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The first female CEO of PICPA talks pipeline crisis and long-standing licensure rules. Accounting Influencers with Rob Brown Go PRO for members-only access to more Rob Brown. View the full article

The first female CEO of PICPA talks pipeline crisis and long-standing licensure rules. Accounting Influencers with Rob Brown Go PRO for members-only access to more Rob Brown. View the full article

Key Takeaways Boost Creativity and Productivity: A well-designed office space can significantly enhance creativity and overall productivity for employees. Collaborative Workspaces: Incorporate collaborative workspaces with flexible furniture arrangements to facilitate teamwork, communication, and creativity among team members. Color Psychology: Utilize strategic color choices to influence mood and productivity, such as blues for focus, greens for stress reduction, and yellows for energy. Integrate Nature: Adding biophilic design elements like plants and natural light can improve air quality and reduce stress, fostering a healthier work environment. Smart and Ergonomic Solutions: Implement smart office technologies for automation and invest in ergonomic furniture to boost comfort and efficiency, leading to happier employees. Budget-Friendly Tips: Use DIY approaches and repurpose underutilized spaces to create an attractive office environment without breaking the bank. Transforming your office space can significantly boost creativity and productivity. Whether you’re working from home or managing a corporate environment, the right design can make all the difference. You don’t have to settle for a bland workspace when there are countless innovative ideas waiting to be explored. From cozy nooks that encourage focus to vibrant collaborative areas that spark teamwork, the possibilities are endless. You’ll discover how to balance functionality with aesthetics, ensuring your office not only looks great but also meets your professional needs. Let’s dive into some inspiring office space ideas that will elevate your work experience and make every day more enjoyable. Creative Office Space Ideas In an ever-evolving business landscape, creating an inspiring office environment fuels creativity and enhances productivity. Consider these innovative ideas to transform your workspace. Collaborative Workspaces Design collaborative workspaces that encourage teamwork and open communication. Use modular seating arrangements that promote interaction among team members. Incorporate breakout areas with whiteboards and brainstorming tools, allowing creativity to flow. Ensure adequate lighting and décor that reflects your brand values to foster a positive atmosphere. Create a space that adapts to team needs, integrating areas for both collaborative tasks and focused work. Flexible Furniture Solutions Invest in flexible furniture solutions that cater to various work styles. Choose height-adjustable desks that enable both sitting and standing positions, contributing to overall employee wellness. Opt for movable partitions to create dynamic spaces that can easily transform based on project requirements. Consider incorporating multi-functional furniture that provides storage and work surfaces to maximize space efficiency. These solutions not only enhance comfort but also improve employee satisfaction and retention. Enhancing Productivity with Design Designing an office space for your small business can significantly impact productivity. Focus on key elements to create an environment that supports your team’s efficiency and creativity. Color Psychology in Office Spaces Using colors strategically can enhance mood and productivity. For example, blue promotes focus and tranquility, making it ideal for workspaces. Green can boost creativity and reduce stress, perfect for brainstorming areas. Yellow stimulates optimism and energy, suitable for collaborative spaces. Incorporating these colors into your office design can create a stimulating atmosphere that aligns with your business goals. Incorporating Nature into Design Integrating nature into your office design offers numerous benefits. Biophilic design elements, such as plants or natural light, improve air quality and increase employees’ well-being. Studies show that exposure to nature can enhance focus and lower stress levels. Consider adding green walls or desk plants, allowing employees to connect with nature, ultimately supporting a productive workspace. Tech-Savvy Office Space Ideas Integrating technology into your office space can drive productivity and enhance employee comfort. Explore these forward-thinking solutions tailored for small businesses. Smart Office Solutions Smart office solutions focus on automation and integration of the Internet of Things (IoT). Key features that can optimize your workspace include: Occupancy Monitoring: Utilizing IoT sensors, you can track occupancy levels to automate lighting and climate control. This reduces energy waste and aligns with your budget goals. Lighting Controls: Smart lighting systems adjust brightness and color based on real-time occupancy and natural light. This contributes to a more pleasant atmosphere while improving energy efficiency. HVAC Controls: Automated heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) manage temperature and humidity based on user preferences, ensuring comfort for your team and enhancing overall productivity. Ergonomic Gadgets for Comfort Investing in ergonomic gadgets creates a healthier workspace. These tools help alleviate strain and enhance efficiency: Height-Adjustable Desks: Offering flexibility, these desks allow you or your employees to transition between sitting and standing. This can boost energy levels and improve focus. Ergonomic Chairs: Providing proper support for your back and posture, these chairs reduce discomfort during long hours and can enhance productivity. Monitor Stands: Elevating computer monitors to eye level helps prevent neck and back strain. This simple adjustment can lead to a more comfortable working environment. Utilizing these tech-savvy office space ideas not only elevates your workspace but also fosters a culture of innovation and productivity, crucial for your small business’s growth strategy. Budget-Friendly Office Space Ideas Consider implementing budget-friendly strategies to create an efficient and attractive office space. These ideas help small businesses maintain a professional appearance while managing costs effectively. DIY Design Tips Crafting unique décor adds character to your office without significant expense. Create wall art with available materials or download free prints to frame motivational quotes. Use everyday items creatively—glass jars can organize stationery, while an old ladder may serve as a stylish shelving unit. You enhance your workspace while also minimizing costs. Repurposing Unused Space Transforming underutilized areas can maximize productivity. An empty corner can become a collaborative nook for brainstorming sessions by adding a small table and couple of chairs. Utilize hallways for informal meeting spots with a few comfortable seats. By leveraging every square foot, you boost employee engagement and foster teamwork without investing in new real estate. Conclusion Transforming your office space can significantly boost creativity and productivity. By embracing innovative design ideas and flexible furniture solutions, you create an environment that caters to diverse work styles. Incorporating elements like color psychology and biophilic design not only enhances aesthetics but also improves employee well-being. Don’t forget the power of technology to optimize your workspace. Smart solutions and ergonomic gadgets can make a world of difference in comfort and efficiency. With budget-friendly DIY options, you can elevate your office without breaking the bank. Embrace these ideas to create a workspace that inspires and motivates you every day. Frequently Asked Questions How can office space design influence creativity and productivity? Office space design plays a crucial role in boosting creativity and productivity by creating an engaging environment. Features like collaborative workspaces, flexible furniture, and color psychology can enhance focus and morale, encouraging employees to work better together and individually. What are some innovative ideas for office spaces? Innovative office ideas include collaborative workstations, modular seating, breakout areas for brainstorming, height-adjustable desks, and movable partitions. These elements promote teamwork and adaptability, catering to various work styles and improving employee wellness. How does color psychology affect workplace productivity? Color psychology can significantly impact productivity levels. Different colors influence moods; for example, blue encourages focus, green sparks creativity, and yellow boosts energy. Choosing the right colors for your workspace can enhance overall employee performance. What are biophilic design elements? Biophilic design elements refer to incorporating nature into office spaces, such as using plants, natural light, and organic materials. These features improve air quality, employee well-being, and can lead to higher levels of creativity and productivity. What are tech-savvy solutions for enhancing productivity at work? Tech-savvy solutions include smart office technologies like occupancy monitoring, automated lighting, and HVAC systems. These tools optimize the workspace, improve energy efficiency, and contribute to a more comfortable working environment for employees. How can small businesses enhance office spaces on a budget? Small businesses can enhance their office spaces by repurposing materials for décor, transforming underutilized areas into productive spots, and utilizing DIY design tips. Strategic adjustments can create a professional appearance without incurring significant costs. What are ergonomic gadgets, and why are they important? Ergonomic gadgets include height-adjustable desks, ergonomic chairs, and monitor stands. They are vital for creating a healthier work environment, promoting better posture, reducing discomfort, and increasing overall productivity by supporting employees’ physical well-being. Image Via Envato This article, "Inspiring Office Space Ideas to Boost Creativity and Productivity" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

