Category: Entrepreneur

5 Ways to Build the Resilience You Need to Succeed

5 Ways to Build the Resilience You Need to Succeed

Image credit: Iron Man | Marvel Studios

The Boston Red Sox. Robert Downey Jr. Martha Stewart. Everyone loves a good comeback story. Perhaps the most famous example in the business world is Steve Jobs, who was forced out of Apple — the company he founded — in 1985. He was 30 years old, and as he said at the time, “What had been the focus of my entire adult life was gone, and it was devastating. … I was a very public failure.” But he returned in 1997, and his resilience propelled him to lead Apple to unprecedented success.

Throughout my 35-year career across 10 industries, I’ve learned five steps for achieving the professional resilience that is necessary for long-term survival in any business. This is something any entrepreneur, CEO, VP, associate or recent college graduate can acquire as an advantage in the ever-competitive business world.

1. Be uncomfortable regularly and often.

As a beginning step to developing professional resilience, consistently push yourself into uncomfortable situations. From these situations you will inevitably fail, and gain confidence from your failures. These scenarios happen when you are unfamiliar with the situation, or lack the basic skills and resources needed to achieve your anticipated outcome.

2. Change your mindset.

Once you’ve learned to push yourself out of your comfort zone, you can look at crises and challenges as favorable risks because you’ve overcome the stress and anxiety of uncomfortable situations. Even when we fail, we can learn and move forward. Whether there is an opportunity to build off of a challenge or crisis, or simply reframe the situation for others, your mindset makes all the difference. Make crises and challenges feel more like opportunities than burdens or risks.

3. Be honest and transparent.

Build vulnerability-based trust through honesty and transparency with your teammates and organization. When doing this, you will develop a resilient self, and in turn be on your way to developing organizational resilience. Dr. George Everly, the executive director of Resiliency Science Institutes, International, articulates the idea that resilience does not have a fixed end point. Resilience is never achieved, it’s a continuum that starts with developing a resilient self, then working toward developing a resilient organization.

4. Put your team’s needs first.

Adhere to the idea of servant leadership,which is being more concerned with the success of others on your team than your own success. Based on research from Jon R. Katzenbach and Douglas K. Smith, we know this is an underlying necessity of high-performing team success. When building high-performing teams, there is a common attitude of team before self. Once the needs of the team become top priority for everyone, you will have a highly resilient team, and in turn, highly resilient individuals.

5. Don’t fear the ambiguous.

Being comfortable with circumstances that have ambiguous outcomes is a builder of resilience. You have the vision, and you know where you want to go as a professional or organization, yet you feel comfortable with the uncertainty of exactly how you’re going to get there. A developed tolerance for ambiguity is defined by the comfort you have to take that first step without knowledge of truly where that step will land.

People across all ends of the experience spectrum struggle with professional resilience. It’s in our nature to revert back to our comfort zones. But if you can continuously remind yourself to stray away from old habits, you’ll be an overall better employee and leader. As Fortune editor Peter Elkind wrote about Steve Jobs when he returned to Apple in 1997, “He had become a far better leader, less of a go-to-hell aesthete who cared only about making beautiful objects.”

Jobs’ incredible comeback was possible because he had learned from his experience and changed for the better. By developing your own capacity for resilience, you can do the same.

 

Contributor – Gib Mason June 11, 2015

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Often Overlooked Secrets to Success

An Often-Overlooked Secret to Success

Image credit: Wes Peck | Flickr

In his book, Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, Robert Cialdini lists six principles of ethical persuasion. The first s reciprocity. “The reciprocity rule says that we should try to repay, in kind, what another person has provided us,” Cialdini states. And therein lies the key to what I’ll call the oft-overlooked secret to success: appreciation for what another person does for us.

Cialdini relates an experiment a university professor tried several years ago: He sent Christmas cards to a select list of complete strangers. And the response was overwhelming. He received dozens of thank-you holiday cards back from these people he’d never met. Why? Because they appreciated getting a card from him and, as the law of reciprocity says, we respond to a positive action with another positive action.

How can this help you as an entrepreneur?

When you are in a state of appreciation and gratitude for what has been given to you, you are actually in a state of abundance — appreciating what you do have instead of focusing on what you don’t. Because what you focus on expands, if you are constantly focusing on what you can do for others and at the same time appreciating the things you already have, you will inevitably get more of what you want because that is your focus.

Remember, like attracts like. The more you are in an appreciative state, the more you will attract that which you yourself are appreciative for.

My friend, Lamar, completely lights up whenever I give him a gift. I love his genuine reaction of thankfulness so much that now I look for special things I know he’ll like, just so I can surprise him. His appreciation causes me to continue to give.

What if you similarly gave your audience something every day with no expectation of reciprocation? What would that do for your own psyche and your business’s bottom line? There is a famous biblical scripture that says, “Practice giving and people will give to you.” Have you tried that lately? Here are three practical tips on how you can display this concept in your life and business:

1. Create an alert on your phone to go off three times a day.

When it does, take time to be grateful for three things in your life. Make time to appreciate three people in your life. And look for three ways you can give something useful to your clients.

