive agenda. Members of the council include serial entrepreneurs, university presidents, investors and non-profit leaders. Steve Case, Mary Sue Coleman, and Desh Deshpande will serve as Co-Chairs. See the full list of council members below.
First
Last
Title
Tom
Alberg
Managing Director, Madrona Venture Group
Tom
Baruch
Founder and Managing Director, CMEA Capital
Claude
Canizares
Vice President for Research and Associate Provost, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Curtis
Carlson
President & CEO, SRI International
Steve
Case
Chairman & CEO, Revolution; Co-Founder, AOL
Robin
Chase
Co-Founder, Zipcar
Marcelo
Claure
Founder, Chairman, President & CEO, Brightstar
Mary Sue
Coleman
President, University of Michigan
Michael
Crow
President, Arizona State University
Desh
Deshpande
Chairman, A123 Systems, Sycamore Networks, Tejas Networks, and Sparta Group
Judith
Estrin
Co-Founder, Bridge, NCD, Precept, Packet Design; Former CTO, Cisco Systems
Ping
Fu
Co-Founder, Chairman, President & CEO, Geomagic
Christina
Gabriel
Director, Innovation Economy, The Heinz Endowments
Barron
Harvey
Dean, Howard University School of Business
Krisztina
Holly
Vice Provost for Innovation, University of Southern California; Executive Director, USC Stevens Institute for Innovation
Ray
Leach
CEO, JumpStart
Kenneth
Morse
Co-Founder, 3Com and Aspen Technology; Founding Managing Director, MIT Entrepreneurship Center
G.P. "Bud"
Peterson
President, Georgia Institute of Technology
Michael
Roberts
Founder & CEO, The Roberts Companies
RoseAnn
Rosenthal
CEO, Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania
Carl
Schramm
President & CEO, Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation
Ellen
Siminoff
CEO, Shmoop; Founding Executive, Yahoo!
Holden
Thorp
Chancellor, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Charles
Vest
President, National Academy of Engineering; former President, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Jeffrey
Wadsworth
President & CEO, Battelle
Jerry
Yang
Co-Founder and Chief Yahoo, Yahoo!
via commerce.gov
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)