Brian Wallace | GrowMap

Community Coworking: A Blueprint for the Future of Work

Traditional coworking spaces are struggling in the constantly shifting world of remote work.

More than 32.6 million Americans are expected to work remotely by 2025. But only 46% of coworking spaces are profitable.

Why is this discrepancy occurring?

Let’s explore some of the reasons behind the demise of the traditional coworking model.

And also look at how community coworking is emerging as a leading model for the future of work.

The Downfall of Traditional Coworking

Conventional coworking spaces suffer from a number of serious problems. First of all, each workstation costs between $200 and $700. This makes them extremely unaffordable.

Many remote workers find it very difficult to get started because of this pricing structure, especially small business owners and freelancers with little resources.

Furthermore, coworking spaces sometimes find their financial freedom restricted by high-risk real estate investments.

Due to their long leases and high overhead, typical coworking spaces find it difficult to adjust to changing market demands.

This can result in unstable finances and, in certain situations, closure. Apart from the cost issue, traditional coworking spaces are frequently isolating spaces.

These areas don’t promote real friendships in a culture where 58% of adults say they feel lonely.

Many people find it difficult to build meaningful relationships in these circumstances, even though they are surrounded by other remote workers.

It’s shocking to see that a sizable percentage of participants, such as 69% of WeWork users, find it difficult to form deep social bonds or friendships in these settings.

People who cowork have a sense of alienation and disconnection due to the fundamentally flawed absence of social engagement and community.

Furthermore, conventional coworking spaces don’t stand out from the competition or provide a variety of activities outside of work.

Almost half of coworking space users feel cut off from any sense of community due to the lack of social events.

A uniform ambiance where each coworking space feels the same is a result of the cookie-cutter approach taken by many of them.

Meaningful contacts and interdisciplinary collaboration are limited by this lack of diversity and innovation, which stifles creativity and collaboration.

The Shift Towards Community Coworking

A new paradigm, known as community coworking, is arising as a result of the drawbacks of traditional coworking.

There are some organizations spearheading this movement, which places an emphasis on accessibility, diversity, and involvement in the community.

These organizations set themselves apart by encouraging specialized communities and emphasizing interpersonal connections.

They arrange happy hours, coworking sessions, and communal lunches to foster a community where people may develop deep connections.

Also, they drastically lower operating costs by utilizing unused rooms in hotels, bars, and restaurants, unlike standard coworking spaces that are burdened by expensive real estate fees.

The Triumph of Community Coworking

By combining social networking, workspace solutions, and community building in a fluid manner, this idea of community coworking redefines the coworking experience.

This is how modern organizations perform better than their predecessors:

Real Connections:

By facilitating real connections between members, they foster a sense of belonging that is distinct from the surface-level interactions found on popular social media platforms.

Members can meet like-minded people, exchange stories, and work together on projects through carefully planned events and activities.

Affordability:

Provides affordable coworking alternatives without sacrificing quality, with monthly memberships beginning at just $30.

Through the elimination of costly leases and other expenses, they are able to distribute the savings to its members, expanding the accessibility of coworking to a wider demographic.

Diverse Communities:

Ensures inclusivity and diversity by serving a broad range of demographics, from entrepreneurs and creatives of color and cuisine enthusiasts.

By welcoming people from all origins and viewpoints, they create a lively, welcoming community where everyone is treated with respect and value.

Empowering Community Organizers:

Works with community organizers to give them a platform to make money off of their projects and support their communities.

Community organizers may offer workshops, cultural celebrations, or networking events and still make meaningful experiences for their members and earn extra revenue sources.

Conclusion

By emphasizing interpersonal relationships, accessibility, and community empowerment, the idea of community coworking essentially personifies the true core of coworking.

It is critical to adopt innovative coworking models like this in order to build satisfying and long-lasting coworking environments, as remote work continues to transform the professional landscape.

Source: Tavern Community

Building a Quality Survey for Your Business Decisions

Business decisions are usually based on the use of cold, hard data. Without data, these decisions will be made of mere fluff, while lacking the support, stability, and reliability to make the correct call.

The best way to collect data from the right sources is surveys, where the target audience for a decision can share their thoughts and produce quantifiable evidence for a business’ needs.

A high quality survey needs to be carefully planned out, in order to extract the best possible insights to further a business’ needs.

How to Conduct a Survey

There are four main components of designing a quantitative survey. The first stage is to plan and scope out the defining questions that the survey is meant to answer- in other words, the main end goal of the survey.

Then, the survey will need to be authored in a way that presents a clear path for survey respondents to make.

This includes programming the survey and designing questions that build upon each other.

Then comes the execution and fielding of the survey, by distributing it out to willing participants.

