Blog, YouTube & Content Monetization

You’ve heard of burner phones. What about burner email? So much of the internet now requires that you hand over your email address before you’re able to use any services—from an app you’ve downloaded to signing up for a newsletter or redeeming a special offer online. But who says you have to give your real email address? Next time you’re asked, consider using an email mask. There are a growing number of services that give out disguised email addresses and relay any messages to your actual address. Experts say this can be a powerful tool to safeguard privacy and security. Here are some pointers on the whys and hows of email masking: Mask on The idea behind email maski…

Nintendo’s profits tumbled as sales of its Switch console lost momentum, prompting the Japanese video-game maker to lower its full-year forecasts. Kyoto-based Nintendo Co., which created the Super Mario franchise, reported Tuesday an April-December profit of 237 billion yen ($1.5 billion), down 42% from the same period the previous year. Nine-month sales dropped 31% to 956 billion yen ($6 billion), according to Nintendo, which did not break down quarterly results. The company now expects to rake in a 270-billion yen ($1.7 billion) profit for the fiscal year through March, down from the previous forecast for 300-billion yen ($1.9 billion). Sales of Nintendo machines fo…

Hello and welcome to Modern CEO! I’m Stephanie Mehta, CEO and chief content officer of Mansueto Ventures. Each week this newsletter explores inclusive approaches to leadership drawn from conversations with executives and entrepreneurs, and from the pages of Inc. and Fast Company. If you received this newsletter from a friend, you can sign up to get it yourself every Monday morning. Interim leadership is on the rise in the U.S. Nearly a quarter of new CEOs named in the first two months of 2025 were hired on an interim basis, versus 8% in the same period last year, according to a recent report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas. The surge in interim leadership coincide…

Breakfast has started to get a little riskier. More than six million eggs have been recalled since Sept. 29 over salmonella concerns. This week those concerns grew when the FDA expanded its earlier recall from Arkansas-based Black Sheep Egg Company and elevated the recall to Class I, which describes the highest possible risk to public health. The move follows a string of other recent egg recalls. In August, the FDA announced the recall of large brown cage-free Sunshine Yolks produced by Country Eggs, LLC of Lucerne Valley, California, and sold under the Nagatoshi Produce, Mizuho, and Nijiya Markets brands. Those products reportedly sickened at least 95 people across 1…

When I think about the changes in the context for strategy across my career, my view contrasts starkly with the consensus view. Most obsess about rising VUCA (the combination of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity) as the key change. I don’t—and I explain my position in this Playing to Win/Practitioner Insights (PTW/PI) called What has Changed the Most for Strategy: Implications for Your Strategy. And as always, you can find all the previous PTW/PI here. The VUCA narrative I started advising executives on strategy in 1981. The question I pondered for this piece is how has the context for strategy changed over the past 44 years? The general answer I get fr…

Shares in the space-based internet provider AST SpaceMobile Inc (Nasdaq: ASTS) are sinking this morning after a major mishap occurred with the deployment of its latest satellite from Blue Origin’s most advanced rocket, the New Glenn. Here’s what you need to know. What’s happened? On Sunday, April 19, Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin space company launched its flagship rocket, the New Glenn, for the third time. The New Glenn is a partially reusable heavy-lift rocket aimed at directly competing with archrival SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy. (This rivalry pits two of the world’s richest people against each other: Bezos, founder of Amazon, and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk.) …

Heathrow Airport, Europe’s busiest, has shut down today, following a fire last night at a nearby electrical substation that caused a major power outage. The closure has disrupted at least 1,350 flights, according to Flightradar24, with some aircraft diverted to alternate airports like Gatwick, Amsterdam’s Schiphol, and Paris’s Charles de Gaulle. What caused the fire? While the cause of the fire is still under investigation, British officials have stated that there is no evidence of foul play. According to the London Fire Brigade, the fire broke out at an electrical substation around 11:20 p.m. on Thursday, involving a transformer containing 25,000 liters of coo…

In the constant hustle and bustle of one of the busiest airports in the United States, a terrifying 90 seconds of quiet had disastrous results. On April 28, the Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) lost both radar and radio for a minute and a half due to a fried piece of copper wiring, the New York Post reported. This meant that air traffic controllers could not see, hear, or speak to aircraft or pilots around the airport. The event did not lead to any crashes, but it did cause significant stress on employees working at the time; five FAA employees are reportedly taking trauma leave, according to CNN, making them eligible for 45 days to recover from the ev…

When I was cycling across the country on my bike, I spent anywhere from six to nine hours a day in the saddle—for almost three solid months. It made a lot of people wonder: What did you listen to all day long? “Was it mostly music, or more like audiobooks, podcasts?” asked a friend of mine when we went for a drink at a bar after I got back home. “What was on your playlist?” “Nothing,” I said. She frowned slightly, as if she’d misheard me. “What do you mean, ‘nothing?’” “I mean, nothing. I don’t listen to anything when I ride,” I replied. “I don’t even wear earbuds.” You could see the wheels of her mind grind to a standstill. “What the hell. You . . . you just rid…

Up until a week ago, I was really quite satisfied by my iPhone 17 Pro. Not the Liquid Glass, but its soft orange aluminum frame felt just new enough to give me a spark. Then I opened the Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold. Yes, its name is too long. Yes, it costs $700 more than my iPhone. Yes, it’s still heavier than I want it to be. And yet, I hate to admit it . . . the Fold justifies every analyst who has cried that Apple’s hesitance to adopt flexible screen technologies is starting to make it look dated. An estimated 17 million folding smartphones sold last year, representing a scant 1.5% of the smartphone market, but about every analyst expects that figure to balloon …

