REPOST: A higher level of productivity | LinkedIn

Richard Branson shares some views on being a successful entrepreneur.  Click the link below:

A higher level of productivity | LinkedIn.

The Splurge Surge: Luxury Spending on the Rise | TIME.com

Getting easy on spending might be a great idea nowadays.  This great read is from Time Magazine:

The Splurge Surge: Luxury Spending on the Rise | TIME.com

Small Business Tips To Beef Up Your Cyber Security - Forbes

Here's something that budding entrepreneurs can pick up from:

Small Business Tips To Beef Up Your Cyber Security - Forbes

Entrepreneurship is an Art Not a Job - Forbes

All budding entrepreneurs, read on ...

Entrepreneurship is an Art Not a Job - Forbes

REPOST: Economists Say Raising The Minimum Wage Is Worth It: Poll

Even after weighing all the minuses against the pluses, economists say raising the minimum wage is worth the cost.

A majority of economists said the benefits to low-wage workers of raising the minimum wage outweigh the possible negatives, which include potentially making it harder for low-wage workers to find jobs, according to a recent poll from the University of Chicago’s IGM Forum.

The issue is back in the news after President Barack Obama proposed raising the minimum wage to $9 from $7.25 in his State of the Union speech earlier this month. His plan was met with skepticism from conservatives like Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner, who argue that raising the minimum wage would make employers less likely to hire, hurting job growth.

Economists haven’t found a conclusive answer as to whether raising the minimum wage hurts job seekers. The Washington Post’s Wonkblog recently noted that many studies link a higher minimum wage to higher unemployment, but there’s also research indicating that raising has no effect at all on the jobless rate.

Nobel Prize-winning economist and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman wrote in a blog post earlier this month that there “just isn’t any evidence” raising the minimum wage would hurt employment prospects. And for their part, two-thirds of job-seekers say raising the minimum wage would increase their quality of life, according to recent data from the American National Election Survey.

Even if raising the minimum wage does nothing to hurt job seekers, it could have another effect, corporate chiefs warn. Subway co-founder Fred Deluca told CNBC this week that raising the minimum wage would cause franchisees to raise prices.

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/28/economists-minimum-wage_n_2782488.html?utm_hp_ref=business

The art of saving money: Baby steps

There is a truth universally acknowledged by every man that money is in fact the greatest power on earth.   People need money, as much as oxygen. While people cannot inhale a large amount of oxygen (as it is lethal) they can however spend so much money to the point that they need to gulp in a lot of oxygen.

Image credit: www.karma-free-cooking.com

Most people know how difficult it is to spend money, which is why when the monthly pay check comes along; they can’t wait to spend it.  Some people will try to rationalize that the amount they will spend goes out for the bills and what not, and what’s left would be used to treat themselves.  However this kind of rationalizing actually works for the short term, but is terrible in the long run.

People are more often inclined to spend rather than save, because they are more focussed on the happiness they can achieve right now. They do not realize that by saving money they can have a bigger possibility to be happier in the future.

The art of saving money is relatively easy, the basic principle of which is to save an inconspicuous amount of money for a long time, on a regular basis.   For example; a person has 150$ a day, he or she can easily take off 50$ of that money and keep it somewhere, if done on a three-day pattern he or she can save up to 150$ per week, 600 $ a month and 7,200 $ a year.

The trick is to save the amount of money you can live without, or the amount you usually use to buy a coffee at Starbucks.

Image credit: www.cathe.com

With the country still under recession and the world-wide oil dispute, saving money is the only sensible solution for people who want to survive until the real apocalypse comes along.