Finally comes the analysis and reporting of the results in a digestible way.

Planning and Scoping Stage: “the Five Ws”

In the first planning and scoping stage, there are five main questions that the survey must be designed to answer, classified under the umbrella term “the five Ws”.

- WHY is the research objective of the survey, and is the overall core information that the business is trying to uncover.
- WHAT defines what questions need to be asked, and this can be done by creating a survey outline.
- WHO helps the business determine a respondent profile.
- WHEN is all about creating a survey timeline that details when the survey should launch and close.
- Finally, WHERE refers to where people could take the survey, including the formatting for computers and mobile devices.

In the second stage of the survey creation process, the survey will need to be authored by creating an outline and writing great questions that will drive optimal survey results.

How to Craft Great Survey Questions

These questions will need to be both understandable and objective. It is important to stray from asking leading questions that are designed to influence the participant’s answer.

Loaded questions are also to be avoided, so that it is not assumed what a participant’s stance will be.

For example, instead of asking how often a participant drinks certain brands of soda, it would be better to lead with asking if the participant drinks soda, and if they answer yes, then asking which brands they drink on a daily basis.

Double-barrel questions are also to be avoided. This is when two questions are asked at once, which can be confusing for a participant.

Executing a Survey

Once the survey’s questions are written, the next step is to prepare it for the execution stage.

First it must be tested to ensure that the survey works and looks the way that it’s supposed to.

Next the survey must be launched and responses will begin to be collected.

Once a reasonable amount of responses have been received, as determined by any quotas, this raw data can be converted to actionable information.

It can be exported to Excel or other analysis tools that can help convert the data into a more digestible form.

The overall goal of releasing a survey is to collect data that help drive a future business decision.

It is important to transform this data into a cleaner, more visual representation so that the main insights can be communicated easier.

Line, bar, and pie charts are all common methods of visualizing data. Line charts are helpful for tracking a value over time.

Bar charts help compare specific values. Pie charts help to break down a whole into separate components, which can help determine specific demographics to focus a business’ efforts on.

In Conclusion

Surveys are a critical part of a business’ ability to connect with their consumers and target market.

Releasing one takes a lot of preparation and planning from start to finish. It is very important to ask the right questions that target exactly what the company is trying to determine.

However, the payoff for all this preparation is steep- businesses can ultimately create visual representations of their insights and drive better strategies for their company moving forward.

2023 Critical Tax Deadlines for Your Business [Infographic]

The tax schedule presents a fresh set of challenges for accountants and managers, as they navigate the intricacies of tax deadlines and compliance.

While tax season is often met with trepidation, understanding the important deadlines can help businesses operate smoothly.

This summary provides a comprehensive overview of the 2023 tax deadlines schedule, highlighting key dates and shedding light on specific tax forms to assist businesses in effectively managing their tax obligations.

Important Tax Deadlines

The tax year kicks off with a crucial deadline on January 31st, by which businesses must complete and submit employment and contracting forms such as the W-2 and W-3.

These forms play a pivotal role in reporting wages, salaries, and other compensation paid to employees, as well as providing the necessary information for Social Security and income tax withholding.

Moving forward, February 28th marks two significant tax deadlines. Firstly, businesses engaged in real estate and property transactions must file Form 1099s.

This form reports various types of income, including rental income, and is crucial for compliance with tax regulations.

Secondly, Form 1099-DIV, due on the same date, is for reporting dividends and distributions received by individuals, partnerships, corporations, and other entities.

Delaware Deadlines

Throughout the tax schedule, it is important to recognize the influence of Delaware tax law, as many businesses choose to incorporate in this state.

One key tax deadline related to Delaware is March 1st, when franchise annual reports and taxes are due.

It is crucial for businesses operating in Delaware to adhere to this deadline, as failure to comply may result in penalties and legal complications.

April 18th holds immense significance as Tax Day, the deadline for filing federal income tax returns.

Additionally, it marks the due date for Quarter 1 estimated tax payments.

Estimated tax payments are made by individuals and businesses to prepay their tax liabilities and avoid any potential underpayment penalties.

For businesses with foreign ownership exceeding 10%, May 31st becomes a critical date.

This is the deadline for filing Form BE-12, which collects information on the financial and operating activities of U.S. businesses with foreign investment.

The form aims to track the impact of foreign investment on the U.S. economy and plays a role in maintaining accurate economic statistics.

Deadlines After Tax Day

Continuing into June, June 1st is the due date for Delaware’s limited liability corporation (LLC) franchise annual fee.

LLCs operating in Delaware are required to pay this fee to maintain their legal status and good standing with the state.

Moreover, June 15th marks the deadline for Quarter 2 estimated tax payments.