Key Takeaways Boost Creativity and Productivity: A well-designed office space can significantly enhance creativity and overall productivity for employees. Collaborative Workspaces: Incorporate collaborative workspaces with flexible furniture arrangements to facilitate teamwork, communication, and creativity among team members. Color Psychology: Utilize strategic color choices to influence mood and productivity, such as blues for focus, greens for stress reduction, and yellows for energy. Integrate Nature: Adding biophilic design elements like plants and natural light can improve air quality and reduce stress, fostering a healthier work environment. Smart and Ergonomic Solutions: Implement smart office technologies for automation and invest in ergonomic furniture to boost comfort and efficiency, leading to happier employees. Budget-Friendly Tips: Use DIY approaches and repurpose underutilized spaces to create an attractive office environment without breaking the bank. Transforming your office space can significantly boost creativity and productivity. Whether you’re working from home or managing a corporate environment, the right design can make all the difference. You don’t have to settle for a bland workspace when there are countless innovative ideas waiting to be explored. From cozy nooks that encourage focus to vibrant collaborative areas that spark teamwork, the possibilities are endless. You’ll discover how to balance functionality with aesthetics, ensuring your office not only looks great but also meets your professional needs. Let’s dive into some inspiring office space ideas that will elevate your work experience and make every day more enjoyable. Creative Office Space Ideas In an ever-evolving business landscape, creating an inspiring office environment fuels creativity and enhances productivity. Consider these innovative ideas to transform your workspace. Collaborative Workspaces Design collaborative workspaces that encourage teamwork and open communication. Use modular seating arrangements that promote interaction among team members. Incorporate breakout areas with whiteboards and brainstorming tools, allowing creativity to flow. Ensure adequate lighting and décor that reflects your brand values to foster a positive atmosphere. Create a space that adapts to team needs, integrating areas for both collaborative tasks and focused work. Flexible Furniture Solutions Invest in flexible furniture solutions that cater to various work styles. Choose height-adjustable desks that enable both sitting and standing positions, contributing to overall employee wellness. Opt for movable partitions to create dynamic spaces that can easily transform based on project requirements. Consider incorporating multi-functional furniture that provides storage and work surfaces to maximize space efficiency. These solutions not only enhance comfort but also improve employee satisfaction and retention. Enhancing Productivity with Design Designing an office space for your small business can significantly impact productivity. Focus on key elements to create an environment that supports your team’s efficiency and creativity. Color Psychology in Office Spaces Using colors strategically can enhance mood and productivity. For example, blue promotes focus and tranquility, making it ideal for workspaces. Green can boost creativity and reduce stress, perfect for brainstorming areas. Yellow stimulates optimism and energy, suitable for collaborative spaces. Incorporating these colors into your office design can create a stimulating atmosphere that aligns with your business goals. Incorporating Nature into Design Integrating nature into your office design offers numerous benefits. Biophilic design elements, such as plants or natural light, improve air quality and increase employees’ well-being. Studies show that exposure to nature can enhance focus and lower stress levels. Consider adding green walls or desk plants, allowing employees to connect with nature, ultimately supporting a productive workspace. Tech-Savvy Office Space Ideas Integrating technology into your office space can drive productivity and enhance employee comfort. Explore these forward-thinking solutions tailored for small businesses. Smart Office Solutions Smart office solutions focus on automation and integration of the Internet of Things (IoT). Key features that can optimize your workspace include: Occupancy Monitoring: Utilizing IoT sensors, you can track occupancy levels to automate lighting and climate control. This reduces energy waste and aligns with your budget goals. Lighting Controls: Smart lighting systems adjust brightness and color based on real-time occupancy and natural light. This contributes to a more pleasant atmosphere while improving energy efficiency. HVAC Controls: Automated heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) manage temperature and humidity based on user preferences, ensuring comfort for your team and enhancing overall productivity. Ergonomic Gadgets for Comfort Investing in ergonomic gadgets creates a healthier workspace. These tools help alleviate strain and enhance efficiency: Height-Adjustable Desks: Offering flexibility, these desks allow you or your employees to transition between sitting and standing. This can boost energy levels and improve focus. Ergonomic Chairs: Providing proper support for your back and posture, these chairs reduce discomfort during long hours and can enhance productivity. Monitor Stands: Elevating computer monitors to eye level helps prevent neck and back strain. This simple adjustment can lead to a more comfortable working environment. Utilizing these tech-savvy office space ideas not only elevates your workspace but also fosters a culture of innovation and productivity, crucial for your small business’s growth strategy. Budget-Friendly Office Space Ideas Consider implementing budget-friendly strategies to create an efficient and attractive office space. These ideas help small businesses maintain a professional appearance while managing costs effectively. DIY Design Tips Crafting unique décor adds character to your office without significant expense. Create wall art with available materials or download free prints to frame motivational quotes. Use everyday items creatively—glass jars can organize stationery, while an old ladder may serve as a stylish shelving unit. You enhance your workspace while also minimizing costs. Repurposing Unused Space Transforming underutilized areas can maximize productivity. An empty corner can become a collaborative nook for brainstorming sessions by adding a small table and couple of chairs. Utilize hallways for informal meeting spots with a few comfortable seats. By leveraging every square foot, you boost employee engagement and foster teamwork without investing in new real estate. Conclusion Transforming your office space can significantly boost creativity and productivity. By embracing innovative design ideas and flexible furniture solutions, you create an environment that caters to diverse work styles. Incorporating elements like color psychology and biophilic design not only enhances aesthetics but also improves employee well-being. Don’t forget the power of technology to optimize your workspace. Smart solutions and ergonomic gadgets can make a world of difference in comfort and efficiency. With budget-friendly DIY options, you can elevate your office without breaking the bank. Embrace these ideas to create a workspace that inspires and motivates you every day. Frequently Asked Questions How can office space design influence creativity and productivity? Office space design plays a crucial role in boosting creativity and productivity by creating an engaging environment. Features like collaborative workspaces, flexible furniture, and color psychology can enhance focus and morale, encouraging employees to work better together and individually. What are some innovative ideas for office spaces? Innovative office ideas include collaborative workstations, modular seating, breakout areas for brainstorming, height-adjustable desks, and movable partitions. These elements promote teamwork and adaptability, catering to various work styles and improving employee wellness. How does color psychology affect workplace productivity? Color psychology can significantly impact productivity levels. Different colors influence moods; for example, blue encourages focus, green sparks creativity, and yellow boosts energy. Choosing the right colors for your workspace can enhance overall employee performance. What are biophilic design elements? Biophilic design elements refer to incorporating nature into office spaces, such as using plants, natural light, and organic materials. These features improve air quality, employee well-being, and can lead to higher levels of creativity and productivity. What are tech-savvy solutions for enhancing productivity at work? Tech-savvy solutions include smart office technologies like occupancy monitoring, automated lighting, and HVAC systems. These tools optimize the workspace, improve energy efficiency, and contribute to a more comfortable working environment for employees. How can small businesses enhance office spaces on a budget? Small businesses can enhance their office spaces by repurposing materials for décor, transforming underutilized areas into productive spots, and utilizing DIY design tips. Strategic adjustments can create a professional appearance without incurring significant costs. What are ergonomic gadgets, and why are they important? Ergonomic gadgets include height-adjustable desks, ergonomic chairs, and monitor stands. They are vital for creating a healthier work environment, promoting better posture, reducing discomfort, and increasing overall productivity by supporting employees’ physical well-being. Image Via Envato This article, "Inspiring Office Space Ideas to Boost Creativity and Productivity" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

Plans are being looked at following Starmer’s policy U-turn this week, say officialsView the full article

Spat stems from retracted study on grading of insurers’ portfolio holdingsView the full article

US president has shifted the focus of his offensive from Beijing to BrusselsView the full article

One of the most notable features of President Donald The President’s “big beautiful bill” passed by the House early Thursday is a series of tax cuts exempting tips, overtime, and Social Security from taxes. The White House said no taxes on overtime and tips “makes good on two of President The President’s cornerstone campaign promises and benefits hardworking Americans where they need it the most—their paychecks.” The so-called populist tax measures have garnered headlines and won praise from Republican lawmakers, as well as unions representing police and firefighters. And lawmakers in 19 states from Massachusetts to Mississippi have proposed their own “no tax on overtime” bills this year, according to the Economic Policy Institute. What has received far less attention, aside from a legal blog or two, is that the The President administration just made it more difficult for millions of American workers to earn overtime—and actually benefit from the tax measure. The U.S. Department of Labor has quietly paused its appeals of a ruling by a Texas judge that reversed the Biden administration’s changes to the overtime rule—which expanded the right to overtime pay for 4.3 million salaried American workers. The rule had increased the salary threshold for overtime exemption from $35,568 to $43,888 on July 1, 2024, and then to $58,656 on January 1, 2025. A spokesperson for the Department of Labor did not immediately return requests from Capital & Main for comment. The rule was spearheaded by Biden administration Secretary of Labor Julie Su, who noted the irony of The President’s tax proposal on overtime pay, telling Capital & Main: “You can’t benefit from ‘no taxes on overtime’ if you’re not even paid overtime.” She added: “When you work longer hours, you should be paid for it. That’s why we expanded overtime pay to 4 million more Americans. This administration has walked away from that rule, showing yet again that you can’t have an administration of billionaires and depend on them to fight for working people. Cutting the number of workers eligible for overtime means less money in workers’ pockets.” Judy Conti, government affairs director of the National Employment Law Project, called the tax measure a “gimmick,” noting that the The President administration “is already making it easier to classify people as independent contractors, rather than employees, and they aren’t entitled to overtime at all.” The President’s allies in the House, including Ways and Means Chairman Jason Smith, have claimed that the measure could impact more than 80 million hourly workers. But in reality, only 8% of them are estimated to earn overtime pay on a regular basis, according to the Budget Lab at Yale. “That Doesn’t Help Me” Among those workers is Terri, a cashier at a Dollar Tree store in Brooklyn, who was nonplussed when asked about “no tax on overtime.” “So what? That doesn’t help me. I don’t even get overtime, no matter how many hours I work.” The workers who would benefit from the exemption tend to be employed in sectors such as manufacturing, mining, and public safety. One of the most vocal supporters of the measure is the International Association of Fire Fighters, whose members often work many hours of overtime a month. “Firefighters already work 53 hours a week before even qualifying for overtime pay. That’s 35% more hours a week than the average worker. The proposal to eliminate taxes on overtime would bring meaningful relief to firefighters, helping them keep more of what they earn while working long hours to keep their communities safe,” Edward Kelly, general president of the International Association of Fire Fighters, said in a statement to NBC News. The measure is estimated to cost some $866 billion over the next 10 years, per the Budget Lab at Yale. And state measures could have a devastating impact on their budgets, hurting their ability to pay for essential services. In Alabama, which became the first state to exempt overtime pay from state taxes, the measure cost the state $230 million in the first nine months of 2024, cutting off millions in funding for the state’s Education Trust Fund, according to the Economic Policy Institute. In the end, exempting overtime from taxes “is not a real pro-worker policy,” write EPI’s David Cooper and Nina Mast. “Instead, it is a giveaway to businesses that would create new inequities in the tax code while expanding employer power and draining public budgets of resources for all the things—schools, infrastructure, safety, health—that workers, their families, and their communities actually need to thrive.” This piece was originally published by Capital & Main, which reports from California on economic, political, and social issues. View the full article

