Books and the World They Create

There were times when we had to read books for classes that were not all that great and they were called classics. A couple of them ended up being better than expected but they were still not books that you would have chosen to read yourself. These book were on actually paper by the way and not on a mobile application or a computer screen. Something about the smell of a book that cannot be described, but that is another story. An interesting thing about books is that if you are fortunate enough, the world around you can melt away and you can be transported to foreign and exotic lands. The books that really stand out and are the true classics, not just the ones that are great for teaching concepts, are the ones that make you forget that you are reading and take you along for the ride. These are the books where you leave a part of yourself in exchange for the it. The stories stay with you and somehow get etched into your skin. For those that hate to read or that don't, you just haven't found the right book. It is out there, trust me.

Psychopaths

When someone does something absolutely horrible, we always turn to the question of what kind of person does this type of thing? What if that is not the question that should be asked? The idea of there being psychopaths among us is not new. The most recent tragedy in South Carolina brings these questions to the surface. Looking at the past in social media and communication services of the people that commit these crimes, you can see blatant signs that something was wrong. So did we choose to minor them or is it that now was have some soft of context? Hindsight is 20/20 without fail and we like to think that we would have noticed them. The truth of the matter is that there is a spectrum of the affliction so it does not always turn violent. There are psychopathic people in all kinds of industries and they are not predisposed to be violent. We need to be able to prevent these things but the question is how. There is no treatment for it.

Introverts Unite....Separately

If you are someone that would rather take classes or seminars instead of going to social and networking events, you are not alone. You probably also want to be more out there and connect with other people, at least for the sake of your business. For extroverted people, this comes easily and the challenges they face is that they can overburden people that they would like to get to know better. For introverts, social media and communication services and face to face interaction can be daunting. Fortunately, being good at communicating and connecting with people, potential clients, or business partners is a learned skill. There are ways to get past the chitchat and get some real insight into what a person is like. Here is a list of questions you could ask:

What do you do for fun?
What are you most passionate about?
What's your favorite cause or charity?
What's your guilty pleasure? (And why?)
What in your life makes you the most proud?
What's on your bucket list?
In case I can refer business to you, who is your perfect client or partner?

Good luck networking!

Starting a Conversation With Just About Everyone

If you are one of those people that have a hard time striking up conversation with other, you are not alone. There are several topics that never fail. You could make note of something pleasant or ask for information. Even if you know the answer, this might be a good way to start talking to someone because everyone likes to feel helpful. You could also ask for an opinion. Most people like knowing that others are interested in their opinions and will be happy to respond. Not to mention, it is nice knowing that there are some people that do not have their nose in a mobile application all the time. It might be a good idea to complement the other person's accessories or apparel. Though, you would be walking on thin ice here because you have to make sure to stay away from comments about their physical appearance, that can get weird. Lastly, it never hurts to just introduce yourself. More often than not people will like that you went out of your way to to meet them and a conversation might ensue.

Doing Things We Do Not Like

We will all have to do something that we really don't like at one point or another. The first way to get through it is to find some sort of motivation that is bigger than the pain of slogging through the task. Such as having to go through the video conference to get the details worked out of the deal. Or doing something your boss tells you in order to stay in good graces and be next up for promotion. You have to remember that you are doing it to get to a better place. Breaking it up into smaller pieces might help digest the task as well. It will take a bit longer but you won't be doing too much of it at a time. You could even give yourself a treat after each step as a way to bribe yourself. Lastly, Having to do something doesn't mean you have to do it perfectly. Do the absolute least you can do and still be effective. It is called the minimum effective dose and it can be applied to many life situations.

Green Technologies

From big data and cloud services to predictive software, we are well on our way to healing the planet with all the technological advances. The future of modern agriculture could very well be found indoors. Vertical farms grow plants hydroponically in large, multistory buildings under artificial light. These vertical farms can be 100 times more productive than fields which are decreasing in numbers and size. The falling cost of solar power has made it far more affordable for the everyday homeowner to install solar panels on their roofs. The cost of solar has fallen from around $150 per watt in 1970 to less than 60 cents a watt today. There are more green cars on the road as well. Tesla said it is allowing others to access its patents to help boost innovation surrounding green automobiles, and BMW has started to pump out electric vehicles that start at almost $30,000 less than the Model S.

Hi-Tech Humans

If you think that human augmentation by technology is not here yet, think again. The software development and hardware has become so sophisticated that human are better, faster, and stronger. All your sic-fi dreams are more real than you think. Wearables have really taken center stage when it comes to connected and smart devices. Lets start with the Apple Watch. Of course there are many other devices such as rings and bracelets which can do everything from activity tracking to safety alerts. Last summer, Google and Novartis announced a collaboration to develop the world's first smart contacts. The lenses, which will look and feel similar to normal contacts, aren't currently on the market yet, but when they arrive, they'll be used for treating and monitoring a number of ocular and medical conditions. There are also devices that enhance the ability to hear. Who knows what else might be enhanced in the next several years.

Thank You

How much effort does a thank you take? I guess it really depends on the circumstances. The one part of the thank you that should not avoided is the fact that it is said. No matter how hard it can be to let the other person or even yourself know that you are thankful, you better make sure to do it. There has been a lot of talk about gratitude and how it can increase your well being and your overall outlook on life. I think it really has some merit. If you have a hard time using meditation or even mobile applications as stress reducers, consider practicing gratitude on a daily basis. Every time we have a thought, negative or positive, it has a hormonal impact on our body, and the challenge is to sort of corral these thoughts into the direction of positive so that we get these endorphins, we get these feel-good hormones, we support positive behavior, positive outlook, positive outcomes. So get off your duff and call someone that you want to thank and just do it.

The Downside to Technology

There are certain technologies that have run their course. When was the last time you were asked for your fax number? Also, voicemail and landlines are getting phased out by messaging services and internet phones. You can save so much time by just writing a short response instead of that lengthy voicemail. Along with the internet comes horrible people and misinformation. Our technology experience would be so much better if we didn't need Snopes.com to invalidate hoaxes, anti-virus software and secure certificates to protect us from scammers and spammers, software to keep our kids from seeing things they shouldn't, filters to keep us from clicking through annoying click bait links, and campaigns to educate us about the malevolence of cyber bullying. Not everything on the internet can be trusted, as pointed out earlier. Information needs to be verified and validated through several sources. Lastly, we depend so much on our technology that it gets to be hard to put it down. When we wake up in the morning, we check our phones and our FitBits to see how well we slept. We even take our phones out when on dates.

Selfie Shoes

I came across this article and absolutely have no words. It is a funny April Fools ad but on some levels it feels like we are not too far from it consider the selfie stick is an actual product that you can buy. Who spends money on that type of stuff? Since the selfie stick has been banned form certain places, we have come up with a way to still take awesome looking pictures of ourselves. What happened to actually asking someone to take a picture of you? We better get to stretching our legs to see what wonderful poses we can manage since both arms are going to be in the frame. Better yet, there should be a mobile application that can mesh two selfies together so that you end up with both of your hands in the frame. Do you take selfies? Why is that even a word in our language?

You Are Great: Just Need to See It

We all have an inner genius. Every person has a unique set of skills and experiences and ways of approaching problems. The biggest problem is that we have a hard time seeing it and not being able to recognize it can ultimately hold us back in the workplace and beyond. One of the best ways that we can recognize our strengths is by asking the people we work with for feedback on the work that they think that you are best at, whether it would be software development or mobile applications. Ask them to be specific and you might start to see a pattern emerging. Also, did you know that our minds default to the negative and looking at the positive takes a lot of effort? This is due to our inherent biology but we can become conscious of those thoughts and in turn control them. We all have baggage from our experiences in the past but sometimes it becomes too much to carry around and hinders us in becoming the best that we can be. It is important to take a good look at what is holding you back because that baggage can present itself as bad habits. You are unique and awesome, embrace it.

Sitting Smarter

If you haven't been living under a rock these past couple months then you have probably heard that sitting is the new smoking. If you are working in an office at a software development job or some sort of work where you have to site for long periods of time, listen up. First of all, unlike smoking, sitting is not something that we can just give up so we have to find ways to be smarter about it. Make sure that you have your feet at hip width apart and your knees at hip height. Avoid crossing your knees or ankles because that can slow down blood flow and cause swelling. Maintain the natural curves of your spine -- don't try to straighten it. Also avoiding looking down too much as if texting because that puts a strain on your neck muscles. You should be mindful of your breathing because shallow breaths will feed bad posture. Lastly, it is very important to alternate sitting and standing because too much of either is not a good thing. One rule of thumb is that you should stand up every thirty minutes and walk for about five minutes.

Keeping Career Focus

We all have days when we wonder if what we are doing is the right thing for us and if it is really the path we want to take. There are always going to be mountains that you will need to scale and it will get hard to stay focused and see the bigger picture. One of the first things that you should invest in is taking the time to be a professional student. This means that you should always be engaged in learning new things, even outside your field. Knowledge is power, after all. In today's world, it is especially important to be focused on technology, web development, and business application development. I have also read that you need to "treat mistakes as expensive tuition; better get something out of it, learn everything you can, apply the learning, and then don’t repeat." That piece of advice speaks for itself. Lastly, it is important to work hard. That way, you are more likely to be in the right place at the right time for something wonderful to happen.