Businesses and individuals are required to estimate their tax liabilities and make the corresponding payments to the IRS, ensuring that their tax obligations are met throughout the year.

As the year progresses, September 15th becomes a significant date for Quarter 3 estimated tax payments.

This deadline serves as another opportunity for businesses to fulfill their tax obligations and avoid penalties for underpayment.

October 16th, following the completion of the regular tax filing season, represents the due date for extended returns for both C-corporations and LLCs.

These extended returns provide businesses with additional time to accurately report their financial information and meet their tax obligations.

Lastly, December 16th signifies the deadline for Quarter 4 estimated tax payments.

By making these payments, businesses can ensure that their tax liabilities are fully addressed for the final quarter of the year.

In Conclusion

While managing tax payments can be daunting, it is essential to maintain ethical business practices and avoid penalties.

Understanding the various tax deadlines throughout the year enables businesses to plan and allocate resources effectively.

By adhering to the outlined tax schedule and seeking professional guidance if necessary, businesses can navigate the complexities of tax compliance and allocate more time and energy to their core operations.

2023 Tax Deadlines Infographic

How the Employee Retention Credit Can Help Your Business

Employee retention credit (ERC) can be very beneficial to employers. ERC is a refundable federal tax credit that is designed to encourage employers to keep employees on payroll during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is additionally not considered a loan that needs repayment.

Employee Retention Credit Criteria

ERC is currently available for the 2020 and 2021 tax years. The 2020 ERC is 50% of the wages paid up to $10,000 per employee for the period between March 12, 2020 and December 31, 2020 with the amount capped at $5,000 per employee.

The 2021 ERC is 70% of the wages paid up to $10,000 per employee per quarter for three quarters of 2021 with the amount limited between $21,000 and $28,000 per employee.

Only a company that opened after February 16, 2020 with less than $1,000,000 in revenue can file for the fourth quarter of 2021 as a recovery startup business.

If your business suffered from the COVID-19 pandemic and you are considered a recovery startup business, you could receive between $26,000 and $33,000 of tax credit per employee.

The ERC is designed to help businesses recover from the economic downturn caused by the pandemic, make up lost revenue, and keep employees while continuing business operations.

Although the ERC program officially ended in 2021, you can still receive funds. Not all businesses qualify for ERC, but several of the ones that do don’t realize it.

How Your Business Can Qualify

Your business can qualify for ERC if you experienced a decrease in revenue due to COVID-19, such as a significant decline in gross receipts during 2020 or general decline in gross receipts during 2021.

Your business can also qualify if you are operating as an organization in the U.S. (regardless of size). This includes nonprofits, colleges, universities, real estate, industrial, construction, retail, and hospitality.

Another way your business can be considered is if you experienced a full or partial suspension from government authorities that limited business hours, or:

- Suspended operations either partially or completely
- Shut down your supply chain or vendors
- Stopped the delivery of important goods or materials
- Reduced offered services
- Limited the workforce in a way that led to the suspension of operations
- Closed specific divisions or departments
- Stopped visitations to client job sites
- Reduced operations via social distancing
- Slowed work that could not be completed from home.

If government orders limited travel and group meetings, resulting in reduced operations and a “more than nominal impact” on business operations (defined as an impact of 10% or more per quarter), you may qualify for ERC in that quarter.

For any quarter you had a full or partial suspension that lasted for at least two weeks due to government interference, you may still have a chance to qualify for ERC in that quarter.

To be considered a recovery startup business in the third or fourth quarter of 2021, your business should have opened on or after February 16, 2020.

Additionally, your annual gross receipts should not exceed $1 million for the 2020 and 2021 tax years.

You must have more than one W2 employee as well (not including owner-operators or family members).

It is very important to remember that getting ERC requires qualifying wages.

This means the wages taken into account include cash payments and a part of employer provided health care costs.

Businesses that received Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans may still be eligible for ERC.

Credit amounts are calculated based on whether an employer had more or less than 100 or 500 average full-time employees in 2019.

If an employer had less than the target number, credit will be based on wages paid to all employees whether they worked or not during the calendar quarter.

If the employer had more than the target number, credit will be contingent on wages paid to employees who did not work during the calendar quarter.

In 2023, many businesses are claiming ERC by amending their tax filings as it takes between four to ten months on average for the IRS to process ERC claims and mail checks.

In Conclusion

Don’t worry if you already received PPP loans during the pandemic as there is still time to find out if your business is eligible for employee retention credit.

A Look at Commercial Real Estate Trends

No investment market is easy to understand, but real estate can be uniquely volatile.

It is then important to develop a strong understanding of the market before investment.

This can be challenging, especially following all the drastic changes that were seen post-COVID.

The first change worth discussing is the rise of remote work. Let’s dive in to understanding more about commercial real estate trends below.