These days, our tech experiences are all about speed—and our expectations for instant action are actually kinda insane. Think about it: Not so long ago, phones, computers, and especially the internet were all painfully slow (at least, by today’s sonic-speed standards). Things have come a long way in a short time. And for most of us now, if something doesn’t load within a fraction of second, we grow impatient and maybe give up entirely—like when a webpage has the audacity to take a handful of seconds to show up and we click away in an indignant huff. Hey, we’ve all been there. What’s especially wild, though, is that while the standards for speed have skyrocketed forward, the way we measure this stuff has remained mostly the same. At least, until now. This week, I’ve got an incredibly cool and tantalizingly new tool to share with ya. It’s an overdue update to the way we think about speed and assessing the allegedly lightning-fast connections we all pay for. Get ready for a whole new way to think about the tech in front of you. Psst: If you love these types of tools as much as I do, check out my free Cool Tools newsletter from The Intelligence. You’ll be the first to find all sorts of simple tech treasures! The internet speed test—reinvented Traditionally, when we talk about tools for testing your tech connection speed, we think about things like Ookla’s Speedtest, the native Google speed testing system, or the newer Cloudflare Internet Speed Test service. We’ve covered those types of tools before​. They’re all useful, in different ways—but they’re also all variations on the same tried-and-true type of speed assessment that’s been around for ages now. Today’s tool is different. But it comes from a familiar source—someone who knows this area inside and out. It’s the brand-new brainchild of the guy who created Ookla’s Speedtest, arguably the first internet speed test that became broadly known and embraced by the masses. ➜ It’s called Orb​. And it’s decidedly different from your typical tech speed tester. 👁️ Orb works by looking not only at the basic power of your connection but also its responsiveness and reliability. The idea is that all of that adds up to create a more complete and ultimately meaningful view of your connection quality. 💡 And that number isn’t only about bragging rights, either: It’s meant to help you make sure you’re actually getting the speed you’re paying for—and then able to pinpoint precisely where and when any problems pop up. ⌚ You’ll need about two minutes to set Orb up and take it out for a spin. First, install the appropriate Orb app​ for whatever type of device you’re using. Orb is free to use, and it’s available for most major platforms—Android​, ​iOS​, ​Windows​, ​MacOS​, even ​Linux​. If you’re using a Chromebook, you can go with either the Android app or the Linux version. Open up the app and follow the quick steps to get it set up and ready. Orb will prompt you to sign in or create an account, but you can skip over that if you’d rather. The account just makes it possible to sync your testing data and view it from other devices. Once that swift onetime setup’s out of the way, you’ll see Orb’s dashboard—with a tremendous amount of detail that lets you peek under the hood and learn exactly how much your current connection leaves to be desired. Specifically: Responsiveness tells you how quickly your connection acts and how much lag you’ve got going. Reliability looks at the consistency of your connection and its responsiveness over time. And speed is the more standard measure of how quickly bits and bytes move across your connection (as measured by Cloudflare—the same basic speed testing tool we’ve recommended before​!). It all adds up to give you a never-before-visible complete picture of your internet speed quality—on your current device as well as any other devices on which you’ve installed the app and signed in. any Knowledge is power, as they say. And with Orb’s in-depth intelligence firmly in your mitts, you’ll be armed to the gills and ready to confirm that everything’s working the way it oughta—and ready to point your finger at the precise problem, if and when one appears. Orb is available on all major platforms​, via a variety of native apps. It’s completely free for personal use. (The company also sells large-scale enterprise software setups, which seems to be where it intends to make money.) The tool comes from known, reputable internet researchers and is ​explicit about the fact​ that it doesn’t do anything disconcerting with the limited amount of data it collects. Treat yourself to even more tech-enhancing goodness with my free Cool Tools newsletter. You’ll get an instant introduction to an incredible audio app and a new off-the-beaten-path gem every Wednesday! View the full article

David Brickley is something of a social marketing pioneer. In 2011, he founded STN Digital, a leading social-first digital marketing company in sports and entertainment. STN now has more than 50 employees and creates hundreds of pieces of content daily for partners like ESPN, Warner Bros., NBC Sports, Under Armour, the Philadelphia Phillies, and NBA star Jayson Tatum, among dozens of others. The company helped Elton John launch his TikTok. In 2023, digital sports viewership surpassed traditional television viewers for the first time. Forty-three percent of young adult sports fans follow their favorite league on social media, 54% follow their favorite athlete, and 32% of all sports fans use social media while watching games. Brickley and STN have been at the forefront of this social-first revolution. Brickley never wanted to start a social marketing agency. But when Kobe Bryant opens a door—even by accident—you walk through. Building a business A lifelong Lakers fan who grew up east of Los Angeles, Brickley took a job in 2011 as a producer at Fox Sports Radio with the dream of hosting his own sports talk radio show. “I thought I should have my own afternoon show,” he said. “My program director thought differently.” Shut down by the higher-ups, Brickey became an entrepreneur by necessity. He used Fox Sports AV equipment and studio space after hours to launch his own YouTube channel. At the time, original sports content on the platform was scarce. His content regularly made it on YouTube’s front page, which grew his profile enough for him to start working directly with professional athletes, eventually landing Bryant as a client in 2013. In an exclusive interview, Brickley spoke with Fast Company about his evolution into a digital maven, sharing his insights on how social audience habits have changed, how he sees them evolving in the future, and how any company can build a social content strategy that works. The interview has been edited and condensed. How did you land Kobe Bryant as a client when you were just getting started as a small shop? It started with good karma. I did a ton of favors for the publicist of Matt Barnes, who was a Lakers player at the time, and as a favor, I interviewed his twins after they got on the honor roll at their elementary school. In exchange, I got a 10-minute one-on-one with Matt. Then one day I was at a boxing class and I ran into his publicist. She mentioned she was working with Kobe, so I asked if I could send over some ideas. Because of all those favors I’d done, she let me pitch Kobe the concept of the “Kobe Minute”—a 60-second weekly video about his on-court and off-court successes. They loved it because we could highlight his charitable work without it feeling self-promotional. How did creating content for Kobe and his team open your eyes to the idea of creating a social marketing agency? The Kobe opportunity was the epiphany moment. I had just reached out to my childhood hero about working together, and he said yes. So I realized if I could land Kobe, I could reach other athletes and teams too. We built an Excel sheet with all 32 NFL teams, found every email, and reached out. Seven hopped on calls, three wanted proposals, and the Minnesota Vikings were willing to try us out as a partner. It was pure bootstrapped cold outreach. Being able to create your own destiny without relying on someone else for opportunity was intoxicating. You started STN Digital basically from scratch. What struggles were your clients having when creating original content—specifically for social—and how did you position yourself as the solution? Back in 2013, every sports entity had social channels—the Facebooks and Twitters. But they weren’t posting original content. They had these audiences but didn’t know how to engage them. Social was just a PR dump of press releases and super boring, non-fan-centric content. So my message was, “We understand fans, we understand what the sports fan wants, and we can curate content specifically on social that speaks to them.” You gotta understand that at that time, a fan-first approach of speaking authentically about topics fans cared about didn’t exist. Now, as we transition to 2025, every CEO, president, CMO in the world is starting to think about a social-first approach, which is awesome to see. How does the agency work? In what ways do partners deploy your services and expertise on a given social marketing campaign or initiative? Our clients use us in one of two ways. Usually, they’ll either hire us as a world-class social media department and we run everything A to Z—copywriting, content, analytics, everything—or they’ll bolt us on as a world-class content house. In that case, they have an incredible team already, but they add us on top because their team doesn’t have three and a half hours to dream up a bunch of dope ideas in a whiteboard session or simply need more engaging content for all their initiatives. ESPN has a 75-person social team with incredible engines internally, but we’re able to be that supercharger to take them from 99% potential to hopefully 125% potential. What’s an example of a creative campaign you’ve executed that you’re really proud of? Our work with the Indiana Fever during the Caitlin Clark draft just won a Webby. My team spent 70 to 80 hours creating this video of a Toy Story-esque action figure of Caitlin Clark dribbling around her bedroom, shooting hoops. It got around 10 million views on TikTok alone and 500,000 engagements. What’s interesting is we’re seeing lo-fi content outperform hi-fi content by 40% more views and 30% more engagements on average. But this high-production piece was thumb-stopping creative that nobody else was posting—something that made people think, I gotta watch the rest of this. It’s something the Fever and we are super proud to have collaborated on. What are some of the biggest misconceptions you see about social marketing content, and what strategies that may seem counterintuitive actually work? I look at social media as upper-funnel fan engagement—building community, credibility, and trust. But a lot of the time, brands see it as a lower-funnel platform where they’re trying to talk about brand, logo, messaging, and calls to action. You have to be social on social. You have to provide value—whether it’s education, laughter, or elicit some type of emotion. People aren’t required to follow you, so why do they? You have to build that relationship. Brands that do social wrong are mostly just, “Look at me, look at me!” and constantly making calls to action. That’s not how you build true community, no different than a friendship or relationship. For every eight things you give your community, you have then earned the right to ask for two things in return. And the value you give in that 80% needs to be memorable. What are some of the other lessons you’ve learned about social engagement or audience behavior over the years? The power of real-time social, especially in sports, continues to be undervalued. During the Olympics with NBC Sports, we worked back-to-back 12-hour shifts daily and helped them get 6.5 billion impressions in 17 days. Those impressions would cost $50 million if you bought them on the open market. The key is being ready for every moment. If Simone Biles won bronze, silver, or gold, we had content ready for all scenarios with different angles and storylines. Same with Caitlin Clark’s draft. We spent 30 days planning content for before, during, and after she was picked to capitalize on arguably the biggest moment in the Fever’s franchise history. How do you approach data and measurement when creating content strategies and campaigns? We follow the data of what works, but we also pay attention to how different platforms’ algorithms behave. Instagram will serve you something in your feed that happened five days ago, so there are considerations about what goes on Stories versus in-feed. We’re constantly obsessed with data—not just what’s working or not working, but what different post types perform best, whether it’s a reel, carousel, or single post. We’re analyzing timing, post type, static versus video versus carousel, and noticing how algorithms are being optimized differently across Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube. We use platforms like Sprout Social and Rival IQ to get super deep with third-party and first-party data. We analyze our top 10 and bottom 10 posts constantly—weekly or monthly—to understand why certain posts underperformed. We look at who was featured, what time it was posted, whether it was a carousel versus a reel. We might notice reels are taking a dive and wonder if the algorithm has changed. Not all engagement metrics are equal, either. Watching something for 3 seconds and scrolling past is much different than watching it for the full 60 seconds. And I believe that one of the most undervalued engagement metrics is shares. If you take time to DM content to a friend saying, “This is so us,” that’s 10 times more important engagement than just a “like” because you’re actually taking time to send it to someone you love. We look seriously at shareability and ask, “Is this something you want to DM your family or best friend?” What about platforms? Which are the most important, and where do you see the most success and engagement? We still see Instagram and TikTok at the top in terms of engagement and virality. From a sports perspective, Twitter is still that real-time water cooler—nobody else holds a candle to it. There have been attempts with platforms like Bluesky, but we saw with the Luka Dončić trade how NBA Twitter just exploded in ways other platforms can’t replicate. Social behavior continues to swing back and forth. Once something becomes too saturated, there’s an opportunity for new platforms or content types to emerge as fresh ways to connect with audiences. The key is being adaptable and understanding where your specific audience lives and engages most authentically. Marketing efforts can often become fragmented across different departments. How should companies think about aligning their social strategy with broader marketing goals? Social and sales teams—even CMOs and marketing teams—often operate separately from social, which is a problem. CMOs should always oversee the social department because it has to ladder up to a greater vision of value prop and audience understanding. Social and community building and fan engagement at the top of the funnel is all to eventually work people down the funnel to become customers and drive revenue generation. If I were a prospective client who came to you and said, “My social strategy sucks. What can I do?” what’s the first piece of advice you would give me? Where would you start? I would ask, “What audience specifically are you trying to grow?” Then we can reverse-engineer a strategy based on what that audience finds valuable, entertaining, and engaging. Are you trying to grow mass audience because you’re a large brand, or are you saturated in one demo but want to diversify? Then, once we identify the target avatar, we can develop a strategy based on what we know works with other brands talking to that same audience. Without figuring out who your customer is at the very top of the conversation, you’re just posting content and hoping it works with no real endgame. So let’s figure out who you’re talking to, what they want most, and how we can meet them where they are and deliver it to them. View the full article

