Time is the best catalyst to getting your finances and investments in order. When you start young you have time to make mistakes and prepare yourself for when you are older and not able to work as well as you once did. A few tips that might help you get your finances in order.
1.) Start as young and early as you can.
2.) Invest in your 401K
3.) Put together a budget and spend less than you make.
4.) Invest in mutual funds.
5.) Check prices before purchase.
6.) Have some cash savings.
7.) Avoid credit cards.
The blog discusses current affairs and development of national economic and social health through unique idea generation. Consider the blog a type of thought experiment where ideas are generated to be pondered but should never be considered definitive as a final conclusion. It is just a pathway to understanding and one may equally reject as accept ideas as theoretical dribble. New perspectives, new opportunities, for a new generation. “The price of freedom is eternal vigilance.”—Thomas Jefferson
Thursday, November 30, 2017
The Essentials of the Economy Relate to Human Exchange
The essential of the economy relates to human to human exchange. Whether this is through information or the use of a monetary system it is important to understand that economies are connected through interaction. Considering that the study of economics is actually the study of human behavior on a macro level one should come to the conclusion that the borders of an economy are where interactions are less.
What makes an economy a single entity?
It is the speed and volume of interaction that occurs among people. For example, a state is defined as an entity because the people within it share certain behaviors and patterns that lead to an understanding of shared economic interest and governance.
How does one improve the economy?
By encouraging greater interaction of the fundamental elements-humans. As they share information and exchange monetary value they increase the speed of transactions. More transactions typically also means additional revenue generation which leads to additional taxes on each of the transactions report as income.
What makes an economy a single entity?
It is the speed and volume of interaction that occurs among people. For example, a state is defined as an entity because the people within it share certain behaviors and patterns that lead to an understanding of shared economic interest and governance.
How does one improve the economy?
By encouraging greater interaction of the fundamental elements-humans. As they share information and exchange monetary value they increase the speed of transactions. More transactions typically also means additional revenue generation which leads to additional taxes on each of the transactions report as income.
Las Meninas-Photo Bombing a Perspective
Few works of art allow for a deeper perception from a king's point of view other than Las Meninas. Las Meninas, or Ladies in Waiting, was painted in 1656 by Diego Velázquez of Infanta Margaret Theresa and her staff. Margaret was the future Holy Roman Empress and last of the Spanish Habsburgs. The painting was completed from the perspective of King Phillip IV of Spain in the Royal Alcazar of Madrid.
What is most important is this picture is that it is one of the first times you can see the world from a king's perspective. He is looking at the room as though he is walking by or checking in on his family. Margaret Theresa is being taken care of by her servants and there appears to be a bustle going on. It "snap shots" the activity for the audience to see.
Some have argued that it is the first "photo bomb" in the world. You can see the painter Diego in the painting. He created a picture of himself and immortalized it from the perspective of the king. Pretty tricky to put oneself into history that way.
Painting like these capture a time before the modern era when royalty and extreme power and wealth were held to a few. The empire stretched across large parts of the globe making this picture a capture of extreme decadence before decline. Despite its height of existence, there still seems to be a family orientation to the picture where father is looking in on daughter.
What is most important is this picture is that it is one of the first times you can see the world from a king's perspective. He is looking at the room as though he is walking by or checking in on his family. Margaret Theresa is being taken care of by her servants and there appears to be a bustle going on. It "snap shots" the activity for the audience to see.
Some have argued that it is the first "photo bomb" in the world. You can see the painter Diego in the painting. He created a picture of himself and immortalized it from the perspective of the king. Pretty tricky to put oneself into history that way.
Painting like these capture a time before the modern era when royalty and extreme power and wealth were held to a few. The empire stretched across large parts of the globe making this picture a capture of extreme decadence before decline. Despite its height of existence, there still seems to be a family orientation to the picture where father is looking in on daughter.
Wednesday, November 29, 2017
4 Principles of Market Analysis
Market analysis helps companies understand the appeal of their core offerings on the market. Without proper analysis companies can be investing too much money into losing propositions. An analysis can help keep a company relevant and moving in the right direction when making strategic decisions. There are a few solid suggestions when conducting a market analysis:
1.: Look for key markers of market sentiment that lead to relevant and valid data.
2.: Out of the data seek to find growing trends where products and services can be adjusted.
3.: Always conduct further analysis of trends to determine the 4 Ps of marketing.
4.: Never adjust to minor changes and stay the course until trend change becomes apparent.
1.: Look for key markers of market sentiment that lead to relevant and valid data.
2.: Out of the data seek to find growing trends where products and services can be adjusted.
3.: Always conduct further analysis of trends to determine the 4 Ps of marketing.
4.: Never adjust to minor changes and stay the course until trend change becomes apparent.
Managing People Through Personal Development Advocacy
Managers may control the workflow but they also have a serious impact on the lives of their employees. Pushing for outcomes is important but so is improvement in the master of new skills that make such performance easier. Managing people through personal development is part advocacy and part good business. As your employees improve so does your bottom line.
Reasons why you should support personal development advocacy in your management techniques:
-Empowering employees to achieve greater performance with less stress.