How the Pandemic Shifted Commercial Real Estate Trends

Remote work, while certainly utilized before COVID, was not even close to as popular as it is today.

While some investors and analysts theorized people would return to office spaces entirely, this has not held true.

In San Francisco, for example, office vacancies have gone up nearly 10% from pre-pandemic to now.

Changes like these have started to drastically change the value of properties across America.

All in all, employees are spending 25-35% less time in the office now than before the pandemic.

This has made the home office an increasingly more popular concept while physical buildings are left vacant.

In some areas, landlords have even started to convert what was previously office space into residential space.

Unique solutions have to be made in the market, but regardless these commercial office spaces are diminishing.

What Sectors of Real Estate are Improving

Looking at what is in demand, three forms of real estate show themselves. Data centers, industrial real estate, and housing are all in consistent demand today.

Industrial and residential space is needed to keep up with the growing population.

Residential spaces can be made quite effectively but industrial spaces tend to take up more land than is desirable.

Data centers on the other hand are representative of the power technology has today.

There is more data being stored on the internet every day. And it needs to be held somewhere.

It seems this will be a trend that will continue for a long time.

Of course, data storage can be made more efficient, but not to the extent of not needing more storage.

To get into the real estate market as a whole – a lot of market uncertainty occurring currently, with a down-slope seemingly occurring.

Yet the U.S real estate market is generally considered quite safe with good returns.

America consistently outperforms other regions at 10.4% per year, for example.

Rising Interest Rates

Yet, again, things are trending downwards. Interest rates, for example, are rising to correct the market.

It seems that cheap investments and money within real estate is becoming harder and harder to come by.

Real estate loans are also crashing down upon investors and owners. In the next four years over $450 billion in loans are coming to term.

The real estate market is worth over $21 trillion, but billions in loans is still a massive amount.

Naturally, there is a lot of variance from industry to industry.

Earlier it was mentioned that residential real estate was popular, but more specifically multifamily rentals are popular.

It isn’t nearly as realistic as it used to be for a family to buy their own home. Many, in response, have turned to rentals.

Building apartment complexes that can fit entire families, then, is a lucrative option.

Single family rentals are also popular, and that isn’t likely to change anytime soon.

New York is a region that is seeing particularly volatile shifts.

While some real estate is being bought out, luxury brands like Gucci for example are using a lot of retail space.

New York more than any other region is seeing issues with their office spaces.

Commercial property prices as a whole have dropped 13% from the 2022 peak. This rate is even higher with a potential to climb for office spaces.

Unsurprisingly this is due in very large part to the post-pandemic high of a 47% office vacancy rate.

There has been a rebound, but some question if this will hold. It seems remote work has changed work in New York forever.

It’s changes like these, alongside other select issues, that could drop New York commercial commercial real estate up to 16%.

Conclusion

Real estate today is in a weird place. The pandemic created conditions that were never before seen, and the effects remain today.

Old reliable commercial real estate spaces have become far less reliable as others have boomed.

The need for housing and industrial space is undeniable, while the desire for data centers has similarly boomed.

Real estate has been a tricky investment for a long time. There’s a lot of room for gains and growth as the market changes.

Today though, with awareness, one can at least start to look at the right places.

Source: ChessRealtors.com

How Generative AI is Changing the Marketing Industry

As the business sector continues to grow, so do marketing tactics. New types of marketing tactics allow businesses to stay ahead of the curve and gain a leg up against the competition.

One new type of technology that businesses are developing in their marketing tactics is Generative AI.

Generative AI gives businesses a competitive advantage by helping them produce new content for marketing.

It is a sector that is continuing to grow as businesses and marketing develop. In fact, since 2000, there has been a 14x increase in generativeAI startups.

This shows the potential that AI has and continues to have in assisting businesses in growing their marketing reach toward customers.

What is Generative AI?

Generative AI works by feeding a machine algorithm old content. This old content is then produced into iterations with new content.

Some examples of content that Generative AI can produce include simulations, videos, photos, and more.

The new content can help a business transform and grow its marketing into something new and engaging.

Generative AI’s goal is to teach machine learning systems new ways to artificially think. In turn, the goal is that these systems can create new marketing content.

There are numerous ways that businesses are using Generative AI in their marketing tactics.

Some businesses use Generative AI to solve old problems.

Generative AI allows businesses to create new solutions to old problems – thus furthering their marketing.

Numerous different industries engage in Generative AI use. Some industries that have adopted Generative AI into their marketing include legal/ professional services, financial services, and high-tech/ telecom industries.

Other industries include healthcare, retail and consumer goods, and automotive/ assembly industries.

There is a wide variety of industries adapting Generative AI into their marketing, showing its versatility.