Jennifer Meyer always knew she wanted to work in fashion. It probably comes, she says, from the hours she spent in her grandmother’s Santa Monica, California, apartment, playing with art supplies, and the small kiln her grandmother kept on the kitchen counter. “She did a lot of enameling,” says Meyer, an LA-based jewelry designer. “She had all of these colors and plaques to put things on; wiring. I would design things with her for fun; I have this love of design from her.” Still, as the daughter of an entertainment executive, Meyer didn’t really have a road map for a career in design. She completed her education on the East Coast, studying child and family psychology, and landed her first job in magazines, which she ultimately parlayed to PR jobs at Giorgio Armani and Ralph Lauren. “I wanted to start my own thing,” says Meyer. “I had this idea for jewelry, but I had no idea how to do it.” In 2005, Meyer made some basic sketches—her first a riff on a leaf design—and began knocking on doors, armed with equal parts curiosity and tenacity. So began the launch of her line, Jennifer Meyer Jewelry. Now, 20 years later, Meyer describes herself as self-taught. She’s leveraged her love of the natural world and her instincts for a simple, unfussy aesthetic to guide a business that’s become as popular with Jennifer Aniston and Meghan Markle as millennials and suburban fortysomethings. If the door said jeweler, I knocked on it. I knew nothing. It was trial and error. I had a bad sketch of a leaf on paper. I had no clue what I was doing—which, by the way, as I look back was the best way to learn. I made a few pieces, and that’s how I understood what I was doing. There is a Star Wars quote, “Do or do not; there is no try.” I started in 2005. My boyfriend at the time, who became my husband, said, “What do you want to do?” I said, ”I don’t know.” He said, “That’s a lie; Everybody wants a thing and we’re embarrassed to say it. You think you’re too old, or too young. What do you want to do? Act? Write? Work for NASA? It can be anything.” He said, “You have to say it out loud.” I said, “I want to design jewelry. I don’t know how to do it.” When I started, I was doing everything from designing to FedEx. I was alone, and I did it all. I have such an amazing group of people I work with now. Now it’s shorthand: We can have one quick conversation and say, “Hey do you remember the leaf with the baguette diamonds?” I like when things feel organized. When I walk into a room and I know where everything is . . . organization is inspiring to me. As a business owner, I’m available 24/7. I don’t care what time you text me, I don’t care what time you call or email me. If it’s 11 p.m. on a Saturday and you work with me and you said, “Jen, do you have five minutes?” I have five minutes. Unless I’m sound asleep, other than that I am available. I do, though, [I] still think it’s important to set boundaries to make you feel good, but I don’t have a boundary with my time. I love a reminder. When someone says, “Just bumping this to the top of your emails. Or, hey, making sure you did this.” You cannot bug me. It is the greatest feeling in the world. Bother me until it’s finished. I always get up by 7 a.m. I always make sure my kids are fed and out the door. They drive now, which is such a weird thing. I love to work out and I go to bed thinking about my coffee. I drink decaf. I used to have really bad panic attacks. They were debilitating. If I’m drinking caffeine first thing, that’s not good for anybody. I always have a book with me. Everything is written down. I have to write it down and I have to take a highlighter to it. That is it for me. That’s how I do things. When people have notes on their phones, it gives me hives. Being creative is throwing it all out there, making mistakes and making it your own. How many times have you looked at something and thought, “I would never wear that, what is that? No.” And then, somehow six months later you’re around it enough and you see that woman whose aesthetic you love and you’re like, “I get it now.” Hard work pays off. You have got to develop those relationships; you have to sit with people and get to know their wives and children and husbands. You have to get in there and spend the time and energy and the focus and you have to develop the same aesthetic, which is really challenging. Everyone has their own idea of how things should be made. It’s a lot of working together and explaining yourself and being clear. You talk about boundaries. Those that are the boundaries that are important. Clarity is kindness. I grew up going to art galleries with my dad. He loved going to galleries. I remember I was like 8 years old and he bought this art and it was on our wall. It was literally a green and blue triangle—nothing else. Half was blue and half was green. I remember saying to him, “What is that? I could have done that.” He looked at me and said, “But you didn’t.” It never left my head. That artist did it and thought of it and created it. It was easy for me to have a 10-minute opinion, but I didn’t do it. I was like, “He’s damn right.” View the full article