2. Surprise someone.

Recall a time when you received a completely unexpected gift out of the blue. How did it make you feel? I want you to create that feeling for someone else. When you make someone else feel appreciated, you will be remembered. Look for ways to make your customers feel that they are one of a kind.

3. Think about the three ways in which our brains take in information.

There are three ways in which we can express our appreciation for others. Some people need to hear it, others need to see it and still others need to feel or experience it. Once you determine the dominant type preferred by those you’re trying to reach, the sky’s the limit.

 

Contributor – Meiko Patton

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The Successful Optimist

Possible Not Impossible

Why the language you use makes a difference

 

Glass half-empty or half-full? Does it really matter? As it turns out, it does matter how you explain that glass and the world around you. Those who explain things one way are better salespeople, have less depression and are more motivated than those who see things the opposite way. The good news is that if you can recognize your language pattern, you can do something about it and actually change how you respond.

It’s about a thing called your explanatory style, and Dr. Martin E.P. Seligman has conducted more than 600 studies that prove that optimistic explanations get you the good stuff, while pessimistic ones will often end exactly how you predict them to–badly. Here are a few things essential to understanding the science around explanatory style:

  1. Optimists make more money and are more loyal. In a study with life insurance agents, Seligman found that the most optimistic salespeople sold 88 percent more than the most pessimistic ones. The study also indicated that agents in the least optimistic quarter were three times likelier to quit than agents in the most optimistic quarter. Other studies have shown that this data is consistent with findings in other business categories.
  2. The optimist with high reality testing is a gold mine. Optimism is not about fooling yourself and being all rosy; it is about seeing options to reality–i.e., being an “optionist.” That requires having a good lock on what is actually happening. To be a successful optimist, you must also have an accurate barometer on reality. If you are correct about reality, you can become an excellent “optionist.” Most people think of optimists as flaky nonrealists, which they can be if their perception of reality is distorted. If you are an optimist based in realism, you are statistically more likely to make more money.
  3. Pessimists are more accurate about reality than optimists. When good things happen, pessimists are accurate. When bad things happen, again they are accurate. For the optimist, when good things happen, they are accurate; but when bad things happen, they are less accurate. Therein lies the gift they have. Optimists think that there are more options when bad things happen. So they try different things in order to get out of a jam. Serious pessimists usually give up once they think the outcome is foretold.
  4. There is nothing wrong with being a pessimist. If your job requires high accuracy, pessimism may actually benefit you. Look out for what I explain in the next bullet before you succumb to pessimism, though.
  5. Pessimists are more likely to become depressed than their optimistic counterparts. If an optimist loses a job, it will take, on average, four to six weeks to get back into the hunt. If a pessimist loses a job, it can take three to six months before emerging to see the light.
  6. Optimists keep moving forward because they believe there are options. Pessimists don’t usually persist in the face of setbacks and can be prone to inertia. When salespeople are rejected again and again, it is the optimist who makes another phone call while the pessimist gets down in the mouth and gives up.

optimism

 

The Fix
You’re probably wondering how you go from being a pessimist to an optimist. The fix itself is simple to understand but can be difficult to execute because you’ve been practicing your explanatory style for at least a few decades now. It’s going to take a lot of dedication, a hyper-awareness of how you explain events–primarily bad ones–and a willingness to accept that maybe you are a big negative thinker who has gotten by because you keep a smile plastered on your face while predicting the end of the world. It’s time to get over that and get more out of life and work.

When bad events happen, pessimists tend to explain the calamity as:

  • Permanent –Behind on earnings: “We’re never going to hit our numbers.” The pessimist believes that he’s hit the iceberg, so the team is doomed. There is no point in problem-solving at this point, since the ship is going down anyway.
  • Pervasive –Mad at your accountant: “Accountants are such losers.” This is the tendency to explain all people or things in a category as bad if only one is bad.

A little tweak in explanatory style when bad things happen and you become an optimist:

  • Temporary –Behind on earnings: “This is a bad quarter, but next quarter we have a few things in the pipeline to make up for this quarter.” The optimist looks for options when things are bad, making the situation a temporary negative. This keeps them and others motivated.
  • Specific –Mad at your accountant: “I need to get a new accountant. This one’s not working out.” The optimist doesn’t throw all bad people and things into the same category. They are specific about who or what is bad, and then they go find a good one.

In short, you’re more pessimistic if, when something negative happens, you believe that there are no other options (permanence) or that since there is one rotten apple, all of them are rotten (pervasiveness). It doesn’t take much to see that a pessimist can get depressed in a big hurry with that kind of explanatory style. You can also see how it probably leads to inertia.

The opposite explanation style is found in optimists and pessimists when good events happen. Pessimists think that if something good happens, it’s temporary, explaining that the stars aligned perfectly and probably won’t do so again in our lifetime. On the other hand, optimists are more permanent when explaining good events. They believe that good happens because they have the right ingredients to create that positive event every time. Pessimists are specific about explaining the reason for good events, and when bad things occur, they believe it is pervasive.

It is a choice you get to make. If you don’t think you have a choice, you’re exactly right. Enjoy the misery of it all.

 

Contributor Scott Halford

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Six Behaviors Business People Loathe

6 Behaviors People in Business Loathe

Image credit: SplitShire

Our success is often defined by the things that we do and less by the things that we say — I really do believe it can be that simple. This often comes down to the trust that is built by our actions when we interact with others, yet we’re constantly surrounded by people that just can’t seem to figure it out — whether intentionally or not.

I’ve taken the liberty of creating a small laundry list of actions that, if you find yourself doing, you really should stop — right now.

1. Don’t do what you say you’re going to.

Here’s the deal: If you can create one rule in your life that has the capacity to tremendously alter outcomes, it’s this one. Just do what you say you’re going to do. The benefit of this seemingly simple ask is that the vast majority of your fellow human beings just won’t or can’t. They’ll make promises and commitments that they either don’t have the intention or purely the bandwidth to follow through on — so when you do, you’ll look like a superhero.

2. Constantly looking at your phone.

Yes, we’re all guilty of this from time to time — or all the time in some extremely inconsiderate cases. The reality is, what you’re telling those around you is that they’re not important. What is important is the gadget in your hand that has you so transfixed it’s as if its mere use is extending your life by rewarding you with credits to the lost fountain of youth. Guess what, it’s not.

Do yourself a favor and put your pocket computer on silent in your pocket when you’re engaging with others — whatever is happening on Candy Crush can wait.

3. Your lack of eye contact.

I know, this is pretty simple, but I’m going to take it in a bit of different direction. I’m not referring to the first introduction, “it’s nice to meet you” type of eye contact — although that’s super important too — I’m referring to when we’re sitting at lunch and you’re having a hard time focusing, which is represented by your incessant looking about the room or at the TV behind me.

If you can’t focus on a discussion, how are you to be trusted to focus on a considerably more complicated project, task or job?

4. You talk about yourself, non-stop.

When you’re engaged in conversation and find yourself out of breath whilst deep into a series of self satisfying stories about you-know-who, what you’re really saying is that you care only about yourself and likely possess an ego that has may never be tamed. Guess what? You’ll get a lot further in life by asking a few questions, closing your yapper and just listening intently. Try it and watch magic happen.

 

Related: Five Negative Traits that may be Pushing People Away

5. You’re late.

There’s not much worse than dealing with someone that can’t keep track of their own schedule and, as a result, is late to scheduled calls or meetings. All you’re really telling the world, or at least those that are waiting for you, is that your time is more valuable than theirs and you’re completely incompetent when it comes to managing your own schedule. I know, things happen. Here’s a solution: plan accordingly.

6. Using acronyms.

Every business and industry is fraught with top-secret jargon and confusing acronyms. When you find yourself spouting them off while amongst those that aren’t in your industry or may not understand them, it’s often perceived that you’re posturing with the intent to show the world how smart you are — and by default, how stupid they are. It’s OK to use your code words, but just be sure to be conscious of those around you and take the time to explain what they mean.

What are some behaviors that you think should be stopped immediately? Let us know in the comments section below.

 

Adam Callinan April 16, 2015

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Five Negative Traits That May Be Pushing People Away

5 Horrible Traits That Push People Away

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There are certain bad habits that some people have that simply drive others away. As the old saying goes, every person has something good to offer. But for some, it’s when they leave the room. Are people happy when you walk in or overjoyed when you walk out?

Here are five negative traits that push people away, how to recognize if you have them and how to get rid of them for good.

1. You’re a downer.

We’ve all been around these people. They whine, they complain, they talk about how much is going wrong in their lives and they want to tell you every detail of it.

How do you know if it’s you that’s the downer? Pay attention to what you’re talking about the most. Did you complain about traffic as your opening line when you got to your meeting this morning? Did you make sure to tell those around you how little sleep you got last night, how hard you’re working or how busy you are?

If the constant theme of your conversation is whining or negative, you’re probably a bit of a downer to be around. Notice how you are starting conversations with your peers and if the theme is consistently complaining, it’s time to change your tune. Another sign is if your peers take a deep sigh as you approach or consistently respond “uh-huh,” which is a sign they don’t want to engage.

How do you stop it? This is one of the simplest, but hardest to fix. The simple part is all you have to do is stop talking about things that bum you out and make everyone else bummed out, too. Try starting with noticing something nice or good every time you are about to complain. If you’re stuck in traffic, notice something beautiful around and focus on that to talk about with your peers. If you didn’t get much sleep, try not to talk about it. If someone says you look tired, offer a positive response like, “Yeah, I didn’t get a ton of sleep, but wait until I show you how great the project proposal is that I got done!”

There can always be a more positive counterpoint to your complaining. Find it, and try to change the conversation.

2.  You don’t shut up.

Have you ever been around a person who won’t stop talking? Maybe it was a boss, a co-worker, a founder or even a passenger on an airplane. It can feel like bobbing helplessly in the ocean, watching a giant wave come at you that you just know is going to pummel you with a wall of words. You want to take a deep breath, hold on for dear life and suffer through the verbal assault of chattiness.

How can you tell if you’re the ocean wave people are dreading? A few good signs to pay attention to are the airspace you take up in conversations and the reactions people have to your approach. Just like being a downer, when you talk too much, people tend to either scatter as you approach for no apparent reason, or respond in quick “uh-huh” responses to not engage you any further than is necessary.

Do people stand a lot when talking to you? That’s another body language clue they’re looking to get away quick, or aren’t willing to sit, knowing that means you’re going to hold them captive in your conversation. If you find you talk at people instead of with people, that you dominate the majority of every meeting and conversation, guess what? You need to learn how to stop talking so much.

The good news is, just like being a downer, the solution is easy — stop talking! That can be hard for someone used to being a chatterbox. Practical advice is to practice holding your tongue longer. In meetings, try to trade off listening and talking in alternating turns. Share airtime around the table for others to voice their opinions, too. Try counting to three in your head before you speak to make sure you aren’t choking out other voices in the room.

With some practice, you can turn this terrible habit around (and you’ll probably gain a lot of friends back as a result!).

3. You’re distracted.

We all have important things to do in our day, but if you’re the guy or gal that’s always on your phone talking, texting and emailing while others are trying to talk to you, have dinner with you or hold a meeting you’re in — guess what? That’s a horrible habit people hate.

How can you tell if you’re the distracted one? Do you find yourself asking, “what was that again?” often throughout the day? That’s a great sign you aren’t paying attention to others. Do you ever look up from a meeting or conversation and see everyone else is off the phone and laptop except you? If you’re constantly digitally distracted, try leaving the phone, tablet or laptop at home for your next dinner appointment or meeting.

Related: Six Behaviors Business People Loathe

It can be hard to disconnect from your digital devices, but you’ll gain important human connections that you need to garner healthy, happy relationships. Ditch the dirty digital distraction habit and reconnect with individuals, giving them the attention they deserve from you.

4. You’re condescending.

Even if you know more than others, what’s more inspiring: teaching how to get to your level, or talking down to them about theirs? Being condescending is a horrible habit that will alienate others.

How can you tell if you’re condescending? It’s often in others more than you. What does that mean? Look at the people in your life and take stock of how many are better off having known you. Do you mentor others? Have you helped people around you gain skills, knowledge, jobs or in any other way helped to develop others to teach what you know? How many people would come to you for help with a problem or for a question?

Pay attention to the way you treat others. Do you help them, or talk down to them? Do you offer advice when it isn’t asked for (which can be another key sign of condescending, thinking you need to tell others what to do and how to do it)? If these patterns sound familiar, try a change in tone and a change in perspective.

Instead of offering advice, only give it when specifically asked. Stay on topic when asked and don’t make your advice go broader than the request. Try teaching the next time someone makes a mistake instead of berating them.

Patience, an affinity to teaching and some compassion will help you break this horrible habit.

5. You’re insincere.

People can sniff out a fake fast these days. There’s nothing wrong with having an opinion or a perspective that doesn’t match up to everyone else. You don’t have to be fake or insincere about your opinion or others. It’s better to be kind, but honest, than to pretend.

Most people who are insincere either are that way because they’re insecure, which stems from a desire to have everyone like them, or they’re condescending.

If your insincerity comes from insecurity, here are a few ways to tell. Do you worry that saying no or having a different opinion will mean people don’t like you? Do you worry about what others think? Do you constantly go along to get along? The truth is that most people respect a healthy disagreement or can accommodate other perspectives and opinions. You don’t have to be obnoxious or forceful in your opinions, but it’s OK to be sincere about having a different perspective.

A great way to start overcoming this habit of being a contrarian is simply to not offer your opinion at all. When someone tells you something you don’t agree with, try simply saying something neutral such as, “that’s interesting,” and leaving it at that until you build up the confidence to be authentic.

The most important thing is to stop agreeing, or saying yes to things you don’t want to do, don’t believe in or are otherwise faking agreement on. Start slow and you can beat this bad habit.

Contributor Matthew Toren May 28, 2015

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The 4 Simple Changes that can Help you Become a Successful Entrepreneur

The 4 Changes That Won Me $2 Million

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I thought, and not for the first time, about the freedom I’d lost, and craved, about the workdays that had devolved into series of to-do lists. I felt deeply that I needed to make some major changes or risk losing myself to my business.

So. . . I made those changes. And that turnabout was one of the best things I’ve ever done. Ultimately, the changes I made to take better care of myself and to value my time enabled me to land my first multimillion-dollar contract.

What were those changes? There were four that enabled my success — and they can serve any entrepreneur:

1. Stop believing in “busy” and rethink “hard work.”

I viewed my mounting task-list as a sign that I was doing well. But it was just the opposite: I had become too distracted and spread myself too thin to make any valuable progress.

To turn things around, I thought deeply about the woman I wanted to be and what I wanted my employees and clients to feel when they thought of my company. I cut anything from my schedule that didn’t align with whom I desired to be and the culture I wanted to create for my team. I began saying “no” to anything that didn’t inspire me.

I thought about Stacy Snapp-Killian, an entrepreneur, mother and member of the women’s leadership movement, who began JustUs Love. I thought about how, when she was starting her business, her mother made her promise not to date for a year.

“I didn’t understand this request until after fulfilling it,” Snapp-Killian says. “It meant sacrificing my weekends, but I was able to do so much with my extra time. In one year, my business grew into a YouTube series and social media buzz, and I published my first book.”

You can follow Snapp-Killian’s lead and not date for a year, or decide to do the exact opposite — prioritize dating and make your business secondary. The point is to align your daily mission with what’s most important to you in order to fulfill your individual definition of success.

2. Make yourself the priority.

I let my mental and physical health fall to the bottom of my priority list, and that mistake started to tear apart everything good. I experienced extreme mood swings, was short with people and constantly tried to “keep up.” Operating from that place didn’t allow me to do anything at my best.

When a coach I worked with helped me realize I had to take care of myself before I could be of service to my company, I mustered the courage to cut all unnecessary “business” from my life and make space and time for myself. Dropping some unnecessary tasks gave me the clarity to focus on and grow my business in the right way, which played an integral role in my winning that first multimillion-dollar contract.

As Mindy Lamont, founder of The Insurist, says, you have to make a habit of trimming the fat. “There are always things you can eliminate in your life to make it more efficient,” she says. It’s a practice, not a one-time thing.

3. Get creative with time management.

For a long time, I had burned myself out trying to squeeze my work into the space of “acceptable” working hours. I was going through a period in my life when my energy peaked at 8 pm. Yet had I allowed myself, I would have gotten into “the zone,” from 8 pm to 11 pm, which is when I finish some of my best work.

Once I stopped forcing myself into a typical business-hours schedule, I gave myself the freedom to design my days around my energy levels. My productivity and contributions soared.

4. Stop mindlessly chasing business.

Many entrepreneurs feel the need to chase all leads — even ones that aren’t ROI-positive and don’t fit their business model. My team used to feverishly pitch clients in any industry if an opportunity popped up. But once we focused our attention and resources on the healthcare industry, for example, we were able to win the 1-800-MEDICARE support contract, which has been one of our company’s most rewarding accomplishments.

So, take a lesson from my experience: If the current price for your business is your sanity, it’s time for a change. You may not succeed at every lofty goal you dream up, but if you’re willing to make tough decisions, eliminate distractions and clarify your focus, you’ll succeed at the things you care about most.

Contributor Sumi Krishnan May 27, 2015

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Humanity a Step Closer to Developing Machines with Human-like Intelligence

Algorithms developed by Google designed to encode thoughts, could lead to computers with ‘common sense’ within a decade, says leading AI scientist

Joaquin Phoenix and his virtual girlfriend in the film Her. Professor Hinton think that there’s no reason why computers couldn’t become our friends, or even flirt with us.
Joaquin Phoenix and his virtual girlfriend in the film Her. Professor Hinton think that there’s no reason why computers couldn’t become our friends, or even flirt with us. Photograph: Allstar/Warner Bros/Sportsphoto Ltd.

Computers will have developed “common sense” within a decade and we could be counting them among our friends not long afterwards, one of the world’s leading AI scientists has predicted.

Professor Geoff Hinton, who was hired by Google two years ago to help develop intelligent operating systems, said that the company is on the brink of developing algorithms with the capacity for logic, natural conversation and even flirtation.

The researcher told the Guardian said that Google is working on a new type of algorithm designed to encode thoughts as sequences of numbers – something he described as “thought vectors”.

Although the work is at an early stage, he said there is a plausible path from the current software to a more sophisticated version that would have something approaching human-like capacity for reasoning and logic. “Basically, they’ll have common sense.”

The idea that thoughts can be captured and distilled down to cold sequences of digits is controversial, Hinton said. “There’ll be a lot of people who argue against it, who say you can’t capture a thought like that,” he added. “But there’s no reason why not. I think you can capture a thought by a vector.”

Hinton, who is due to give a talk at the Royal Society in London on Friday, believes that the “thought vector” approach will help crack two of the central challenges in artificial intelligence: mastering natural, conversational language, and the ability to make leaps of logic.

He painted a picture of the near-future in which people will chat with their computers, not only to extract information, but for fun – reminiscent of the film, Her, in which Joaquin Phoenix falls in love with his intelligent operating system.

“It’s not that far-fetched,” Hinton said. “I don’t see why it shouldn’t be like a friend. I don’t see why you shouldn’t grow quite attached to them.”

In the past two years, scientists have already made significant progress in overcoming this challenge.

Richard Socher, an artificial intelligence scientist at Stanford University, recently developed a program called NaSent that he taught to recognize human sentiment by training it on 12,000 sentences taken from the film review website Rotten Tomatoes.

Part of the initial motivation for developing “thought vectors” was to improve translation software, such as Google Translate, which currently uses dictionaries to translate individual words and searches through previously translated documents to find typical translations for phrases. Although these methods often provide the rough meaning, they are also prone to delivering nonsense and dubious grammar.

Thought vectors, Hinton explained, work at a higher level by extracting something closer to actual meaning.

The technique works by ascribing each word a set of numbers (or vector) that define its position in a theoretical “meaning space” or cloud. A sentence can be looked at as a path between these words, which can in turn be distilled down to its own set of numbers, or thought vector.

The “thought” serves as a the bridge between the two languages because it can be transferred into the French version of the meaning space and decoded back into a new path between words.

The key is working out which numbers to assign each word in a language – this is where deep learning comes in. Initially the positions of words within each cloud are ordered at random and the translation algorithm begins training on a dataset of translated sentences.

At first the translations it produces are nonsense, but a feedback loop provides an error signal that allows the position of each word to be refined until eventually the positions of words in the cloud captures the way humans use them – effectively a map of their meanings.

Hinton said that the idea that language can be deconstructed with almost mathematical precision is surprising, but true. “If you take the vector for Paris and subtract the vector for France and add Italy, you get Rome,” he said. “It’s quite remarkable.”

Dr. Hermann Hauser, a Cambridge computer scientist and entrepreneur, said that Hinton and others could be on the way to solving what programmers call the “genie problem”.

“With machines at the moment, you get exactly what you wished for,” Hauser said. “The problem is we’re not very good at wishing for the right thing. When you look at humans, the recognition of individual words isn’t particularly impressive, the important bit is figuring out what the guy wants.”

“Hinton is our number one guru in the world on this at the moment,” he added.

Some aspects of communication are likely to prove more challenging, Hinton predicted. “Irony is going to be hard to get,” he said. “You have to be master of the literal first. But then, Americans don’t get irony either. Computers are going to reach the level of Americans before Brits.”

A flirtatious program would “probably be quite simple” to create, however. “It probably wouldn’t be subtly flirtatious to begin with, but it would be capable of saying borderline politically incorrect phrases,” he said.

Many of the recent advances in AI have sprung from the field of deep learning, which Hinton has been working on since the 1980s. At its core is the idea that computer programs learn how to carry out tasks by training on huge datasets, rather than being taught a set of inflexible rules.

With the advent of huge datasets and powerful processors, the approach pioneered by Hinton decades ago has come into the ascendency and underpins the work of Google’s artificial intelligence arm, DeepMind, and similar programs of research at Facebook and Microsoft.

Hinton played down concerns about the dangers of AI raised by those such as the American entrepreneur Elon Musk, who has described the technologies under development as humanity’s greatest existential threat. “The risk of something seriously dangerous happening is in the five year timeframe. Ten years at most,” Musk warned last year.

“I’m more scared about the things that have already happened,” said Hinton in response. “The NSA is already bugging everything that everybody does. Each time there’s a new revelation from Snowden, you realize the extent of it.”

“I am scared that if you make the technology work better, you help the NSA misuse it more,” he added. “I’d be more worried about that than about autonomous killer robots.

Hannah Devlin Thursday 21 May 2015

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4 Roadblocks that may be stopping you from becoming a Millionaire

4 Reasons Why You'll Never Be a Millionaire, and How You Can Change That

Relaxing vacations on the French Riviera, huge donations to your favorite charity and an early retirement. These are the kinds of things people think of when they hear the word “millionaire.”

It’s unlikely you’ll ever experience that. Sorry.

Unless, of course, you can overcome the following four roadblocks stopping you from achieving millionaire status. Each roadblock below also offers an “immediate action step” to help you overcome the things holding you back. Let’s get started.

1. You don’t understand how money works.

Money is not a complicated topic, but still, few seem to really understand how it works. Do you? Sure, you can blame the school system or your parents, but the responsibility is still on you to figure out how money is made, how it is held, how it is invested and how it is preserved.

Millionaires understand that money is not something that is discovered, won, or created by chance.

As I stated in my previous column, 5 Powerful Books That Changed the Direction of My Life, wealth is not an accident, but an action. Building wealth is the world’s largest game, and if you want to win, you need to learn the rules. So start studying.

Immediate action step: Start by reading several great money books, such as:

  • Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
  • The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey
  • The Richest Man in Babylon by George Clason

But don’t just read, internalize the knowledge. Debate it. Talk about it with your spouse, grandma and mail carrier. Personal finance can be learned, and by mastering it, you might discover that wealth is much easier to build than you previously thought.

2. You don’t value your education.

I get it: you are busy.

You have 25 hours of work to do every day and there simply isn’t enough time to get it all done. That’s the life of an entrepreneur, so something needs to be sacrificed. Chances are, you are sacrificing your continuing education, and it’s severely hurting your chances of becoming a millionaire. Wealthy people never stop learning, despite the business in their life.

In a recent interview on The Tim Ferriss Show, Noah Kagan says he takes time every morning to read, as well as setting aside time every Tuesday morning to simply learn.

When is the last time you scheduled “learning time”? Do you just try to “fit it in” when everything else is caught up?

Follow the advice of Kagan, Ferriss and other incredibly successful entrepreneurs: never stop learning, no matter how busy you are.

Immediate action step: Listen to the interview with Noah Kagan on The Tim Ferriss Show. Trust me — it’ll get you far closer to millionaire status than those TPS reports you were planning on working on today.

3. You live to your means.

What are you doing with your extra money each month?

I know, you probably don’t have any left over. Your boss doesn’t pay you enough. Your company hasn’t taken off yet. Or whatever other excuse you have. But let’s face it: you are spending too much money. I don’t care how much you make — it doesn’t matter. Everyone lives to their means. You could make $2,000 per month or $20,000 per month and you’ll still be broke.

The millionaires I know have made a conscience decision to live on less than they make. Instead of upgrading their life every time they make more money, they choose to put that extra cash to work for them through various investments, such as their business, stocks, real estate or other assets, which I’ll talk about next.

Immediate action step: Pull out your bank account statements for the past three months. Figure out where every single dollar went, organizing the entire list into categories. Then, create a solid budget for your future. If budgeting is difficult for you, I’d recommend YouNeedABudget. Also, read The Simple Action No One Does That Will Make You A Millionaire. That blog post alone might just make you a millionaire, someday.

4. You don’t collect assets.

A job will never make you rich. Neither will saving all your cash in a coffee can. So how can you build that wealth?

Start collecting assets.

An asset, as defined by Investopedia.com, is “a resource with economic value that an individual, corporation or country owns or controls with the expectation that it will provide future benefit.”

Millionaires collect assets. It’s as simple as that. Do you?

An asset could be a profitable business, a growing stock portfolio or investing in the right piece of real estate (not all real estate is a good investment. It’s what you do with it that matters.)

Your car is not an asset. That shiny new electronic gadget on your arm is not an asset. Your home might not even be an asset. These are all liabilities that are robbing you of future wealth.

Stop collecting these, and start collecting things that will make you money in the long term.

Immediate action step: Make a detailed list of all the assets in your life, as well as their current value. Are you comfortable with this list? Then, make a detailed plan to acquire more assets and make a pact with yourself to NOT buy so many liabilities.

Becoming a millionaire is not impossible. In fact, it’s relatively easy when you have time on your side and the knowledge to do so.

However, it does require overcoming hurdles, which can be tough. If you want to achieve a million dollars in net worth, or more, continue to learn about the game of money, value your education, live below your means and start collecting assets. You’ll get there soon enough!

 

Brandon Turner May 20, 2015

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10 Business Lessons You can Learn at Bars

10 Business Lessons I Learned at Bars

Back in college and my early 20s (when I actually had a social life), I tended to go out to parties and bars more often than I thought I “should.” My gut often told me that I should probably be studying, reading, exercising, sleeping, networking or otherwise engaging in productive activities that were more likely to directly advance my career. But I went out anyway. Those informal outings with my drinking buddies felt like a fun (and deserved) distraction from work rather than a process of self-development in and of itself.

In retrospect, I now realize how formative those years of partying really were for my career. I learned a ton of social lessons that have tremendously helped me later in life.

Of course, you do not actually have to drink alcohol or go to bars to develop these business socialization skills, but the fast-paced social environment involved in nightlife does provide a great setting for that type of personal development. This is an important lesson for passionate entrepreneurs who become such workaholics that they forget the importance of socialization.

1. Be patient yet persistent.

We’ve all experienced that frustrating moment when the bartender seems to be ignoring us in favor of other customers. Veteran bar patrons handle this impression of rejection by maintaining a visible presence and by making multiple (polite) attempts to gain the bartender’s attention.

Just like in sales or fundraising, people tend to serve our needs better when we project an air of confidence and respectful persistence. Frequent bouts of rejection and recovery build character.

2. Tip the bartender early.

Taking good care of your service providers early in the night is the fastest way to improve your quality of service as the night progresses. This same lesson goes for employees, clients and investors. Recognizing people for their performance (particularly in unexpected ways) will improve both the quality of their work and the strength of your relationship.

3. Fake it ‘til you make it.

At a trendy urban night club, it’s often easy to feel like the shortest, ugliest, poorest, worst-dressed or least cool person in the room. The dirty secret is that every partygoer has felt one of these emotions at some point. People who succeed socially (and in business) don’t necessarily possess all the desired qualities from the outset. They simply succeed in convincing themselves that they are awesome until other people start believing it too.

4. Don’t always go for the most attractive girl (or guy).

One of my favorite scenes from A Beautiful Mind was the bar scene when Russell Crowe’s character explained his game theory epiphany in the context of which woman his friends should flirt with. He cautioned them against going for the most attractive woman at the risk of alienating the other women with whom they had a better chance.

This allegory can be used to illustrate not only game theory but also the “80-20 rule.” Sometimes, rather than playing all your cards targeting the world’s best sales prospect, dating opportunity or venture capitalist, you will attain a higher return on investment by starting with targets that are more “in your league.” Impress other key players until the elites have no choice but to pay attention to you.

5. Pace yourself.

Nobody likes a rookie who drinks too much, pukes and passes out before midnight. Nor does anybody like a manager who is bouncing from one fire-drill emergency to the next, or an employee who procrastinates and then has to cram at the last minute. A more responsible and experienced partier learns to plan ahead, get some food in his or her stomach and drink a glass of water between every other adult beverage.

Moderation builds character. Personal restraint and composure are some of the traits needed to become a poised, collected manager in the face of a crisis or urgent deadline.

6. Double your expense forecasts.

Every battle plan becomes worthless once the first shot is fired. Over time, a veteran partier learns that the statement “I’m only spending $40 tonight and only staying out until midnight” is rarely a promise they can uphold.

Learning that every project ends up taking twice as long and costing twice as much as originally planned can help you choose your projects better and prepare more honest forecasts that you can adhere to. That new project — or night on the town — might not actually be worth the can of worms it might open in the first place.

7. Follow up with new relationships.

Throughout the night at a bar, party or business event, you typically have great conversations with people you’ve never met before. Each of these people could potentially become a friend or important contact — provided that you do the work to follow up.

Whenever you meet someone you like, always remember to ask for their contact info so you can follow up the next day. Send an email, tweet, text, Facebook message, LinkedIn request or whatever is appropriate for the relationship, and come up with some reason to reconnect soon (coffee, a party invite, a bike ride, a phone call, an invitation to play basketball at your local park or maybe even just virtually discussing an article that you thought they might like).

Your success in life is directly proportional to the number of awesome people with whom you are connected.

8. Fail fast.

Sometimes the current bar just isn’t the right fit. The vibe is dead, the band sucks and there’s a smell coming from the bathroom. But half of your friends are only halfway done with their drinks, and the other half figure they’ll order another round while the others finish. The cycle continues until — before you know it — you’ve spent the whole evening at that crappy bar.

A smart partygoer, and manager, can tell when the team is becoming overly committed to a dead-end initiative. She or he knows when and how to convince the group to stop investing in the current solution, before too many resources have been invested in it. “Agile” managers both have more fun and invest their resources more efficiently. They know when to hold ‘em and when to fold ‘em.

9. Take leadership when nobody else will.

There’s nothing worse than asking your friends, “What restaurant do you want to go to?” and getting the collective response “I don’t care, whatever you guys want.” This indifference can dampen a group dynamic pretty quickly. Groups actually want someone to steer decision-making to establish clarity and understanding among members.

Whether in nightlife or in business, you begin to learn that that someone can be you. Learning to take initiative is possibly the largest single contributor to success in life.

10. Designate a voice of reason in your group.

All groups need at least one designated driver to abstain from the Kool-Aid and ensure that the team members make rational decisions. Even with a great, visionary CEO to steer the bar-hopping itinerary, few groups can truly achieve greatness without a sober COO to keep everyone realistic and pragmatic.

Overall, learning to consistently have a fun, efficient and safe night out with your friends can prepare you for a lot of the challenges that can be thrown at you later in life. The best side effect is that you emerge from these youthful social activities with a network based on real friendships.

Whether you are hanging out at bars, playing in sports leagues or participating in a chess club, learning to confidently make the most of your personal relationships will help you become more successful throughout your career.

Andrew Cohen May 19, 2015

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Categories: Do's & Don't's Entrepreneur Extraordinary People Life Lessons Managing Self Limiting Thoughts Money Positive Mental Attitude Positive Outlook Self Improvement Success Wealth

How to Transform Your Life in 6 Minutes a Day

Minute 1: S is for silence.

Instead of hitting the snooze button, and then rushing through your day feeling stressed and overwhelmed, invest your first minute in sitting in purposeful silence. Sit quietly, calm and peaceful and breathe deeply. Maybe you meditate. Center yourself and create an optimum state of mind that will lead you effectively through the rest of your day.

Maybe you say a prayer of gratitude and appreciate the moment. As you sit in silence, you quiet your mind, relax your body and allow your stress to melt away. You develop a deeper sense of clarity, purpose, and direction.

Minute 2: A is for Affirmations.

Pull out and read your page of affirmations — written statements that remind you of your unlimited potential, your most important goals and the actions you must take today to achieve them. Reading over reminders of how capable you really are motivates you. Looking over which actions you must take, re-energizes you to focus on doing what’s necessary today to takeyour life to the next level.

Minute 3. V is for visualization.

Close your eyes and visualize what it will look like and feel like when you reach your goals. Seeing your ideal vision increases your belief that it’s possible and your desire to make it a reality.

Minute 4. E is for exercise.

Stand up and move your body for 60 seconds, long enough to increase the flow of blood and oxygen to your brain. You could easily do a minute of jumping jacks, push-ups, or sit-ups. The point is that you raise your heart rate, generate energy and increase your ability to be alert and focused.

Minute 5. R is for reading.

Grab the self-help book you’re currently reading and read one page, maybe two. Learn a new idea, something you can incorporate into your day, which will improve your results at work or in your relationships. Discover something new that you can use to think better, feel better and live better.

Minute 6. S is for scribing.

Pull out your journal and take one minute to write down something you’re grateful for, something you’re proud of and the top one to three results that you’re committed to creating that day. In doing so, you create the clarity and motivation that you need to take action.

Start today.

How would you feel if that’s how you used the first six minutes of each day? How would the quality of your day — and your life — improve? We can all agree that investing a minimum of six minutes into becoming the person that we need to be to create the lives we truly want is not only reasonable. It’s an absolute must.

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