The wide use of industries adapting Generative AI into their marketing sectors also shows the growing use of it throughout the business world.

Generative AI use has grown so much that its use has nearly doubled in the past five years.

How Generative AI Can Help Your Marketing

Generative AI is used in many different ways to assist businesses with their marketing.

The most popular use of Generative AI is for email marketing where it is used for nearly 87% of all business marketing tactics.

Besides that, Generative AI is used in market lead scoring and customer service routing, accounting for nearly 83% of marketing tactics.

Generative AI is also used in marketing via fraud detection (64%), cross-selling, and upselling (63%), as well as for service chatbots.

Not only does Generative AI assist businesses with their marketing, but it also assists their growth and productivity.

In fact, Generative AI can help businesses increase their productivity by nearly 40%.

There are a growing number of new AI startups which are creating new generative marketing AI tools and henceforth new opportunities for businesses.

Some examples of these new AI startups include ChatGPT, Make-A-Video, DALL-E, BARD, and NOVA.

The tools that these AI startups create allow businesses to continue to grow and reach more customers.

For example, NOVA is shown to boost marketing results by nearly 60%-170% for businesses.

This shows how Generative AI is successful at helping boost companies’ marketing strategies.

The Future of Generative AI

It is important to note that AI is still a relatively new technology. Generative AI, therefore, is still being adapted into business models.

However, it is allowing businesses and marketing to grow at new paces. Generative AI, according to experts, is creating endless new possibilities for businesses.

For example, it is creating new opportunities for businesses to market and brand to consumers.

Looking toward the future, the possibilities of Generative AI are only continuing to increase.

For example, there is a convergence of IoT and AI. Specifically, 19% of C-suite executives are “focused on harnessing the benefits of AoIT.

This shows the growing use of Generative AI in businesses, specifically in the C-suite.

Moreso, there is a greater reliance on AI marketing automation.

Specifically, 22% of marketers have reported using marketing automation and AI to personalize communication with consumers.

For example, businesses have used AI to personalize emails, offers, and ads to increase marketing and revenue.

Finally, AI is creating more accessibility for small businesses.

In fact, 31% of small businesses have attested to adopting AI tools as opposed to enterprise brands to assist with their marketing.

In Summary

Generative AI is continuing to forge its way through the tech and business world, creating new marketing opportunities which increase business revenue and productivity.

Nine Essential Lessons for Business Owners from Warren Buffett

Warren Buffett, CEO of the massive conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway, is widely known as the “Oracle of Omaha” for his ability to seemingly predict the future of the stock market and publicly traded companies.

However, in addition to knowing how to invest wisely and choose winning investments, Buffett also has lots of wisdom for business owners as well.

Buffett as Business Owner

Of course, Buffett made his billions investing in the stock market, but as CEO of a massive conglomerate, he also has what it takes to run a successful business — many times over.

Through Berkshire Hathaway, he owns many well-known businesses, including Geico, DQ, Heinz, See’s Candy, and more.

In fact, Buffett and Berkshire own more than 65 companies spread across virtually every sector, spanning:

- Financial services
- Consumer businesses
- Energy
- Healthcare
- Technology

Types of Companies Buffett Invests In

Nearly half of the portfolio consists of financial services companies.

But with hundreds of billions of dollars invested, that still leaves lots of room for other types of companies.

Part of Buffett’s selection process includes an assessment of company management.

In fact, he’s been known to invest in companies because of how much he respects the management.

One notable example is a furniture store in Omaha that was run by “Mrs. B.”

Buffett bought a majority interest in Nebraska Furniture Mart decades ago for $60 million in a handshake deal.

In fact, he stated in one of Berkshire’s annual letters a few years ago that he would “rather wrestle grizzlies than compete with Mrs. B.,” a nice tribute to one of the best business owners he ever knew.

The Best Buffett Quotes for Business Owners

Given the importance Buffett places on management, it would do business owners well to listen to his advice.

Here are some of his best quotes on business management for new and would-be entrepreneurs.

“Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.”

First, let’s start with advice for anyone who’s thinking about starting a business.

On one hand, anyone can look back and see the long-lasting effect someone’s vision had that inspired them to plant a tree.

However, successful business owners can also look forward at the big picture they hope to see in the future.

What significant impact do you want your business to have in the future? And what will it take to get there?

“Risk comes from not knowing what you’re doing.”

This quote is also for anyone thinking about starting a business. Anyone can have an idea, and many people have great ideas.

However, not everyone knows enough to develop their own good ideas. It’s risky to take on a project or business in an area you know nothing about.

Thus, those who are thinking about starting a business would do well to focus on what they know.

In some cases, business owners might need to do their homework to decide whether an idea is worth developing into a business.