In a move Democrats warned would have disastrous consequences for the economy, the environment, and public health, the Republican-led Senate Thursday voted to block California’s electric-vehicle mandates, revoking the state’s right to implement the nation’s toughest emissions standards. Republicans used the Congressional Review Act, or CRA, to overturn California’s long-standing authority under the Clean Air Act to request waivers from the Environmental Protection Agency to pass emissions standards stricter than federal rules and protect residents from dangerous air pollution. The move affects 17 other states and Washington, D.C., which have voluntarily adopted one or more of California’s stricter standards. The CRA allows Congress to quickly rescind a rule within a limited time after it’s issued by a federal agency, allowing a simple majority vote rather than the 60 votes needed to advance legislation under the filibuster rule. But both the Senate parliamentarian, the chamber’s official nonpartisan adviser, and the Government Accountability Office, the nonpartisan congressional referee, said the waivers are not rules and so are not subject to the Congressional Review Act. In defying the Senate parliamentarian, Democrats charged, the vote endangers not just the health of children and the climate but also decades of legal precedent and the integrity of the Senate itself. “Today, the Senate has done something unprecedented,” said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island late Wednesday night, after he and his Democratic colleagues spent the past several days urging Republicans to respect not just California’s authority under the law, but also Senate rules. “Our actions and the ones that will follow from the procedural steps taken here today, over the next day or so will change the Clean Air Act, will change the Congressional Review Act, will change the rules of the Senate, and will do so by overruling the parliamentarian and breaking the filibuster—in effect, going nuclear,” Whitehouse said, referring to attempts to subvert the filibuster. “This isn’t just about California’s climate policies, and this isn’t just about the scope of the Congressional Review Act, and this isn’t just about eliminating the legislative filibuster,” said California Sen. Alex Padilla on the Senate floor Tuesday. The The President administration’s EPA submitted California’s waivers for review by Congress “with full knowledge that they are not actually rules” subject to the CRA, Padilla said, opening the door for any agency to ask Congress to revoke regulations a new administration doesn’t like. By mid-afternoon Thursday, Republicans moved to overturn California’s waivers through a procedural maneuver—giving the Senate the authority to determine what constitutes a rule for fast-track voting. They overturned waivers behind California’s rules to reduce tailpipe emissions from passenger vehicles and trucks, those regulating medium- and heavy-duty trucks, and the rule for heavy-duty smog-producing diesel and gas trucks. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) mocked Democrats’ objections to using the CRA, saying they were “throwing a tantrum over a supposed procedural problem.” Thune insisted that having a waiver submitted to Congress “is all that Congress has ever needed to decide to consider something under the Congressional Review Act.” He called the GAO’s ruling that the waiver is not a rule “an extraordinary deviation from precedent,” saying it was the first time the office “has decided to insert itself into the process and affirmatively declare that an agency rule submitted to Congress as a rule is not a rule.” Despite Thune’s claim, since the CRA was passed in 1996 the GAO has offered 26 legal opinions about whether an agency action was a rule in response to inquiries from members of Congress. And EPA never submitted California Clean Air Act waivers to Congress before the The President administration, Padilla and his Democratic colleagues say. They contend that Republicans chose this route because they don’t have the votes to withdraw the waivers through legislation. “The CRA has never been used to go after emission waivers like the ones in question today,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said on the floor Tuesday. “The waiver is so important to the health of our country, and particularly to our children; to go nuclear on something as significant as this and to do the bidding of the fossil fuel industry is outrageous.” The first waiver was granted to California on July 11, 1968, Whitehouse told his colleagues in a last-ditch effort to change their minds late Wednesday night. Waivers have either been granted or amended or modified repeatedly since then, he said. “The score on whether the California clean air rule is treated by EPA as a waiver or a rule? It’s 131 to zero.” The use of the Congressional Review Act resolution is inconsistent with past precedent and violates the plain language of the act itself, said John Swanton, a spokesperson for California’s Air Resources Board, which regulates emissions. “The vote does not change CARB’s authority,” Swanton said, adding that the agency will continue its mission to protect the public health of Californians impacted by harmful air pollution. Ten million Californians live in areas that are under distinct, elevated threats from air pollution, said Adam Schiff, California’s junior senator. That has led to higher rates of respiratory issues like asthma and chronic lung disease, and increased the risk of heart disease, cancer, chronic headaches, and immune system issues, he said. “And that is multiplied by us living now on the front lines of the climate crisis. We have devastating and year-round fire dangers that put millions of other pollutants into our air,” Schiff said. “We need, deserve, and reserve the right as Californians to do something about our air.” Yet earlier this month, House Republicans, joined by 35 Democrats, including two from California, voted to rescind the waivers, sending the issue to the Senate. A “Compelling and Extraordinary” Need California’s legal authority to implement stricter air quality standards than federal rules comes from having already implemented its own tailpipe-emission regulations before Congress passed national standards in 1967. California officials developed the regulations to deal with the “compelling and extraordinary” air-pollution problems caused by the Golden State’s unique geography, climate, and abundance of people and vehicles. Recognizing these unique conditions, Congress gave California the authority to ask the Environmental Protection Agency for a waiver from rules barring states from passing air and climate pollution rules that are more protective than federal rules. Only one waiver was denied, an action that was quickly reversed, according to CARB. And though the The President administration in 2019 withdrew a waiver, a move legal scholars say has no basis in the law, the Biden administration restored the state’s authority to set its own vehicle-emission standards within a few years. Republicans argued that California’s rules amount to de facto national standards, given the state’s size and the fact that other states have signed on. But California can’t force its emission standards on other states, Padilla said. “Yes, over a dozen other states have voluntarily followed in California’s footsteps, not because they were forced to, but because they chose to, in order to protect their constituents, their residents, and protect our planet.” California’s standards also represent ambitious but achievable steps to cut carbon emissions and fight the climate crisis, Padilla said. “Transportation is the single largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, and California has been proud to set the example for other states who may choose to follow suit.” Padilla, who grew up in California’s chronically polluted San Fernando Valley, recalled being sent home from grade school “on a pretty regular basis” when throat-burning smog settled over the valley. “It appears that Republicans want to overturn half a century of precedent in order to undermine California’s ability to protect the health of our residents,” Padilla said. “Republicans seem to be putting the wealth of the big oil industry over the health of our constituents.” “For Their Fossil Fuel Donors” Rhode Island’s Whitehouse, who has long schooled his colleagues on the perils of carbon pollution, took to the floor Tuesday to school them on the Congressional Review Act. Under the American legal system, administrative agencies can make rules through “a very robust process” that follows the Administrative Procedure Act, Whitehouse said. A rule could be contested in court, but years ago Congress decided there also could be a period of review when congressional members could reject the rule. And for all the decades since the CRA was passed, he said, it’s been used to address rules under the APA within the specified 60 days. Other states, including Rhode Island, follow California’s emissions standards because it’s good for public health to have clean air, Whitehouse said. “Efficient cars may mean lower cost for consumers, but those lower costs for consumers are lower sales for the fossil fuel industry.” Whitehouse told his colleagues they had legitimate pathways to change laws they didn’t like. They could pass a joint resolution or a simple Senate resolution. But those approaches would require 60 votes to end debate. “They don’t want to do that,” he said. “They want to ram this thing through for their fossil fuel donors.” Republicans, by contrast, argued they had the authority to protect consumers from what they call California’s “electric vehicle mandate,” which they say would endanger consumers, the economy, and the nation’s energy supply. “And our already shaky electric grid would quickly face huge new burdens from the surge in new electric vehicles,” argued Thune. Congress had approved $5 billion to build electric vehicle charging infrastructure across the country, but the The President administration withheld that funding, triggering a lawsuit from a coalition of attorneys to reverse what they said was a clearly illegal action. Republicans’ attacks on electric vehicles could disrupt a burgeoning industry built around the transition to renewable energy. “The repeal of these waivers will dramatically destabilize the regulatory landscape at a time when industry needs certainty to invest in the future and compete on a global scale,” said Jamie Hall, policy director for EV Realty, which develops EV-charging hubs. Thune also argued that California’s waiver rules are an improper expansion of a limited Clean Air Act authority, echoing an argument in Project 2025, a policy blueprint for the second The President administration produced by the conservative Heritage Foundation, which has long battled efforts to combat climate change. In a chapter on transportation asserts, Project 2025 claims that California has no valid basis under the Clean Air Act to claim an extraordinary or unique air quality impact from carbon dioxide emissions. Its recommendation? “Revoke the special waiver granted to California by the Biden administration.” On Wednesday, a clearly frustrated Whitehouse argued that Republicans were helping the fossil fuel industry create a shortcut for itself so it can sell more gasoline and ignore all the states that joined California to demand cleaner air for their constituents. “The fossil fuel industry essentially runs the Republican Party right now,” he said. Last year, the oil and gas industry spent more than $153 million on lobbying, led by the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers, which spent $27.6 million to influence Congress on bills including those designed to repeal vehicle-emission standards. The trade group also donated $178,750 to congressional candidates, 96% of which went to Republicans. The American Petroleum Institute, the largest U.S. oil and gas industry trade association, spent $6.25 million on lobbying last year to influence some of the same bills. Of nearly $400,000 donated to congressional candidates last year, 78% went to Republicans. Ninety-five percent of the $21,000 the Heritage Foundation donated to congressional candidates last year went to Republicans. “We Believe That You Can Do It” The week before Donald The President returned to office, the American Petroleum Institute held its biggest annual meeting in Washington, D.C. API promoted the event as an opportunity to urge the incoming The President administration and Congress to “seize the American energy opportunity” by advancing commonsense energy policies. Thune joined API Chief Executive Mike Sommers onstage, where they reminisced about starting their careers in adjacent offices in the same congressional office building 30 years ago. “It is a huge opportunity, having an administration that actually is pro-energy development working with the Congress,” Thune told his old friend. “We want to be supportive in any way that we can in ensuring that the president and his team have success in making America energy dominant.” Sommers suggested that one of the “big, powerful tools” Congress can use when one party controls both chambers is the Congressional Review Act, which he said offers fast-track authority to reverse “midnight regulations” passed by the Biden administration. Thune said he wouldn’t be able to use the CRA for one of California’s tailpipe emissions standards because it doesn’t fit within the required time window. But he was arguing with the parliamentarian and others, he said, “about the whole California waiver issue and how to reverse that because that was such a radical regulatory overreach.” Both California’s Clean Cars and Clean Trucks rules require an increasing percentage of vehicles sold in the state to be zero-emissions by 2035, with the cars rule, the so-called “EV mandate,” requiring that 100% of passenger cars and trucks be zero emissions by that date. “What California did was completely radical,” Sommers said at the meeting. “The fact that 17 other states who’ve waived into this are going to be subject to it could completely change the vehicle market.” “So we would highly encourage you to look at that as an option for the CRA,” Sommers told Thune. “And we believe that you can do it.” Thune assured Sommers that his committee chairs and team were looking at ways to fit repeal of California’s waivers “within the parameters of a CRA action” to fix what they saw as a shared problem. The oil and gas industry appreciated the efforts of Thune; John Barrasso of Wyoming, the Senate Majority Whip; and West Virginia Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, who pledged to overturn California’s clean cars rule and introduced the measure to do so last month. “Today, the United States Senate delivered a victory for American consumers, manufacturers, and U.S. energy security by voting to overturn the prior administration’s EPA rule authorizing California’s gas car ban and preventing its spread across our country,” said the American Petroleum Institute and the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers in a joint statement. “We cannot thank Senators John Barrasso, Shelley Moore Capito, and Leader John Thune enough for their leadership on this important issue.” Back on the Senate floor, Democrats warned their Republican colleagues that they may live to regret their decision to override the parliamentarian and flout legislative rules. “It won’t be long before Democrats are once again in the driver’s seat here, in the majority once again,” Padilla said. When that happens, he warned, every agency action that Democrats don’t like, whether it’s a rule or not, and no matter how much time has passed, would be fair game with this new precedent. “I suggest that we all think long and hard and be very careful about this,” he implored, in vain. “I would urge my colleagues, all my colleagues, to join me, not just in defending California’s rights to protect the health of our residents, not just in combating the existential threat of climate change, but in maintaining order in this chamber.” This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News. It is republished with permission. Sign up for their newsletter here. View the full article

Memorial Day Weekend is upon us, marking the unofficial start of the summer vacation season in America. Yet, a recent Bankrate survey from late April found that only 46% of Americans plan to travel domestically or internationally this summer, with costs cited as the primary concern. Dwindling U.S. consumer confidence may lead some individuals to reconsider spending their precious discretionary dollars on travel. Still, you may have more travel options within your budget than you thought. For those determined to get away, there’s an excellent Google Flights hack that reveals options within a certain budget. Some Google Flights aficionados know this as the “anywhere” hack. Here’s how to use it. The Google Flights “anywhere” hack Google Flights is one of the best aggregators out there for finding airline tickets between any two cities on Earth. It works very simply: visit www.google.com/travel/flights, enter your departure and destination cities along with your desired departure and return dates, and click the search button. Google Flights will then reveal the best options for your selected destination across numerous airlines. However, if you’re trying to stay within a certain budget, this traditional method of using Google Flights can be exhausting, because you have to check individual cities manually. For example, if your airline ticket budget is $1200, it can be tedious to enter cities one by one on Google Flights (“São Paulo,” then “Paris,” then “Osaka”) only to find that tickets don’t fit within your budget anyway. Sticking to this method may also mean you completely overlook interesting destinations you’d never considered before. That’s where the excellent Google Flights “anywhere” hack comes in. It’s perfect for people who are more flexible in terms of their destination and put a greater priority on staying within a certain budget. Here’s how it works: Go to Google Flights as normal and enter your departure city in the “Where from?” field. Fill out your departure and return dates, as well, in the respective fields. But then, instead of entering a specific destination in the “Where to?” field, type in “anywhere” and click the search button. Now, on the results screen, you will see a global map displaying all the options available to you from your departure city to destinations around the world for the selected dates. By default, these options will cover all price ranges. However, you can narrow the results to show only tickets that fit within your budget by clicking the price filter dropdown menu and dragging the slider to your maximum preferred price. The results will then show you where in the world you can fly while staying within your budget. And keep in mind that the Google Flights results map is as interactive as regular Google Maps—so be sure to zoom in and pan around on the map, and you’ll see additional flight options appear. Click on any one of them to get more details about the selected itinerary. Find even more options with the “flexible date” hack The “anywhere” Google Flights hack can help you quickly discover destinations you can travel to within your budget. But another simple hack may reveal even more destinations you can afford. That’s because you may actually be able to discover more locations within your budget if your dates are flexible, too. Route prices aren’t set in stone, and they vary wildly depending on the date you want to fly. To reveal these potential new options, click on the date field from the search results screen. In the drop-down menu that appears, click on the “Flexible Dates” tab, select any one or all of the next six months, and indicate how long you want your trip to be: for the weekend, or for one or two weeks. Google Flights will then scour the internet to find you the destinations you can go to within your budget and across the periods you selected. This “flexible date” hack frequently yields even more results than the “anywhere” hack alone because there are often significant savings to be had on routes flown during periods of lower travel demand. Just one final thing to keep in mind: While you may be able to find new destinations you can afford to explore using these Google Flights hacks, remember that once you arrive, Google Maps may not actually be the best way to navigate—so be sure to pack your phone with the apps that are. View the full article

