What's Happening Now Around the World

Did You Ever Wonder About...?

A (theoretical) timetable of events around the world, gleaned from a variety of news sources:

• Every 2 seconds someone in America requires a blood donation. (American Red Cross)
• Every 6 seconds someone dies from tobacco use. (World Health Organization)
• Every 6 seconds an Australian buys an item of clothing on eBay. (The Age)
  
• Every 6 seconds someone is killed or injured on a road somewhere in the world. (Make Roads Safe)
  
• Every 15 seconds the Large Synoptic Survey telescope in Chile photographs a section of the night sky. A complete panorama of the firmament is completed every three days. (The Guardian)
  
• Every 25 seconds someone in the United States is burned or scalded in the home. (Health News Digest)
  
• Every 26 seconds a student drops out of an American public high school. (America's Promise Alliance)
  
• Every 30 seconds someone in the world commits suicide. (W.H.O.)
  
• Every 30 seconds a child with birth defects is born in China. (China Daily)
  
• Every 30 seconds someone in the world loses a limb as a consequence of diabetes. (U.S. News & World Report)
  
• Every 35 seconds a child in the United States is reported neglected or abused. (KansasCity.com)
  
• Every 45 seconds a plane takes off or lands at Heathrow Airport, London. (The Economist)
  
• Every minute 1,000 people around the world sign up fr a cellphone. (TheStar.com)
  
• Every minute 253 children are born into the world. (U.S.Census Bureau)
  
• Every 4-8 minutes violent, profane, or sexual content appears during prime time "family hour" television programming. (Parents Television Council)
• Every 8 minutes a woman in a developing country dies of complications from an unsafe abortion. (W.H.O.)
• Every 15 minutes someone in Scotland has a heart attack. (British Heart Foundation)
• Every 38 minutes Louisiana loses a football-field-sized portion of its wetlands. (Science Daily)
• Every hour & 44 minutes there is a case of "dowry death" in India. (The Guardian)
• Every 2 hours someone in New Zealand fractures a hip. (Osteoporosis New Zealand)
• Every 10 hours a driver with a suspended license crashes in Maine. (The Morning Sentinel)
• Every day more than 1.6 million blog posts appear online. (Technorati)
• Every day 6,800 are infected with H.I.V. (United Nations)
• Every fortnight a language falls out of use. (The New York Times)
• Every month 300 specialist nurses leave South Africa. (W.H.O.)
• Every month the American government adds around 20,000 names to its terrorist watch lists. (A.C.L.U.)
• Every month about 130 million rides are taken on the New York City subway. (M.T.A.)
• Every year the average American eats nearly 200 pounds of meat, poultry and fish. (The New York Times)

Prosperity Made Easy with YouTube

"Using YouTube For Prosperity" in the Wall Street Journal explains that many senior citizens are seeking to preserve their legacy through videos showcasing their famous recipes or hobbies, on YouTube.

Seniors ages 65 and older are the fastest growing segments of the online population, according to Jupiter Research. 39% of all seniors in the U.S. will regularly access the Internet by the end of 2007.

By 2010, half of the U.S. senior population is expected to be online. In response, Internet companies are launching services targeted at older online viewers.

Some grandchildren in their 20's are intimidated by the process of creating an online video so it is not surprising that grandparents are seeking their help with this process. Millie Garfield, 81, decided to feature herself in a series of videos documenting her son's pet peeves -- namely, her persistent requests for his helping opening coffee cans, rethreading dental floss, or opening tightly sealed bottles. Her son has helped her film and post the series on a blog, Mymomsblog.blogspot.com and on YouTube.

When you open your experiments up to the general public, like Google has done with YouTube and Blogspot, you find uses that you might never have imagined within your own company. When you spot trends like this, you gain the opportunity to build a stronger business.

Listen, Then Speak

In The New York Times article, "Read My Ears", Thomas Friedman explains why President Bush needs to do less talking and more listening, particularly when visiting Europe.

After George Bush's image in Europe became severely damaged as a result of the Iraq war and U.S. Foreign Policy, Friedman suggests that his priority to Europe should be listening to their complaints, rather than making speeches.

Friedman suggests that only once he hears and understands Europeans' view of America as a once welcoming, optimistic country turned into a hostile, aggressive one, should Bush consider speaking.

Even the most experienced of us can make mistakes.

Listening to customer complaints with an open mind, is an essential part of building a stronger business.

Business Tips TV Launches

An Easy Way to Replicate Files

SugarSync.com is used to replicate and synchronize files across various computers, and also can also help you backup files by having them saved to a source outside your computer. SugarSynch offers a 35 day free trial with 10 gigabytes of file storage. After the trial, the 10 gigabytes can be maintained for $25 a year. Five other storage plans exist, from $50 a year for 30 gigabytes to $250 a year for 250 gigabytes.

Outsourcing Chutzpah

The article "Calling In The House Therapist" in The New York Times recommends hiring a coach to get through the remodeling process. Ms. Lund and Mr. Coccoluto selected an architect whom they felt was most qualified to renovate their 1820's colonial-style farmhouse; however, the architect wanted to place the garage doors at the back of the house which would cost more and make the backyard smaller and the homeowners preferred the garage doors on the side of the home.

The homeowners consulted with Bruce Irving, a remodeling coach who helps homeowners negotiate the challenges of renovation. He recommended they talk about their feelings with the architect so as to prevent ending up with a home that would make them feel uncomfortable.

They did so and expected her to grow angry but instead she quickly agreed with the change and redid the blueprints within ten days.

"Bruce gave us the chutzpah to tell our architect what we wanted," said Ms. Lund. "Sometimes you need someone to tell you that, because we're so used to internalizing our emotions. He's almost like having a house therapist."

Renovating a home can be a difficult and frustrating task so it's not surprising that coaches like Mr. Irving are proliferating. Remodeling coaches act more like marriage counselors than like building consultants, and, like therapists, they are best when brought in as early as possible.

They can help homeowners figure out what they want in a renovation and make sure the project is actually carried out properly. In the past only multi-million dollar jobs had project managers btu with the housing boom and growth in remodeling there is a new market of homeowners who know nothing about building and are searching for help. Some in the field estimate that there are about 100 such coaches around the country. Remodeling coaches help to reduce confusion and help homeowners make knowledgeable decisions.

Sometimes you need to outsource chutzpah to sufficiently convey your preferences to build not only a better house, but a stronger business. Have you heard from any of your customers lately?

Online Learning Pros and Cons

The Internet has made the online learning experience much like that in a real classroom. In the fall of 2006, 3.5 million students were taking online courses, up 10% from the previous year, according to Sloan Consortium, a nonprofit group that studies trends in online learning. Today, more than two-thirds of all higher education institutions offer online classes.

Professors and students have more flexibility learning online; however, there are disadvantages. Online professors are working just as hard as full time professors who meet with their students in person, but are being paid less. Many professors who do online learning are part timers, typically getting paid $1,000 to $1,500 to teach a course while a full time professor gets about ten times more than that, according to Professor Ruth at George Mason University. Spencer Anderson, an adjunct professor at North Lake College, says he was supposed to teach two traditional courses with about 12 students each but many students chose to take the online course, so he ended up teaching 40 students online and was only paid for one course, which has effected his income.

The biggest growth in online teaching has been at two-year colleges, and public colleges are at the forefront, according to the Sloan Consortium. The University of Phoenix has about 12,500 online faculty members. Online teaching gives teachers the opportunity of having a flexible schedule and supplemental income, while maximizing profits for the universities by decreasing expenses on salaries.

Building a stronger business is about scaling up, and there's a lot to be learned from the virtual education model.