“The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything.”

Many business owners are so excited and passionate about what they do that they get carried away, and people start wondering whether they’re splitting their focus too much.

This quote suggests the importance of focusing on a few things rather than indulging every wild idea that comes to mind.

“Only when the tide goes out do you discover who’s been swimming naked.”

This quote takes more of an explanation that most of the others on this list. Essentially, Buffett is saying that things might look great up to a certain point.

As a result, some business owners may be tempted to take on too much debt with the expectation that a wave will come rolling in, flooding them with profits.

However, if the tide goes out instead of a wave coming in, the business — and its owner — will be totally exposed, and that’s just not a good thing.

“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.”

Successful business owners spend years building up a reputation for themselves, but a single comment or action can ruin everything in the blink of an eye.

Thus, entrepreneurs would do well to weigh every decision they make every step of the way.

In today’s digital world, nothing is ever truly deleted, so something you did 10+ years ago may come back to haunt you after you’ve started a successful business.

As a result, it’s always advisable to think before you act.

“Time is the friend of the wonderful company, the enemy of the mediocre.”

This bit of advice is for entrepreneurs whose businesses are in every stage. If you’re preparing to start a business, it’s always a good idea to think about the long term.

Many businesses enjoy a boom period in the beginning because they cater to a brief period of hype.

However, when it comes to running the marathon of business ownership, they fail because they were thinking in the short term rather than the long term.

The best businesses stand the test of time because they were built to last.

On the other hand, the worst businesses may sprout up for a short time but then fade away when whatever hyped-up situation they were profiting on disappears.

“Your premium brand had better be delivering something special, or it’s not going to get the business.”

This quote is a natural progression of the last one, and it also addresses businesses at all stages.

If you’re starting a business, you’ll want to think carefully about what you’re offering.

Premium brands that don’t deliver something special simply won’t last.

They may enjoy success briefly due to hype around their brand name, but they won’t stand the test of time.

“If you get to my age in life and nobody thinks well of you, I don’t care how big your bank account is. Your life is a disaster.”

“Of the billionaires I have known, money just brings out the basic traits in them. If they were jerks before they had money, they are simply jerks with a billion dollars.”

These last two quotes go together. Buffett often speaks about self-improvement, but part of that process is your character and reputation.

Even the most successful entrepreneur might want to do some soul-searching if either of these quotes causes them concern.

Learning from Warren Buffett

Given that Buffett is one of the world’s most successful investors, it’s no surprise that people come from around the world to attend Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meetings in Omaha, Nebraska.

Of course, investors have been learning from him for many years, but as you can see, there’s plenty for entrepreneurs to learn as well.

Cloud Monitoring: Are You Secure?

The complexity of the modern age serves as a double-edged sword and, as complexity grows, both the benefits and challenges of technology steepen.

Modern innovations such as cloud infrastructure enable people to do even more, but it also raises the minimum skill required to utilize this technology.

This is why it’s paramount for innovations to focus on not only efficacy, but also efficiency and usability.

In recent times, everything is being virtualized and connected to the cloud. 94% of enterprises already utilize the cloud and that number is likely to go up as more and more utility is built into it.

But how accessible are cloud processes?

Presently, the cloud operations market is led by Amazon with “Amazon Web Services” with an estimated 34% market share.

The second and third largest providers are Microsoft’s “Azure” and Google’s “Google Cloud” comprising 22% and 9.5% of market share respectively.

While the first mover advantage is prevalent for providers, the widespread usage of cloud services has been documented as well.

There is 1 exabyte, or over 1 billion gigabytes, of data already in the cloud.

Alternatively, this amount of data would require around 50,000 trees with the traditional pen-and-paper method of storing data.

For aggregate quantities of data, like the amount used commercially, the cloud provides more cost- and time-efficient methods of both storing and retrieving data.

The issue is when growing complexity intermingles with growing accessibility.

A Deeper Look at Your Cloud Operations

Around 4 in every 5 organizations report poor visibility in their cloud operations.

This happens for a variety of reasons ranging from ineffective tools to data being overly spread out.

Most notably, cloud tools are meant for development and security rather than troubleshooting and the plethora of services used provide a single metric each.

Consequently, it’s hard to gather the data relating to a problem and it’s even harder to actually identify a problem.

The measurable downsides include 330% increase in related incidents and 74% of companies reverting to physical alternatives to cloud operations.

Other smaller effects include more frequent outages, poorer application performance, and various delays in troubleshooting.

Network operators, or NetOps, often struggle to combat the inefficacy provided by most cloud operations.

But solutions have begun to arise and cloud monitoring services have become the most popular amongst them.

Introducing Cloud Monitoring Services

The implementation of cloud monitoring services shows a reduced security risk, lower mean time to resolution, and increased perceived business value.