The concept of advancement is baked into the way we think about work—almost like it’s a video game. Just like you don’t want to stay at a particular level of that game for too long, it sometimes doesn’t feel like you’re succeeding at work if your title doesn’t change, and you don’t get a significant raise. Getting a promotion isn’t just a matter of wanting it or playing the game long enough. There are several factors at play—only some of which are under your control. First, the organization needs to have a position for you to move into. If there is no role for you to play, then there isn’t much you can do to get promoted this year. Second, you have to decide whether the job you would be promoted into is one you really want. Third, you have to be ready for that new set of responsibilities. So, if you want to get promoted this year, you need to get information related to all three of those issues. Is there room for me? Before you get your hopes up for a promotion, you need to know whether there is a role for you. Early on in your career, the answer to that question is probably “yes.” Often, the first few promotions reflect your ability to do your role with less oversight and to take on additional responsibility in your initial role. Before long, though, promotions start to involve either oversight of an entire project or supervision of people. At that point, there are fewer potential roles available than when the promotion involves more technical expertise. Once you’re on that people management track, the number of potential positions above the one you have go down. You may eventually reach a point when you may be completely qualified for a future role, but there may not be a position available. What does the next role really entail? As attractive as a promotion may sound in theory, you also have to ask yourself whether you would enjoy the job in practice. This question is particularly relevant when considering the people management track. Being a supervisor of other people is a very different role than the individual contributor roles that usually precede it. Just because you enjoy the work of your organization does not mean that you will enjoy having to manage others. As you rise in the organization, the work you do goes from being focused on the tactics for achieving particular goals to formulating the strategy that will guide the path of the organization. This strategic oversight comes with additional responsibility for the success and health of the organization. The job can be exciting, but also stressful. Talking with supervisors to find out the true responsibilities you will be taking on is important. Work and life need to be integrated. If your new role requires different hours or more engagement on nights and weekends, you should think through whether your lifestyle and responsibilities will support those changes. Be sure to talk with people in your life, such as a significant other. Their life might be affected by a change in your work requirements, so you’ll need their support. What do I need to learn? When you are approaching a promotion, you’ll never be completely ready. There is always a lot to learn on the job. That said, there is often work you can do to prepare. Your organization may offer technical or leadership classes that you can take to begin to develop the next set of skills. Talk with your supervisor, the HR team, and any learning and development professionals in your organization to find out what options there are for you to get a jump on the next round of skills. Look at job ads that your company or others put out for similar roles and get a sense of whether your current qualifications fit. If companies prefer advanced degrees for applicants to a position, it might be time to think about going back to school. Being proactive won’t guarantee you the promotion you want, but it can help speed you on your way. And if a promotion in your current organization isn’t in the cards, it will also get you ready to move on when the time is right. Finally, be aware that promotions don’t always happen on your timeline. It can be frustrating to feel like you have languished in a role longer than you should. But, use the time to learn, to develop your social network, and to be ready to hit the ground running when a new opportunity does open up. View the full article

Republican lawmakers have been battling over a bill that includes massive tax and spending cuts. Much of their disagreement has been over provisions intended to reduce the cost of Medicaid. The popular health insurance program, which is funded by both the federal and state governments, covers about 78.5 million low-income and disabled people—more than 1 in 5 Americans. On May 22, 2025, the House of Representatives narrowly approved the tax, spending, and immigration bill. The legislation, which passed without any support from Democrats, is designed to reduce federal Medicaid spending by requiring anyone enrolled in the program who appears to be able to get a job to either satisfy work requirements or lose their coverage. It’s still unclear, however, whether Senate Republicans would support that provision. Although there are few precedents for such a mandate for Medicaid, other safety net programs have been enforcing similar rules for nearly three decades. I’m a political scientist who has extensively studied the work requirements of another safety net program: Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). As I explain in my book, Living Off the Government? Race, Gender, and the Politics of Welfare, work requirements place extra burdens on low-income families but do little to lift them out of poverty. Work requirements for TANF TANF gives families with very low incomes some cash they can spend on housing, food, clothing, or whatever they need most. The Clinton administration launched it as a replacement for a similar program, Aid to Families With Dependent Children, in 1996. At the time, both political parties were eager to end a welfare system they believed was riddled with abuse. A big goal with TANF was ending the dependence of people getting cash benefits on the government by moving them from welfare to work. Many people were removed from the welfare rolls, but not because work requirements led to economic prosperity. Instead, they had trouble navigating the bureaucratic demands. TANF is administered by the states. They can set many rules of their own, but they must comply with an important federal requirement: Adult recipients have to work or engage in an authorized alternative activity for at least 30 hours per week. The number of weekly hours is only 20 if the recipient is caring for a child under the age of 6. The dozen activities or so that can count toward this quota range from participating in job training programs to engaging in community service. Some adults enrolled in TANF are exempt from work requirements, depending on their state’s own policies. The most common exemptions are for people who are ill, have a disability, or are over age 60. To qualify for TANF, families must have dependent children; in some states pregnant women also qualify. Income limits are set by the state and range from $307 a month for a family of three in Alabama to $2,935 a month for a family of three in Minnesota. Adult TANF recipients face a federal five-year lifetime limit on benefits. States can adopt shorter time limits; Arizona’s is 12 months. An administrative burden Complying with these work requirements generally means proving that you’re working or making the case that you should be exempt from this mandate. This places what’s known as an “administrative burden” on the people who get cash assistance. It often requires lots of documentation and time. If you have an unpredictable work schedule, inconsistent access to child care, or obligations to care for an older relative, this paperwork is hard to deal with. What counts as work, how many hours must be completed, and who is exempt from these requirements often comes down to a caseworker’s discretion. Social science research shows that this discretion is not equally applied and is often informed by stereotypes. The number of people getting cash assistance has fallen sharply since TANF replaced Aid to Families With Dependent Children. In some states caseloads have dropped by more than 50% despite significant population growth. Some of this decline happened because recipients got jobs that paid them too much to qualify. The Congressional Budget Office, a nonpartisan office that provides economic research to Congress, attributes, at least in part, an increase in employment among less-educated single mothers in the 1990s to work requirements. Not everyone who stopped getting cash benefits through TANF wound up employed, however. Other recipients who did not meet requirements fell into deep poverty. Regardless of why people leave the program, when fewer low-income Americans get TANF benefits, the government spends less money on cash assistance. Federal funding has remained flat at $16.5 billion since 1996. Taking inflation into account, the program receives half as much funding as when it was created. In addition, states have used the flexibility granted them to direct most of their TANF funds to priorities other than cash benefits, such as pre-K education. Many Americans who get help paying for groceries through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program are also subject to work requirements. People the government calls “able-bodied adults without dependents” can only receive SNAP benefits for three months within a three-year period if they are not employed. A failed experiment in Arkansas Lawmakers in Congress and in statehouses have debated whether to add work requirements for Medicaid before. More than a dozen states have applied for waivers that would let them give it a try. When Arkansas instituted Medicaid work requirements in 2018, during the first The President administration, it was largely seen as a failure. Some 18,000 people lost their health care coverage, but employment rates did not increase. After a court order stopped the policy in 2019, most people regained their coverage. Georgia is currently the only state with Medicaid work requirements in effect, after implementing a waiver in July 2023. The program has experienced technical difficulties and has had trouble verifying work activities. Other states, including Idaho, Indiana, and Kentucky, are already asking the federal government to let them enforce Medicaid work requirements. What this may mean for Medicaid The multitrillion-dollar bill the House passed by a vote of 215-214 would introduce Medicaid work requirements nationwide by late 2026 for childless adults ages 19 to 64, with some exemptions. But most people covered by Medicaid in that age range are already working, and those who are not would likely be eligible for work requirement waivers. An analysis by KFF—a nonprofit that informs the public about health issues—shows that in 2023, 44% of Medicaid recipients were working full time and another 20% were working part time. In 2023, that was more than 16 million Americans. About 20% of the American adults under 65 who are covered by Medicaid are not working due to illness or disability, or because of caregiving responsibilities, according to KFF. This includes both people caring for young children and those taking care of relatives with an illness or disability. In my own research, I read testimony from families seeking work exemptions because caregiving, including for children with disabilities, was a full-time job. The rest of the adults under 65 with Medicaid coverage are not working because they are in school, are retired, cannot find work, or have some other reason. It’s approximately 3.9 million Americans. Depending on what counts as “work,” they may be meeting any requirements that could be added to the program. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that introducing Medicaid work requirements would save around $300 billion over a decade. Given past experience with work requirements, it is unlikely those savings would come from Americans finding jobs. My research suggests it’s more likely that the government would trim spending by taking away the health insurance of people eligible for Medicaid coverage who get tangled up in red tape. This article was updated on May 22, 2025, with details about the House of Representatives’ passage of the budget bill. Anne Whitesell is an assistant professor of political science at Miami University. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. View the full article

Bandung is the capital city of West Java province in Indonesia, and about 150 km southeast of Jakarta. I was in Bandung after riding the Jakarta Bandung High-Speed Railway. The new train (known as Whoosh) is the fastest train in Southeast Asia, with a top speed of 350 km/h. I’ve been to Bandung before, but it’s good to revisit a place to see how its changed, and to see how you have changed as a traveller. These are notes from my visit in April 2024. Whoosh (the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway) [Whoosh at Padalarang (Bandung).] The train from Jakarta to Bandung takes 30 minutes, though you lose time going from Central Jakarta to the high-speed station. The good news is that there are railways connecting the high-speed stations to the centre of Jakarta and Bandung. Padalarang (the Bandung high-speed station) is connected to the old Bundung Station by a shuttle train. Here is my review of the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway. Paris Van Java Bandung isn’t on the list of cities known as the Paris of the East, but it became known as Paris Van Java for its colonial-era architecture. There is a great collection of historic buildings in the old city area. Some of the colonial-era buildings are distinctly Dutch in style and unlike the English and French colonial styles in the region. Bandung became a hotspot for Art Deco architecture. [Grand Hotel Preanger] The Grand Hotel Preanger and Hotel Savoy Homann are two iconic Art Deco hotels in Bandung that would rank among the famous hotels of Southeast Asia. [Hotel Savoy Homann Bandung.] Like other cities in Indonesia, most of the old shophouses have disappeared. There are some remnants of old Bandung in the market area near the train station. There are some random old buildings that are still holding on as the city grows around it. Legacy of the Bandung Conference The Bandung Conference was a conference of Asian and African nations held in 1955 in Bandung. This was a time when decolonization was underway, with many of the represented nations being newly independent. The city has marked this historic event by naming the main east-west thoroughfare as Jalan Asia Afrika. The road features bollards with the nations of Asia and Afrika. [Palestone on Jalan Asia Afrika.] There is a monument to the nations of Asia and Africa on Jalan Asia-Africa. On Jalan Asia Afrika is the Asia-Africa Conference Museum. Jalan Braga The most interesting street for shopping and restaurants is Jalan Braga. There are some great restaurants on this street, and well as some popular street venders. The main problem with Jalan Braga is it’s a narrow road and it can get jammed with traffic. To be fair, is a problem all over Bandung. I stayed near the train station, but in hindsight I would have stay near Jalan Braga to be near more cafes and restaurants. Onward train travel Indonesia is planning to extend the high-speed railway to Surabaya. Even if this does happen, Bandung is an interesting place to stop while travelling around Java. Bandung is also a good starting point for the train trip to Yogyakarta. The train from Bandung to Yogyakarta is one of the most scenic routes in Southeast Asia. [Bandung Station.] View the full article

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Sponsored Post Key Takeaways Embrace Uncertainty: Successful business risk takers recognize opportunities within uncertainty and make informed, calculated decisions that can lead to significant rewards. Key Characteristics: Effective risk takers possess traits such as calculated decision-making, adaptability, a clear vision, networking skills, and financial acumen that contribute to their business successes. Types of Risks: Understanding market, financial, and operational risks is essential for small business owners to create effective strategies for navigating challenges and enhancing resilience. Innovation and Competitive Edge: Taking strategic risks fosters innovation, allowing businesses to differentiate themselves, explore new ideas, and achieve growth, ultimately leading to a competitive advantage. Effective Risk Management: Employ risk assessment techniques (like SWOT analysis) and mitigation strategies (such as diversifying funding sources and having a robust business plan) to navigate uncertainties and sustain business success. In the fast-paced world of business, taking risks often separates the successful from the stagnant. If you’ve ever wondered what it takes to be a true business risk taker, you’re not alone. These individuals embrace uncertainty, leveraging it to seize opportunities that others might shy away from. Being a risk taker isn’t just about diving headfirst into the unknown; it’s about calculated decisions that can lead to remarkable rewards. Whether you’re an entrepreneur launching a startup or a manager steering a team through change, understanding the art of risk-taking can transform your approach to business. Let’s explore what it means to be a business risk taker and how you can harness this mindset for your own success. Understanding The Business Risk Taker Understanding what it means to be a business risk taker is crucial for small business owners. Risk-taking involves not only embracing uncertainty but also making calculated, informed decisions that propel your startup forward. Definition of Business Risk Taker A business risk taker is someone who identifies opportunities amid uncertainty and takes decisive actions toward maximizing their potential for success. This may involve launching a new product, exploring innovative marketing strategies, or seeking funding options like angel investors or venture capital. By taking these risks, you position your small business to capitalize on emerging trends or market gaps, enhancing your competitive edge. Characteristics of Successful Risk Takers Successful risk takers share several key characteristics that contribute to their achievements in the business landscape: Calculated Decision-Making: They analyze market research and assess potential outcomes before making decisions related to product development or funding. Adaptability: They pivot strategies quickly in response to market changes or customer feedback, ensuring their business model remains relevant. Vision: They maintain a clear vision for their venture while being open to new ideas and innovations that may improve customer acquisition and marketing effectiveness. Networking Skills: They actively seek connections with mentors, business coaches, and other entrepreneurs to exchange knowledge and collaboration opportunities. Financial Acumen: They demonstrate a strong understanding of budgeting, cash flow, and profit margins, essential for sustaining growth and managing expenses effectively. By embodying these characteristics, you enhance your capacity to navigate risks and drive your small business toward success. Types of Business Risks Understanding the types of business risks helps you, as a small business owner or entrepreneur, make informed decisions. Here are three key categories of business risks to consider: Market Risks Market risks, or systematic risks, stem from changes that affect the entire market. Key examples include: Interest Rate Risk: This risk arises from fluctuations in interest rates that impact loans and fixed-income securities. As interest rates rise, the market value of bonds typically falls, affecting your investment options. Equity Risk: This risk involves losses due to changes in stock prices, influenced by your company’s financial performance and market trends. An unstable economy may lead to decreased stock values, impacting your funding strategies. Financial Risks Financial risks pertain to your business’s financial health and access to capital. Key examples include: Credit Risk: This risk arises if customers default on payments or when you seek funding from lenders. A poor credit rating can hinder your ability to secure loans or attract investors. Liquidity Risk: This risk involves not having enough cash on hand to meet expenses. Cash flow management is critical for maintaining operational stability, especially during periods of low sales. Operational Risks Operational risks relate to the internal processes and resources of your business. Key examples include: Supply Chain Risk: This risk arises from disruptions in your supply chain, whether due to natural disasters or supplier failures. Ensuring alternative suppliers can mitigate this risk. Technology Risk: This risk involves system failures or cyber threats. Investing in reliable cybersecurity measures and backup systems safeguards your sensitive data and customer information. By recognizing these risks, you can develop a robust business plan that enhances your resilience and adaptability in the competitive market landscape. Implementing strategies to mitigate these risks supports your long-term business goals and growth strategy. The Benefits of Being a Business Risk Taker Taking risks transforms how your small business operates. This mindset drives innovation and growth, which are crucial for success. Innovation and Growth Embracing calculated risks fosters a culture of innovation. You differentiate your small business from competitors by exploring unique opportunities. By experimenting with new ideas, you enhance product development and discover groundbreaking services that appeal to your target audience. For instance, investing in modern technology or adopting new marketing strategies can lead to increased customer acquisition and sales. Risk-taking promotes your business’s long-term growth strategy, enhancing profitability and expanding market reach. Competitive Advantage Taking strategic risks provides a competitive edge. Knowing potential market shifts allows you to pivot your strategies effectively. You create a unique business model aligned with your vision, leading to strong branding and customer loyalty. Collaborating with other entrepreneurs or leveraging mentorship can yield insights that support innovative thinking. By protecting intellectual property through trademarks and patents, you solidify your position in the market. By staying adaptable and informed, you combat challenges that other small businesses face, securing your organization’s sustainability. Strategies for Effective Risk Taking Effective risk-taking involves understanding and navigating the uncertainties of running a small business. You can enhance your chances of success through targeted strategies. Risk Assessment Techniques Evaluate potential risks using structured techniques. Implement a SWOT analysis to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats relevant to your business model. Conduct market research to understand competitor actions and consumer behavior. Use financial models to analyze cash flow projections and assess profitability. Engage in scenario planning to anticipate various outcomes based on differing market conditions. Adopting these risk assessment techniques ensures informed decision-making that solidifies your business plan. Mitigation Strategies Reduce potential risks with strategic mitigation plans. Diversify funding sources such as venture capital, angel investors, or crowdfunding to guard against financial uncertainties. Establish a clear legal structure—like an LLC or partnership—to minimize personal liability and streamline operations. Develop a comprehensive business plan that includes a detailed budget and cash flow management to navigate expenses effectively. Adopt insurance policies to protect against losses, and ensure compliance with licenses and permits to avoid legal challenges. Utilize mentorship and resources from business incubators to bolster your resilience against unforeseen obstacles. These strategies provide a robust framework for navigating the complexities of entrepreneurship, ensuring sustainable growth and adaptability. Conclusion Embracing the role of a business risk taker can be a game changer for your entrepreneurial journey. By understanding and navigating uncertainties you position yourself to seize opportunities that others might overlook. Adopting a calculated approach to risk not only enhances your decision-making but also fosters innovation and growth within your business. With the right strategies in place you can transform potential challenges into stepping stones toward success. Remember that every risk you take is a chance to learn and evolve. By embodying the traits of successful risk takers you pave the way for a resilient and thriving business. Frequently Asked Questions What does it mean to be a business risk taker? Being a business risk taker means identifying opportunities in uncertain situations and making informed, calculated decisions to maximize success. It involves embracing potential challenges while developing strategies to mitigate risks. Why is risk-taking important in business? Risk-taking is essential in business because it drives innovation, growth, and competitive advantage. Successful individuals who take calculated risks can differentiate their offerings, pivot during market shifts, and foster a culture that enhances customer loyalty. What are the types of business risks a small business might face? Small businesses should consider various types of risks, including market risks (interest rate changes), financial risks (credit health), and operational risks (supply chain disruptions). Understanding these risks helps in making informed decisions and developing robust plans. How can small business owners take calculated risks? Small business owners can take calculated risks by employing techniques like SWOT analysis, market research, and financial modeling. This approach allows them to assess potential uncertainties and develop strategies that align with their business objectives. What are some strategies for effective risk management? Effective risk management strategies include diversifying funding sources, developing a comprehensive business plan, utilizing mentorship, and establishing a clear legal structure. These techniques help mitigate risks and ensure long-term sustainability in business operations. How can risk-taking foster innovation in business? Risk-taking fosters innovation by encouraging businesses to explore new ideas and solutions. This mindset allows companies to differentiate themselves from competitors and improve product development, ultimately leading to a stronger market presence and customer loyalty. Image Via Envato This article, "Embrace Success as a Business Risk Taker: Strategies for Growth and Innovation" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