With the advent of generative AI and other advanced technologies like quantum computing, we are entering a period of massive innovation. It is likely we are about to see more future-facing products and services than we witnessed in the past 25 years. These companies will disrupt current industries and change the way we work, live, and play. This creates a new paradigm in how companies identify the best opportunities and how those ideas are developed, branded, and activated. For the past 40 years, I have had a front row seat to some of the world’s most valuable brands’ early days. Lexicon Branding played a role in developing names for hundreds of iconic brands and product…

When Allison Whalen returned from parental leave years ago, she found her corner of the business in shambles. Her direct reports were frustrated, her projects had stalled, and she felt the weight of disruption on both sides. Curious whether her experience was unique, she asked around. The response was striking: The number-one reason employees left their companies after parental leave wasn’t lack of policy—it was career derailment caused by how leave was managed. That “aha” moment led her to found Parentaly, a company that helps thousands of employees and managers navigate parental leave through pre-leave planning, return-to-work support, and manager training. With cli…

Music lovers who have complained for years about Ticketmaster fees for concert tickets are surely reveling in a jury verdict Wednesday that found its parent company Live Nation has been running a harmful monopoly over large venues across the U.S. But they will have to wait to see if the verdict leads to changes that make concerts more affordable. Here are some things to know about the verdict in the closely-watched antitrust battle: No immediate relief for concertgoers The lawsuit, initially led by the U.S. government under former President Joe Biden, accused Live Nation of smothering competition and blocking venues from using multiple ticket sellers. Days into the tri…

A few years ago, the reusable water bottle transformed from a humble utilitarian good into a status-signaling piece of arm candy. On TikTok, popular creators were decking out their water bottles with custom accessories and add-ons. Out in the real world, people were coordinating their water bottle colors with their activewear sets. Some consumers were even willing to drop hundreds of dollars for a “luxury” hydration experience. It was a full-on war of the water bottles, and there was a clear leader in the pack of drinkware brands vying for attention: Stanley 1913. For Stanley, a subsidiary of the parent company PMI WW Brands, the great water bottle wars were a business …

This year, Columbus Day, also known as Indigenous Peoples’ Day, lands on Monday, October 13. While it’s a federal holiday and many schools have it off, there are plenty of businesses still open—as well as U.S. stock markets. Here’s what to know about the holiday, and what’s open and closed today. Why is the holiday called Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples’ Day? Columbus Day, named after Italian explorer Christopher Columbus, occurs on the second Monday in October of every year, and celebrates Columbus’s arrival in the Americas on October 12, 1492, in the Bahamas. However, due to criticism over the treatment of Native Americans who were here when Colum…

Monday, April 21, 2025, is Easter Monday. It’s the final day of the long weekend of Easter celebrations that traditionally kicks off on Good Friday and is celebrated by millions of people across the world. But while Easter Monday may be a widely celebrated religious holiday, many institutions remain open on the day, even if they were closed on Good Friday or Easter Sunday. However, some institutions will be closed in observance of the day. Here’s what you need to know about what’s open and closed on Easter Monday 2025. Is Easter Monday a federal holiday? No. Easter Monday is not a federally recognized public holiday in the United States. This means that fe…

The Easter holiday is celebrated by billions of Christians around the world. But even if you are not partaking in the festivities, store closures or reduced store hours might impact you. Here’s what to expect on Easter Sunday. Grocery store closures Whether you need to stock up on eggs and chocolate bunnies at the last minute or simply run out of milk, be aware that many supermarkets are closed for Easter Sunday, including Aldi, Costco, H-E-B, and Sam’s Club. For last-minute purchases, try a Trader Joe’s—unless you live in Portland, Maine, where the local stores will be closed. Albertsons, Safeway, Jewel-Osco, Acme, Vons, and Tom Thumb will all be open. …

Friday, April 18, 2025, is Good Friday. But when it comes to what places are open and closed on Good Friday, things can be a bit tricky. That’s because Good Friday is not a federal holiday but a religious one. It’s the Friday before Easter, which is always celebrated on a Sunday. Yet Good Friday is also a state holiday in select states. This means that public institutions may be closed in one state but open in another on Good Friday. Here’s what you need to know about what’s open and closed on Good Friday 2025. Is Good Friday a federal holiday? No. Good Friday is not one of the officially recognized federal holidays. Of the 12 federal holidays in 2025, the…

Today, April 3, 2026, is Good Friday. It is an important day to Christians in the United States and around the world. But unlike in many other countries, Good Friday, in many U.S. states, isn’t an official holiday. When it comes to institutions and businesses, some observe the holiday, while others don’t. That can make it confusing for people to know exactly what is open and what is closed on Good Friday. Here’s what you need to know. Is Good Friday a national holiday? No, the federal government does not recognize Good Friday as a national holiday. This means that many federal institutions that are typically closed on public holidays remain open on Good Fr…

The temperatures are heating up and school’s almost out for the summer. Before we fully dive into the warmer months and vacations, we get a mini-break in the form of Memorial Day weekend—a preview of coming attractions—but it requires some planning ahead because today (Monday May 26, 2025) is a federal holiday. Let’s take a look at a brief history of the day and what business and services will be closed to observe it. A brief history of Memorial Day Memorial Day has its roots in the aftermath of the Civil War. On May 30, 1868, John A. Logan, commander in chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, declared the first national observance of Declaration Day, Memoria…