Earlier this month, security researcher Victor Gevers found and disclosed an exposed database live-tracking the locations of about 2.6 million residents of Xinjiang, China, offering a window into what a digital surveillance state looks like in the 21st century. …
EFF.org click the link to read the rest of the story.
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When people feel like they belong at work, they are more productive, motivated, engaged and 3.5 times more likely to contribute to their fullest potential, according to our research at the Center for Talent Innovation. … Our study substantiated existing evidence that exclusion is a growing issue. We found that more than 40% of those we surveyed are feeling physically and emotionally isolated in the workplace.
HBR.com (Harvard Business Review) click the link to read the rest of the story.
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If you understand the reasons why we tend to underestimate how long tasks will take, you can take steps to avoid the pitfalls of the planning fallacy and start forming more realistic estimates. …
To avoid the negative consequences of underestimating—at both work and in life—you have to make an effort to stop estimating using intuition only. And the best way to do that is to use an estimation technique: an exercise designed to help you form more realistic estimates.
The following six estimation techniques are all designed to help you avoid underestimating when you’re trying to determine how much time a task will take.
Zapier.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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By assessing our tasks in terms of their significance, we can free up more time tomorrow…
Ted.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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Data has been called the new oil and for good reason. While as recently as a decade ago our ability to use data effectively was limited by technology, today our access is nearly unlimited. New platforms like Hadoop and Spark allow us to analyze hundreds —or even thousands — of databases at once. … Many managers pride themselves on being “data driven,” but that’s a fairly meaningless term. Data, by itself, tells you nothing. That’s why the first thing … to do is ask the right questions, form hypotheses and use data to test them.
Forbes.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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Malware can spread much more easily on obsolete platforms, warns security body. With less than a year until the end of Windows 7 support, don’t get caught out. …Keeping software up to date is one of the most effective ways of keeping your networks and devices secure, it said in a blog post: “This is why planning your upgrades far in advance is especially important.
ZDNet.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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As a leader who advocates vulnerability as a strength, I am surprised to realize that I have, somehow, bought into the notion that I need to be super-human and that any weakness diminishes my leadership. In fact, I see clearly now that it is precisely the opposite. … hiding our weaknesses in an attempt to be strong leaders makes us weak leaders. …
HBR.org click the link to read the rest of the story.
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We are not aware of any companies that have term limits for sales leaders, such as the vice president of sales. But should they? Term limits could help ensure that once-effective sales leaders are replaced before situations such as the following arise. … The sales leader gets out of touch. … The sales leader develops blind spots. … Subordinates cower as the sales leader’s personal power grows. … The sales leader locks in on favorite team members. …
HBR.org click the link to read the rest of the story.
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One year from today — on January 14, 2020 — Microsoft’s support for Windows 7 will cease. That means no more updates or fixes, including security fixes after that date, which is the first Patch Tuesday of 2020, unless a customer pays.
ZDNet.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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Most people are terrible at networking. They make the same mistakes time and again and then wonder why they feel sleazy when networking or like it’s a waste of time.
There are a few major mistakes in networking that can kill your chances of building a world-class network. 1. Going to “Networking Events” …</blockquote
FEE.org click the link to read the rest of the story.
What kind of networking has worked best for you?
How long are you going to wait before you demand the best for yourself?” …
The writer James Clear talks a lot about the idea of “atomic habits” (and has a really good book with the same title). An atomic habit is a small habit that makes an enormous difference in your life.
Medium.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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First, it’s happened to all of us (and we’re here to help).
Second, it is impossible to understand all the contextual and environmental factors that led to the customer disengaging. It is easy for founders to believe they are the singular point of failure (which is exacerbated by processing the event of loss by themselves in an echo-chamber). The reality is that this is often not the case. And third, some customer relationships cannot be repaired. Be OK with this.
Here are the six battle-tested steps I shared with the founder whose business had been impacted.
philhsc.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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“Life is simple,” wrote Confucius, “but we insist on making it complicated.”
Good advice … and timely.
In fact, Retired Navy SEAL officer and “Extreme Ownership” co-author Jocko Willink recently identified simplicity as the key to not just to effective leadership, but success itself.
The trouble is that we’re terrible at simplicity.
BusinessInsider.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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What follows are 19 daily unproductive habits, and solutions to replace them with productive habits.
These are prioritized from the most distracting things that constantly put people in a reactive versus proactive state, to more granular things that can supersize and sustain productivity.
SearchEngineJournal.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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There are two ways to solve most problems: you either use old systems or figure out a new path and think beyond the first level.
Medium.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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A social engineering attack is an orchestrated campaign against employees at either a variety of companies or one high valued business using a variety of digital, in-person or over the phone techniques to steal intellectual property, credentials or money.
Hackers prefer social engineering because it’s much easier to hack a human than a business. Social engineering attacks allow the hacker to combine multiple efforts and even cover their tracks, because they can use the human to take money or install malware under their persona.
smartfile.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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While there isn’t a perfect productivity formula for everyone, the 11 reads below will inspire you to create your very own process that works for getting more stuff done—and enjoying every day more in the process.
ProductHunt.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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Business leaders often think of “efficiency” and “productivity” as synonyms, two sides of the same coin.
When it comes to strategy, however, efficiency and productivity are very different. At a time when so many companies are starved for growth, senior leaders must bring a productivity mindset to their business and remove organizational obstacles to workforce productivity. This view differs substantially from the relentless focus on efficiency that has characterized management thinking for most of the last three decades, but it is absolutely essential if companies are going to spur innovation and reignite profitable growth.
Harvard Business Review click the link to read the rest of the story.
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So why do the upper echelons of many organisations still not understand the risks they face or know what they should be doing to counter them?
One issue is that within many organisations, cyber security is still viewed as an issue for the IT department, rather than the business as a whole.
ZDnet.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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Have you ever walked away from a sales meeting wondering what you could have said differently to a potential client? Or do you feel as though you’re only wasting your breath trying to convince your employees to believe in a new initiative or direction? Are you tired of telling your children to clean up their rooms? Convincing others can’t come from you—it has to come from them. How does this happen? Learn to ask the right questions.
BigThink.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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Even in this cloud-centric world, there remain good reasons to own and run a physical server out of your office (or even home). Which server? That depends entirely on what you’ll be using it for.
ZDnet.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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Not all decisions need the same process. Sometimes, trying to impose the same process on all decisions leads to difficulty identifying which ones are most important, bogging us down and stressing us out.
FSblog.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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Talented people want to work in organizations that make an impact. They want to change the world — even just a little. And there are many ways to become world class.
JotForm.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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Most people don’t become entrepreneurs because they like accounting, but you don’t want to be one of the many failings to accurately keep track of numbers. An experienced outsider with knowledge of your industry will be able to identify areas of your business model that are ripe for improvement. According to a 2016 survey by Deloitte, more than a third of companies are planning to take advantage of this by outsourcing more of their financial activities.
Paro.io, a vetted network of CFOs and financial analysts, says that outsourced financial analysts “are willing to explain things to you and can discuss complex financial concepts and metrics in a way that makes sense to a non finance person. The models they’ve built provide you with insightful information about your business and help to frame and answer questions you have.”
Inc.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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Nick Woodman: What I’ve Learned
Simpler is better
“As an individual, how you organize your day affects your productivity. As a company, how you organize your teams and your communication affects your efficiency. What we did was, we structured ourselves as a much bigger business. But complexity breeds complexity, and we learned that when the organization is structured that way, you’re not as nimble.
Inc.com click the link to read the rest of the story?
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To lead. And through leadership, you notice that you can’t help but get better; create better things; increase your skills; lead better; show others the way.
With a leader’s mind, you’re no longer focused on your pains. …
Medium.com learn more here
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How’s it going? … What should you ask instead? If you’re looking for a casual, open-ended way to kick off a one-on-one, instead ask, “How’s life?”
Knowyourcompany.com click the link to read the rest of the story?
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When it comes down to it, you need to be sure that your assistant will save you more money than they’ll cost. Start by tracking your time.
Zapier.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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The most successful people I know have one thing in common: they are masters at eliminating the unnecessary from their lives. The French writer Antoine de Saint-Exupéry hit on the same idea, writing in his memoir, “Perfection is finally attained not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away.” This principle, it turns out, is the key to success.
FS.blog click the link to read the rest of the story.
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A new employee just joined your team, and you want to make sure they feel welcome. Or, you need to find a way to warm up a conference call between remote team members, and ask some get-to-know you questions for team-building.
Medium.com click the link to read the rest of the story.
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