Cloud monitoring helps to mitigate issues of poor visibility by consolidating the previously scattered metrics.

By centralizing this data, not only does it eliminate the need to accumulate data, but it also expedites the problem-assessment process.

As a result, the mean time to resolution (MTTR) mentioned above is reduced by a noticeable margin.

Conversely, cloud monitoring goes beyond mere function and aids with perception.

A business that implements cloud monitoring is more easily comprehensible, which makes a business appear more valuable.

While this seems more speculative, this notion is almost universally agreed upon across physical, virtual, and hybrid environments.

Finally, a more efficient and effective system means there is less room for error and more resources to allocate to security.

As discussed, cloud monitoring can save both time and effort by compiling data and making analysis easier.

However, with the improved cloud monitoring tools, your company is less susceptible to security risks and data breaches.

The improved tools enable real-time troubleshooting, allowing NetOps to solve problems before program and update deployment.

By reviewing and fixing programs before deployment, you significantly reduce the chance of security breaches and other issues.

In Conclusion

Ultimately, the modern age of technology is about optimization and increasing efficacy.

Just like the cloud can be a major improvement on pen-and-paper, cloud monitoring services are currently an improvement on the cloud.

You can vastly improve the experience for network operators, which, in turn, improves the health and longevity of the applications.

Cloud monitoring services go even beyond the traditional benefits and all integration of third-party services for even greater ease of use.

With the ever-evolving nature of both the cloud and cloud monitoring services, businesses without one are sure to be behind the curve.

Those who are able to get ahead with technology can get ahead of their competition.

Source: Live Action

8 Billion People: Global Growth Trends

In November of 2022, the world officially reached a human population of 8 billion people.

China remains the world’s most populous country, though India is close to passing them. Both countries have over 1.4 billion people.

The United States remains in a distant 3rd place, though its growth remains slow and buoyed only by immigration.

Meanwhile, the population of certain countries has been declining due to low birth rates and restrictions on immigration.

8 Billion People: How We’ve Grown

The world’s population growth was about 0.83% in 2022. That growth rate is not stagnant, nor is it driven by people having more kids.

Instead, global fertility rates have been steadily falling. Instead, global health standards have risen sharply over the past few centuries.

In 1800, the average global life expectancy was 29 years. This dismal figure was due to high infant mortality, rampant infectious disease, and poor nutrition for large swaths of the population.

Now, global life expectancy sits at 73 years. Even when COVID-19 ravaged the globe, its death toll was a far cry from plagues of history due to improved sanitation across the board.

The Healthiest Countries in the World

While just about every country is better off today than it was 200 years ago, the benefits of good health are not equally distributed.

The top 5 healthiest countries are Spain, Italy, Iceland, Japan, and Switzerland.

All of these countries are relatively wealthy, allowing their citizens to benefit from access to plentiful food and healthcare.

The 5 least healthy countries (Sierra Leone, the Central African Republic, Chad, Somalia, and South Sudan) are all countries with high levels of instability and poverty.

Nutritious food and medical care aren’t consistently available, and the options that do exist are out of reach for many of their citizens.

As a result, citizens of Spain have life expectancies of 84 years while citizens of Sierra Leone live only 44 years. Both of these figures are averages, but they paint a clear picture.

Combining health figures with population growth pictures tells an interesting tale.

By and large, the healthiest countries now have low or negative population growth. These countries are mostly located in Europe.

Meanwhile, countries with the highest growth rates also have the worst health outcomes. Most of these countries are in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Labor shortages in European countries may come to be filled by migrants from African countries in the coming decades.

In fact, increased migration between countries has already been observed. In 1960, global migration represented 2.6% of all people.

Today, that number of migrants has risen to 3.3% of all people.

The percentage change may seem small, but it amounts to 165 million more migrants today than there were in 1960.

Where the World Population Will Grow and Decline

Declines in population will prompt labor shortages, but migration won’t be the only solution for developed economies.

Longer lives lead to increased capital. Workers who live longer tend to be more productive because they have time to develop more skills and education.

If economies change their measures of success from growth to quality of life, then a declining population can also be a net good for society.

Politically, many countries are resistant to the idea of allowing too many immigrants through their borders.

Meanwhile, remittances from abroad aren’t Sub-Saharan Africa’s only opportunity to increase their incomes.

The region’s population is expected to double by 2050. Their effective labor growth rate will outpace that of Europe and the America’s over the next few decades.

The difficulty of implementing sustainable growth in Sub-Saharan Africa is that many of its countries suffer from political instability.

This instability comes from a long history of exploitation and will require intentional and targeted measures to address.

