Tag: News Business

Career

The Secrets To Great Project Management

1 year ago
MacanSite

I have spent many man-years serving as a project manager both formally and informally. I confess—I do not like project management. Project managers often have all responsibility with minimal authority. PMs are the face of problems to the customer and take many hits for actions outside of their control. PMs often do the “dirty work” in the project while others receive the glory. However, being a PM is necessary for organizational success.

I may not like it; however, I respect being a PM. PM actions are necessary and difficult. These activities can be rewarding if executed well. PMs must be able to respond quickly, and these ideas are some of the lessons I learned the hard way.

What Is Being A PM Anyway?

Project management/manager concept

Bigstock

Being a project manager, you are the coordination between many factions all working together to accomplish a larger task. You are the glue to hold projects together, and you are the central node to the spider web network among the team members.

Project managers absorb information from all the stakeholders and consolidate these inputs into a unified plan of action. This plan defines the course for completing the project. Schedules, action item lists, documentation, and meetings

… Read More
Finance

A quick and easy guide to investment

1 year ago
MacanSite

Investing is the single most effective way to get rich. By opening an investment account, you have access to the biggest money-making vehicle in the history of the world: the stock market. 

But a lot of you believe you have to do some complex, fancy work to invest… or that you have to have a lot of money to make the most of investing. 

This is not true:

You don’t have to be the smartest person in the room to invest, you don’t have to be a millionaire, and you don’t have to follow the hottest takes and trends. 

And remember this: you likely can’t beat average returns. In relationships and work, we want to be better than average. In investing, average is great. 

So ignore the appeal of these flashy, alluring takes. Average might sound boring and unsexy, but choose being rich over being sexy. When it comes to investing, that means we just have to do this:

  • Pick a low-cost index fund that tracks the S&P 500
  • Automate our investments 
  • Let our money grow over time 

All that’s required from you is a bit of time and effort to actually set up your financial system in the right

… Read More
News Business

12 GOP Candidates Declined to Comment on Accepting Election

1 year ago
MacanSite

  • The Washington Post surveyed 19 of the most competitive races across the country.
  • 12 GOP candidates declined to say whether they would accept the results of the midterm elections.
  • 18 out of 19 Democratic candidates said they would accept the outcomes.

Twelve Republican candidates running for November’s midterms declined to say whether they would accept their election results, according to a survey from The Washington Post. 

The Post surveyed candidates in 19 of the most competitive races across the country, asking: “Will you accept the results of your election?”

Only seven GOP nominees said they would accept the outcomes of their races, while another 12 either refused to commit or didn’t respond.

Out of the 19 Democratic candidates asked, eighteen said they would accept the outcome. Kansas incumbent Gov. Laura Kelly, who is in a tight race against Republican Attorney General Derek Schmidt, was the only Democrat who did not answer. Schmidt declined as well.

One of the seven Republicans who said they would accept a loss was Joe O’Dea, who is running for a Senate seat in Colorado.

“There’s no polite way to put it. We have become a nation of poor sports and cry

… Read More
Business

US Customs Duplicates Phone and Laptop Contents of

1 year ago
MacanSite

  • US Customs preserves data from phones, laptops, and tablets seized from international travelers. 
  • The data is held for up to 15 years and can be viewed by thousands of CBP employees.
  • Some opponents of the practice, like Sen. Ron Wyden, believe it to be a violation of privacy.

Thousands of international travelers’ electronic data is quietly stored in a US Customs and Border Protection database, viewable by thousands of its workers, for up to 15 years, The Washington Post reported.

As one of the country’s largest law enforcement agencies, with a workforce of roughly 60,000 people, CBP is not required to have a warrant to search phones, tablets, or laptops — which opponents say is a constitutional violation of privacy.

“Innocent Americans should not be tricked into unlocking their phones and laptops,” Sen. Ron Wyden said in a Thursday letter to the agency.

It’s widely known to international travelers that CBP can rifle through electronics and belongings, but Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, recently shed light on the agency’s habit of storing data from seized electronics — including contacts, messages, calendars, photos, social media posts, and medical and financial records — in a database more than 2,500

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Career

How To Ensure Effective Communication

1 year ago
MacanSite

What is the most important thing about verbal communication? Actually communicating! Most people associate the two components of verbal communication with talking and listening. Successful verbal communication is when both parties have the opportunity to speak and exchange information.

Some of the important verbal communication skills are the same as written communication skills (and you can check out my written communications article).

Some of the key verbal communication skills are:

  1. Know your audience including the level of formality as well as cultural differences (board of directors v. potential customer v. your BFF)
  2. Be succinct and try not to ramble but have deliberate pauses
  3. Be aware of your tone (not monotone), cadence of speech, etc.
  4. Be careful using complicated words, slang, and technical jargon

When actively listening—which is more than just hearing:

  1. Maintain eye contact, but don’t stare or purposely avoid eye contact
  2. Don’t interrupt; let the other person finish their thought
  3. Comprehend and retain what is being said
  4. Pay attention to what they’re saying, ask questions when they pause, and respond/provide feedback (if appropriate)
  5. There is a saying that we have “two ears and one mouth” so we should spend more time listening than talking

But there is more than … Read More

Finance

Should I Buy A New Or Used Car? Pros, Cons (& getting a

1 year ago
MacanSite

“Should I buy a new car?”

If you asked almost every personal finance pundit that question, they’ll give you a bunch of reasons why you should buy used instead.

Our founder, personal finance expert Ramit Sethi, disagrees.

Should you buy a new car or used car cover photo

Used cars can be a good way to go. But to apply a broad rule that “used is the best” is short-sighted. In fact, Ramit thinks there are many more reasons why people should buy a new car than used.

Should I buy a new car or used car in the long run? 

It will depend on the type of car you buy, and the condition you buy it in. That said, if you’re going to buy a decent make that’s in really good shape, you might land yourself a bargain. 

However, here’s the rub. Do you know enough about cars to know whether you’re buying a hole in your pocket? Even if it’s a good make, you can’t be sure that the previous owner didn’t do donuts in the Best Buy parking lot after dark. 

In the long run, a new car might end up costing less because there’s less to fix. All car parts have a life span and eventually, you’re

… Read More