Sponsored Post Key Takeaways Embrace Uncertainty: Successful business risk takers recognize opportunities within uncertainty and make informed, calculated decisions that can lead to significant rewards. Key Characteristics: Effective risk takers possess traits such as calculated decision-making, adaptability, a clear vision, networking skills, and financial acumen that contribute to their business successes. Types of Risks: Understanding market, financial, and operational risks is essential for small business owners to create effective strategies for navigating challenges and enhancing resilience. Innovation and Competitive Edge: Taking strategic risks fosters innovation, allowing businesses to differentiate themselves, explore new ideas, and achieve growth, ultimately leading to a competitive advantage. Effective Risk Management: Employ risk assessment techniques (like SWOT analysis) and mitigation strategies (such as diversifying funding sources and having a robust business plan) to navigate uncertainties and sustain business success. In the fast-paced world of business, taking risks often separates the successful from the stagnant. If you’ve ever wondered what it takes to be a true business risk taker, you’re not alone. These individuals embrace uncertainty, leveraging it to seize opportunities that others might shy away from. Being a risk taker isn’t just about diving headfirst into the unknown; it’s about calculated decisions that can lead to remarkable rewards. Whether you’re an entrepreneur launching a startup or a manager steering a team through change, understanding the art of risk-taking can transform your approach to business. Let’s explore what it means to be a business risk taker and how you can harness this mindset for your own success. Understanding The Business Risk Taker Understanding what it means to be a business risk taker is crucial for small business owners. Risk-taking involves not only embracing uncertainty but also making calculated, informed decisions that propel your startup forward. Definition of Business Risk Taker A business risk taker is someone who identifies opportunities amid uncertainty and takes decisive actions toward maximizing their potential for success. This may involve launching a new product, exploring innovative marketing strategies, or seeking funding options like angel investors or venture capital. By taking these risks, you position your small business to capitalize on emerging trends or market gaps, enhancing your competitive edge. Characteristics of Successful Risk Takers Successful risk takers share several key characteristics that contribute to their achievements in the business landscape: Calculated Decision-Making: They analyze market research and assess potential outcomes before making decisions related to product development or funding. Adaptability: They pivot strategies quickly in response to market changes or customer feedback, ensuring their business model remains relevant. Vision: They maintain a clear vision for their venture while being open to new ideas and innovations that may improve customer acquisition and marketing effectiveness. Networking Skills: They actively seek connections with mentors, business coaches, and other entrepreneurs to exchange knowledge and collaboration opportunities. Financial Acumen: They demonstrate a strong understanding of budgeting, cash flow, and profit margins, essential for sustaining growth and managing expenses effectively. By embodying these characteristics, you enhance your capacity to navigate risks and drive your small business toward success. Types of Business Risks Understanding the types of business risks helps you, as a small business owner or entrepreneur, make informed decisions. Here are three key categories of business risks to consider: Market Risks Market risks, or systematic risks, stem from changes that affect the entire market. Key examples include: Interest Rate Risk: This risk arises from fluctuations in interest rates that impact loans and fixed-income securities. As interest rates rise, the market value of bonds typically falls, affecting your investment options. Equity Risk: This risk involves losses due to changes in stock prices, influenced by your company’s financial performance and market trends. An unstable economy may lead to decreased stock values, impacting your funding strategies. Financial Risks Financial risks pertain to your business’s financial health and access to capital. Key examples include: Credit Risk: This risk arises if customers default on payments or when you seek funding from lenders. A poor credit rating can hinder your ability to secure loans or attract investors. Liquidity Risk: This risk involves not having enough cash on hand to meet expenses. Cash flow management is critical for maintaining operational stability, especially during periods of low sales. Operational Risks Operational risks relate to the internal processes and resources of your business. Key examples include: Supply Chain Risk: This risk arises from disruptions in your supply chain, whether due to natural disasters or supplier failures. Ensuring alternative suppliers can mitigate this risk. Technology Risk: This risk involves system failures or cyber threats. Investing in reliable cybersecurity measures and backup systems safeguards your sensitive data and customer information. By recognizing these risks, you can develop a robust business plan that enhances your resilience and adaptability in the competitive market landscape. Implementing strategies to mitigate these risks supports your long-term business goals and growth strategy. The Benefits of Being a Business Risk Taker Taking risks transforms how your small business operates. This mindset drives innovation and growth, which are crucial for success. Innovation and Growth Embracing calculated risks fosters a culture of innovation. You differentiate your small business from competitors by exploring unique opportunities. By experimenting with new ideas, you enhance product development and discover groundbreaking services that appeal to your target audience. For instance, investing in modern technology or adopting new marketing strategies can lead to increased customer acquisition and sales. Risk-taking promotes your business’s long-term growth strategy, enhancing profitability and expanding market reach. Competitive Advantage Taking strategic risks provides a competitive edge. Knowing potential market shifts allows you to pivot your strategies effectively. You create a unique business model aligned with your vision, leading to strong branding and customer loyalty. Collaborating with other entrepreneurs or leveraging mentorship can yield insights that support innovative thinking. By protecting intellectual property through trademarks and patents, you solidify your position in the market. By staying adaptable and informed, you combat challenges that other small businesses face, securing your organization’s sustainability. Strategies for Effective Risk Taking Effective risk-taking involves understanding and navigating the uncertainties of running a small business. You can enhance your chances of success through targeted strategies. Risk Assessment Techniques Evaluate potential risks using structured techniques. Implement a SWOT analysis to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats relevant to your business model. Conduct market research to understand competitor actions and consumer behavior. Use financial models to analyze cash flow projections and assess profitability. Engage in scenario planning to anticipate various outcomes based on differing market conditions. Adopting these risk assessment techniques ensures informed decision-making that solidifies your business plan. Mitigation Strategies Reduce potential risks with strategic mitigation plans. Diversify funding sources such as venture capital, angel investors, or crowdfunding to guard against financial uncertainties. Establish a clear legal structure—like an LLC or partnership—to minimize personal liability and streamline operations. Develop a comprehensive business plan that includes a detailed budget and cash flow management to navigate expenses effectively. Adopt insurance policies to protect against losses, and ensure compliance with licenses and permits to avoid legal challenges. Utilize mentorship and resources from business incubators to bolster your resilience against unforeseen obstacles. These strategies provide a robust framework for navigating the complexities of entrepreneurship, ensuring sustainable growth and adaptability. Conclusion Embracing the role of a business risk taker can be a game changer for your entrepreneurial journey. By understanding and navigating uncertainties you position yourself to seize opportunities that others might overlook. Adopting a calculated approach to risk not only enhances your decision-making but also fosters innovation and growth within your business. With the right strategies in place you can transform potential challenges into stepping stones toward success. Remember that every risk you take is a chance to learn and evolve. By embodying the traits of successful risk takers you pave the way for a resilient and thriving business. Frequently Asked Questions What does it mean to be a business risk taker? Being a business risk taker means identifying opportunities in uncertain situations and making informed, calculated decisions to maximize success. It involves embracing potential challenges while developing strategies to mitigate risks. Why is risk-taking important in business? Risk-taking is essential in business because it drives innovation, growth, and competitive advantage. Successful individuals who take calculated risks can differentiate their offerings, pivot during market shifts, and foster a culture that enhances customer loyalty. What are the types of business risks a small business might face? Small businesses should consider various types of risks, including market risks (interest rate changes), financial risks (credit health), and operational risks (supply chain disruptions). Understanding these risks helps in making informed decisions and developing robust plans. How can small business owners take calculated risks? Small business owners can take calculated risks by employing techniques like SWOT analysis, market research, and financial modeling. This approach allows them to assess potential uncertainties and develop strategies that align with their business objectives. What are some strategies for effective risk management? Effective risk management strategies include diversifying funding sources, developing a comprehensive business plan, utilizing mentorship, and establishing a clear legal structure. These techniques help mitigate risks and ensure long-term sustainability in business operations. How can risk-taking foster innovation in business? Risk-taking fosters innovation by encouraging businesses to explore new ideas and solutions. This mindset allows companies to differentiate themselves from competitors and improve product development, ultimately leading to a stronger market presence and customer loyalty. Image Via Envato This article, "Embrace Success as a Business Risk Taker: Strategies for Growth and Innovation" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

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This comment section is open for any non-work-related discussion you’d like to have with other readers, by popular demand. Here are the rules for the weekend posts. Book recommendation of the week: The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern, by Lynda Cohen Loigman. A retired pharmacist moves to a retirement community in Florida, where she reconnects with a man from her past. The story alternates between their relationship in the present day and what happened between them when they were growing up in Brooklyn in the 1920s. (Amazon, Bookshop) * I earn a commission if you use those links. The post weekend open thread – May 24-25, 2025 appeared first on Ask a Manager. View the full article

Apparent U-turn from president revives Japanese company’s deal after it was blocked by Joe BidenView the full article