-Grooming the ability to make better decisions at a lower level within the organization.
-Job satisfaction and personal connection to the business.
-Lower turn over costs as employees find personal meaning in the work they do.
-Raising talent for the rest of the industry that enhances clusters of businesses.
-Managers feeling of purpose and advocacy.
-Helping the economy through higher developed employees.
-As skills rise companies can gain additional revenue streams.
Can Universities Help Students Learn to Live a Higher Quality Life?
Students are the center of the academic world. We often hope to create graduates that are skillful in their jobs and with any luck contribute to society through economic and personal contributions. As academics we often think it is about teaching students job skills to meet employment requirements and ignore the quality of life issues. Yet this is what makes the biggest differences to society when students live well and maximize their contributions to society.
Things that students need to learn range from balancing checkbooks to getting regular exercise. The problem is that many of these things are outside the range of normal education. Higher education is meant to improve lives and often does as more knowledge is gained. Why not focus on life improvement?
College is a transition from old ways of thinking to new ways of thinking. It is about create greater awareness. This awareness should be about one's life, job, and ways of thinking. As higher education increases student's lives it leaves them feeling more fulfilled.
To rectify job skills with life skills into the same curriculum is difficult. The same paradox occurs in companies where human resource management and work-life balance impacts actual performance. There is little difference as you are working on the "entire individual".
One way to integrate these concepts within a school is to use more case studies of individual choice and relate actual decision making to outcomes. This requires the study to be focused a little more on the individual and explanations on how life impacts personal career outcomes.
Another way to do this is through offering required and elective classes that relate to personal finance, investment, time management, decision making, emotional intelligence, etc... with a few examples that they will use when making personal life decisions. Students may not want to take some of these courses and it may not always be beneficial to do this. For the most part, student satisfaction increases as student maximize their learning outcomes through life-long incremental improvements.
Things that students need to learn range from balancing checkbooks to getting regular exercise. The problem is that many of these things are outside the range of normal education. Higher education is meant to improve lives and often does as more knowledge is gained. Why not focus on life improvement?
College is a transition from old ways of thinking to new ways of thinking. It is about create greater awareness. This awareness should be about one's life, job, and ways of thinking. As higher education increases student's lives it leaves them feeling more fulfilled.
To rectify job skills with life skills into the same curriculum is difficult. The same paradox occurs in companies where human resource management and work-life balance impacts actual performance. There is little difference as you are working on the "entire individual".
One way to integrate these concepts within a school is to use more case studies of individual choice and relate actual decision making to outcomes. This requires the study to be focused a little more on the individual and explanations on how life impacts personal career outcomes.
Another way to do this is through offering required and elective classes that relate to personal finance, investment, time management, decision making, emotional intelligence, etc... with a few examples that they will use when making personal life decisions. Students may not want to take some of these courses and it may not always be beneficial to do this. For the most part, student satisfaction increases as student maximize their learning outcomes through life-long incremental improvements.
Will Computers Make an "Useless Class"
I was reading a great article on in Philosophy Now by Lochlan Bloom. The argument is that jobs related to intellectualism and fact checking can be done better by computers and this may put some intellectuals out of jobs. The article was thought provoking and well thought out. It did start me thinking about the necessity of using intellectual capital to advance society.
Computers are great at collecting and comparing information. They may not be so great at making new connections. As artificial intelligence rises so does the prospect of "intelligent" thought by machines. New connections might be created and found through the constant analysis of information.
However, such computers may not be able to make intuitive leaps of information like gifted scientists and students can. Creative leaps occur when not all of the information is present but the mind subconsciously makes intuitive guesses that are correct.
Think of artists and scientists that invent a new paradigm shift in our thinking. Such radical thinking is not easy for a computer to master. Computers are logical and follow pre-existing algorithms. They don't think outside these algorithms. Thus...they are left doing the same thing over and over.
The human mind has the capacity to do amazing things. We are only using a few small percentage points at one time. However, by improving our cognitive output and our way of thinking we are able to create and invent in a way that computers can't. As computers advance we are likely to use them for mundane tasks like data collection and analysis while leaving cognitive leaps to humans.
The potential "useless" class will need to be masters of data and creation to stay employed.
Computers are great at collecting and comparing information. They may not be so great at making new connections. As artificial intelligence rises so does the prospect of "intelligent" thought by machines. New connections might be created and found through the constant analysis of information.
However, such computers may not be able to make intuitive leaps of information like gifted scientists and students can. Creative leaps occur when not all of the information is present but the mind subconsciously makes intuitive guesses that are correct.
Think of artists and scientists that invent a new paradigm shift in our thinking. Such radical thinking is not easy for a computer to master. Computers are logical and follow pre-existing algorithms. They don't think outside these algorithms. Thus...they are left doing the same thing over and over.
The human mind has the capacity to do amazing things. We are only using a few small percentage points at one time. However, by improving our cognitive output and our way of thinking we are able to create and invent in a way that computers can't. As computers advance we are likely to use them for mundane tasks like data collection and analysis while leaving cognitive leaps to humans.
The potential "useless" class will need to be masters of data and creation to stay employed.
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