Poverty alleviation has come a long way in the past several decades, but there’s still more to do in regions like Sub-Saharan Africa.

In Conclusion

Their rapid growth rate is leading experts to predict that the 9 billionth baby is only 15 years away from being born.

After that, the UN predicts the global population will peak in 2080 at 10.4 billion before environmental and demographic challenges push the global population back down.

While much of the future remains uncertain, there’s a lot to be hopeful for in the world today. Today’s humans are living longer, healthier lives than their ancestors.

Learn more about the 8 billion people on the planet in the infographic below:

How a Gift Sparked a Creative Revolution

The power of giving a gift can have an enormous impact on either one person or an entire community.

Since we are reaching the end of the season of gift giving, it would be appropriate to discuss the origin story of the Bulova Accutron and how this gift sparked a creative revolution, including iconic Nike designs.

What Sparked the Creative Revolution?

In the 1950s watch companies started experimenting with the first generation of watches.

Prominent companies that capitalized on this emerging development were Lip Electronics(France) and Elgin(USA).

In 1952, these early models functioned like mechanical watches with an added motor and battery.

While there was promise in this development of watches, they were prone to failure and difficult to repair.

History of the Accutron

Enter Bulova with the development of Accutron. For context, in 1866 a man named Louis Francois Clement Breguet patented the tuning fork timepiece.

He used vibrating metal coils to mark the passage of time as it goes. These vibrations divide each second into 360 equal parts.

He then implemented the tuning fork to create a characteristic “hum” sound when vibrations occur.

Inspired by this framework, a Swiss engineer named Max Hertzel was recruited to miniaturize the technology in 1953.

He created a pawl-and-jewel system attached to one end of the tuning fork. Vibrations then pushed microscopic teeth on a tiny gear to track time.

Thus the 1960s ushered in the birth of the Accutron, the world’s first fully-electronic watch.

To better present the watch’s inner workings, there was an “open dial” demonstration model developed as a salesman’s sample.

A request by jewelers to have an open dial revealing the movement to the consumer prompted the release of the new watch.

To attract passersby, the watch was made with 14-karat gold. Accutron was so accurate the adjustment mechanism was moved to the back away from the view.

One year later, the window model of the watch quickly gained popularity; the watch was introduced as the Accutron Spaceview.

It was called that because it views the inner workings of how the watch functions.

Its popularity led to conversions being made to existing watch dials to allow viewing of the inner workings.

Famous Accutron Watches

Since 1961, Over 200 models of Accutron have been released. Some of the models even made it to the hands of noted celebrities.

In 2013, a 1970 model owned by Joe DiMaggio was sold in an auction for over $20,000.

Paul Newman was photographed by Life Magazine wearing an Accutron 214 Spaceview during the filming of his directorial debut, ‘Rachel Rachel’.

Elvis Presley was frequently photographed wearing several Accutrons from his collection.

It was then in 1976 that over 5 million Accutron “tuning fork” models were sold worldwide.

From there, this timepiece continued to evolve but still paid homage to its original design.

Bulova introduced a new way for the watch to run using electrostatic movement.

This involves two small turbines generating a magnetic field, which moves the rotor and turns the motor — essentially powered by arm movements.

It achieves an extremely stable rate of just five seconds per month and relies on an open-worked dial view to showcase interior engineering.

However, Accutron did more than just keep time, it even went to space.

The Accutron Astronaut was developed to meet the demands of high-speed flight and space travel.

Even more, Accutron technology was adopted by the US Air Force, the CIA, and NASA.

How Watches Inspired More Creative Revolutions?

So, how did this technology inspire the design of Nike? In 1981, Tinker Hatfield was a corporate architect, designing buildings for Nike.

By 1987, he switched to shoes and created some of the company’s most iconic styles.

His inspiration was for the strong and attractive design on the Accutron Spaceview which brought forth the Nike Air Max 1.

When asked further about his inspiration for this revolutionary shoe design he had this to say:

“The Centre Pompidou was one of my must-sees when I was in Paris… this large almost machine-like building sort of spilling its guts out into the world… I remember being really super influenced by it. I’m fully convinced that had I not seen the building I might not have. I might not have suggested that we actually exposed this airbag and make it visual and actually let people see inside the shoe.”

Visions of Disruptive Technology

This inspiration leads to the transparent bubble element leading to be breathable and flexible.

Moreover like the Spaceview, you would be able to see the inner workings of the shoe through that bubble.

The combination of functional and fashionable made the Air Max 1 one of the greatest sneakers in history.

On October 25, 1960, Bulova released the first and most advanced watch in the world.

This meaningful gift to the world rooted in disruptive technology led to the creation of a culturally iconic sneaker.

It was truly a gift that kept on giving. Read on for the full story of a creative revolution below: