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From Oprah Winfrey to Daymond John, celebrate the accomplishments of some of the nation’s most prominent black founders.
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From Oprah Winfrey to Daymond John, celebrate the accomplishments of some of the nation’s most prominent black founders.
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“Blockchain” is one of two “B” words that are all the rage lately — the other being “Bitcoin.” While Bitcoin is grabbing most of the headlines, many people are mistakenly lumping “cryptocurrency” into the same category as “Blockchain.” category. True, the two are certainly related, but they’re not one in the same.
Related: 9 Blockchain Influencers for You to Follow — Who All Happen to Be Female
Blockchain is defined as a digitized, decentralized ledger that logs all cryptocurrency transactions. A blockchain records every digital transaction and exchange of goods, services and value — or private data — exactly as it occurs. To make it simple, picture a global spreadsheet running on millions of computers. Everyone can see all transactions being made, since it’s a peer-to-peer system, and they’re all conducted without middle men.
The main benefactors of this technology? Big banks and tech giants. And that’s no surprise because we all know that big businesses drive innovation. By 2022, in fact, it’s predicted (by researcher Markets and Markets) that the market for Blockchain-related products and services will reach $7.7 billion, up $242 million from last year’s preduction.
These figures are helping to breathe new life into older companies like IBM. By adopting Blockchain-as-a-service (BaaS) the tech giant is investing in enterprise systems that leverage cloud infrastructure. The launch of this service in February of 2016 helped create opportunities for IBM to transition to cloud services and to use them to build custom blockchains for its customers.
Related: Just What the Heck Is Blockchain? Watch This Explainer Video.
Initially, Bockchain caused a stir, mainly within the tech sector, but it has branched out to other sectors. More and more, industries are testing out this technology in order to run a more efficient, transparent and secure system — not to mention remaining current and competitive.
Here are how three major industries are now using Blockchain technology.
In 2014, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act required all public, private and otherwise eligible healthcare professionals to adopt (or at least demonstrate) “meaningful use” of electronic medical records (EMR).
The Affordable Care Act (a.k.a. “Obamacare”) also said that doctors and hospitals needed to implement electronic health records (EHRs) and provided $28 billion in federal stimulus money to implement these changes. Despite these efforts, no clear protocol emerged about the sharing of that data across providers.
What this means is that plenty of opportunities are out there to disrupt the system — not just with medical records, but supply chains, smart contracts for payment distribution and more.
An example: MedRec, an MIT-backed initiative designed to be a digital family history of medical records, uses Blockchain to create for patients a family medical history that can be passed down from generation to generation. MedRec was implemented using Ethereum blockchain and uses that technology’s smart contracts to execute scripts on the blockchain.
Smart contracts are “conflict-free” ways to exchange money, property and shares or anything of value via Blockchain. These contracts define the rules and penalties for each agreement and also enforce obligations automatically.
Still, in this era of rampant fraud and identity theft, how safe is this system?
For starters, MedRec doesn’t store information in the way we’re familiar with. Instead, metadata is encoded but still allows records to be accessed securely by patients across providers. The metadata protects the integrity of the data being requested.
This process is still in its infancy, but the federal government has taken notice. Back in September 2016, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the winners of its “HHS Blockchain Challenge,” which consisted of submissions of academic papers on Blockchain usage pertaining to health IT and health-related research.
Certainly health care is a very complicated industry, in more ways than one. But it’s ripe with disruption opportunities. Blockchain might be a nifty way to revamp and simplify, the industry as whole.
In the 1990s and early 2000s, music streaming took the industry by storm. Users were able to download any song they wanted, some without paying a cent. The music industry cracked down on this illegal streaming, but along the way suffered financially, leaving artists, record labels and everyone else involved feeling angry and shortchanged.
Enter Imogene Heap. She’s a British songwriter and musician and the founder of Myceria, a “collective of creatives, professionals and lovers of music.” The group’s mission is to “empower a fair, sustainable and vibrant music industry ecosystem involving all online music interaction services.”
Myceria’s Blockchain-based platform has created a way for musicians to push smart contracts for the sharing of free-trade music, ensuring that profits go back to the artists. These contracts allow artists to sell directly to consumers without the need for labels, lawyers or accountants; and royalties are paid out automatically.
Another company, SingularDTV, a Blockchain-based entertainment studio, is looking to lay the foundation for a decentralized entertainment industry. By developing an entertainment-app ecosystem on Ethereum, the studio’s hope is to empower artists and help rewrite the rules of the music and creative industries here in the United States.
Hip hop and electronic artist Gramatik was the first musician to sign on to the tokenization program. Having such a system, Gramatik says, whereby artists can create music on their own terms, without bureaucracy “getting in the way,” is why he decided to join this platform.
As entrepreneurs, we can identify with wanting to do our own thing without interference from corporate (or industry) politics.
HR professionals spend a great deal of time verifying the potential employees’ identities, backgrounds and employment histories. According to this infographic, HR professionals spend the majority of their time performing three tasks: meetings with senior staff and business partners (22 percent), employee relations and engagement (15 percent) and meetings with employees (14 percent).
These efforts take more time than low-priority tasks, like on-boarding new employees and carrying out personnel management; and tare only one reason Blockchain can help revolutionize the music ndustry.
It can also help simplify payroll, certification and digital-process management.
As businesses continue to expand globally, they’re finding it more expensive to send payrolls overseas. Paying people abroad can also take longer to process, due to third parties and banks with different sets of rules. What Blockchain can do is simplify the process and eliminate these middle men, making investment in the technology attractive.
Consider the example of San Francisco-based company, Bitwage. Bitwage operates on a Blockchain-based payroll system to facilitate cross-border payments through Bitcoin. This allows the company to pay employees, contractors, even vendors, worldwide in their preferred currencies. In fact Blockchain can handle the required conversion from bitcoins to whatever the local currency may be.
Finally, human resources and hiring managers spend a lot of time verifying the information of potential candidates — from job histories, to references, to background checks. A survey by Careerbuilder showed that 58 percent of employers surveyed had caught a lie on a resume. Another report, by HireRight,showed that 86 percent of employers surveyed had uncovered lies or misrepresentations on resumes.
Alternately, using blockchain technology could increase transparency and make it easier to spot fraud in employee credentials.
Related: 8 Benefits of Blockchain to Industries Beyond Cryptocurrency
So, get ready: Whatever your industry is, Blockchain will likely have a role to play, if it doesn’t already. Learn as much as you can about the technology, embrace itschanges and learn to play with the big dogs (even if you yourself are not a big dog . . . yet).
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These athletes haven’t let anything get in the way of competing in this year’s games, from injuries to their very identities.
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In this video, Entrepreneur Network partner Brian Tracy When offers an interesting question: Are you afraid of success?
The obvious answer, of course, is no. We all want to be successful in our chosen fields. But, Tracy explains six reasons why you might be afraid of some of the things that either come from or affect change.
For example, you might be afraid of the change that comes with success or of losing friends along the way. Or, you might think that it is easier to fail than be successful.
Click play to learn more and find out whether you’re afraid to succeed.
Related: 4 Ways to Turn Your Fear Into Fuel
Entrepreneur Network is a premium video network providing entertainment, education and inspiration from successful entrepreneurs and thought leaders. We provide expertise and opportunities to accelerate brand growth and effectively monetize video and audio content distributed across all digital platforms for the business genre.
EN is partnered with hundreds of top YouTube channels in the business vertical. Watch video from our network partners on demand on Amazon Fire, Roku, Apple TV and the Entrepreneur App available on iOS and Android devices.
Click here to become a part of this growing video network.
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Those who dream of getting an Amazon package, a prescription drug, or even a beer delivered to their doorsteps via drone might have their wishes fulfilled sooner than expected.
The Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Integration Pilot Program has jump-started the development of the drone industry in the United States, aiming to “enhance the safety of the American public, increase the efficiency and productivity of American industry and create tens of thousands of new American jobs.”
Aerial enterprises such as drone delivery and aerial imagery are poised to take off. The potential economic benefit of integrated unmanned airborne systems will generate an estimated $82 billion and create up to 100,000 jobs by 2025, while aerial imaging is expected to generate $3.3 billion by 2023.
Related: Watch Incredible Footage of a Drone Crashing Into Seattle’s Space Needle
Driving that growth are new and expanding application areas. Aerial technology is transforming industries of all types by optimizing processes, cutting costs, and reaching both figurative and literal places that were once unattainable. Here are five industries that are being disrupted by this new, lifesaving technology.
Just days after Hurricane Harvey, location content companies captured the devastation left by the natural disaster to aid in emergency response and rescue, flood management, and FEMA fund allocation. In times of emergency, image captures can be used to navigate first responders and 911 emergency services as well as analyze road conditions. FEMA and disaster relief agencies can also allocate money based on examinations of the extent of devastation in an area.
Earlier this year, Otherlab, an engineering research and development lab based in San Francisco, created the APSARA glider, an advanced, biodegradable cardboard airplane capable of carrying more than two pounds of supplies like blood and vaccines to those in need.
The biodegradable drone can support canisters, medically sensitive liquids, batteries and other life-saving items and disperse them to an area the size of California. Now medical supplies can be delivered to rural areas without roads or regions rendered inaccessible by natural disasters or war.
High-resolution aerial imagery, like these before and after images of Hurricane Irma, are being used to aid in emergency response and rescue, FEMA fund allocation and flood management.
Image Credit: Nearmap
Local transportation agencies such as Orange County Transportation Authority and the District Department of Transportation in Washington, DC, are using aerial imagery as a base map — a collection of GIS data and imagery that form the background setting and orientation of the map.
Related: The iPhone of Drones Is Being Built by This Teenager
Aerial photographs integrated with third-party programs like Autodesk and Esri products help in project management oversight, planning and site analysis, and validating construction updates (lane, roadway and sidewalk updates).
Realizing that the ocean is critical to human existence — the source of 97 percent of the planet’s water and producer of more than half of the oxygen in the atmosphere — it may come as a surprise that 85 percent of the ocean’s surface remains unmapped and unexplored.
Aerial imagery has played a part in bridging that gap. High-resolution photos from aircraft camera systems can capture and retrieve surface current data and measure Doppler shift in waves. This method is cost-effective, timely and scalable; it can cover large surface areas.
This process has implications for the oil and gas industry. Using the data extracted from the aerial captures, oil companies can plan and execute offshore exploration, conduct deep-water drilling operations, reinforce oil spill response and mitigation, and assist in search-and-rescue missions.
The combination of machine learning and AI is changing the way the insurance and real estate markets answer questions at scale. Now, with extremely high-resolution imagery, insurers can easily gather the most accurate, inspection-level property data, allowing assessors to easily identify characteristics and potential risks of a property such as swimming pools and the distance between trees and buildings.
Cape Analytics, for example, has developed a cloud-based platform that provides an on-demand data stream of high-value property features and risks for real estate portfolios across the United States.
Precision agriculture is a farming management concept based on the use of technology to increase crop yields and profitability while reducing a number of traditional components necessary for growing crops such as water, fertilizer, herbicides, and insecticides. Drone aerial imagery is key. Aerial pictures help farmers work smarter in tasks such as surveying entire farm properties, conducting soil and irrigation sampling, scheduling pesticide applications, and finding mechanical errors in equipment.
Related: The Drone Industry: Thoughts From an Outsider
Large companies such as Monsanto, John Deere, Bayer, Dow and DuPont are investing in precision farming technologies like software, sensors and aerial-based data.
City water districts use aerial imagery to monitor crop production and water supplies and analyze aspects of the water budget. GIS and aerial imagery were used to create models and tools for the Coachella Valley Economic Partnership for examining and assessing the Coachella Valley Aquifer. These maps were used to estimate infiltration as well as change in land cover classifications and water depth surfaces, all visualized in 2D and 3D to find possible trends.
As the aerial technology industry matures, it will only become more ubiquitous. The sky covers everything, from emergency response to public transit, oceanic discovery to large-scale farming and property assets. Sure, you’ll still get your package delivered, but the sky is opening up a world of other possibilities.
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No bars? There are a number of hacks to boost your cellular signal that don’t require you to change providers or even get on the phone with your phone company.
Related: 12 Surprising Office Wi-Fi Killers
For starters, get near a window. Walls are known for blocking cell signals and by standing near a window, you’ll position yourself in a clearer path towards your nearest cell tower. If a window isn’t an option, try going upstairs or increasing your elevation in some way. This too will help you get in closer contact with a cell tower. Not sure where your closest cell tower is? Try checking with an app such as OpenSignal.
Related: Slow Wi-Fi? 5 Easy Ways to Boost Your Signal Now.
While there are things you can do physically, there are also things you can do technologically, such as charging your device and closing any unused apps, which will give your phone more power to devote to finding cell signal. Still no luck? Another option is turning your phone on airplane mode and then switching it back after five seconds, which will reboot the signal.
To learn more, here are 10 free hacks to improve your cellular signal from SureCall.
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Imagine finding out your neighbor bought the exact same $40,000 car you own but paid $240,000 (or six times the price you paid). Such is the craziness of 401(k) plans. If you are a small business owner, or employed by one, it turns out that the fees you pay out of your hard-earned savings could be five to 10 times higher than your neighbor who happens to work for a Fortune 500 company.
Small business is as American as apple pie. It is undoubtedly the backbone of the economy. Doctors, dentists, lawyers, the local car dealer, etc. … These companies typically have 401(k) plans with fewer than 100 employees. In fact, according to a study by the Investment Company Institute, nearly 90 percent of all 401(k) plans in America fit into this category.
As a whole, the fees are substantially more for small business 401(k) plans, and in my estimation, for no good reason other than small businesses are typically dealing with several middlemen (i.e. the local broker who brings donuts and educational brochures) who intend to get paid handsomely. Owners, busy running the day-to-day operations, are painfully unaware of the fees that are quietly eroding their companies’ retirement savings.
Related: 13 Reasons Why Your 401(k) Is Your Riskiest Investment
Our firm comes in contact with thousands of small business owners annually, and we decided to produce a white paper on 401(k) fees to help the public understand what we see on a day-to-day basis when we evaluate existing 401(k) plans (the full white paper can be downloaded at www.401kstudy.com). First, we requested that small business owners provide us with a copy of their fee disclosure document (also known as a 408(b)(2), which can be accessed by calling the customer service number of your provider).
We then compiled data from nearly 250 plans and came up with the total average “asset-based” costs based on the sampling. Asset-based fees are simply the costs that are extracted from the account balances of the plan participants. Our study included 11 of the biggest-name providers that dominate the small business 401(k) plan marketplace. Below is the analysis showing our findings:
Related: Warning, Employers: Liability Lurks in Your 401(k) Plan and the New DOL Rule Won’t Protect You
To be fair, this is just a sample of plans where we were able to obtain the fee disclosures from the owners. We readily acknowledge that fees vary from plan to plan and the fees from other plans may be higher or lower than the averages we found. But the reality is that these numbers are pretty startling when contrasted to plans offered by large companies. The industry median for plans with 100 participants or more and $1 million or more in assets is just 0.93 percent annually, with the rate dropping sharply as assets exceed $10 million or more to as low as 0.27 percent of plan assets per year (Source: BrightScope-ICI Dec. 2017 report, page 50).
Now you might think these fees sound like small percentages. What’s one percent between friends, after all? Turns out it’s a lot! All things being equal in terms of market performance, a one percentage point reduction in fees could put hundreds of thousands, if not millions, back into the pockets of plan participants that would have otherwise gone to fees (watch this two-minute video which spells it out).
But the question is still begging to be asked: Why are plans multiple times more expensive for small businesses?
It’s a combination of factors but here is my opinion: Big companies hire astute third-party consultants and make vendors compete for their business. They have major buying power and drive down costs. They eliminate expensive funds that aren’t performing well. They demand “institutionally” priced shares, which means that participants pay less than the normal retail price.
Contrast this with small businesses. The business owner usually engages a broker who seems like a likeable guy/gal. The broker typically wants to make as much as they can get away with. The broker selects a provider (often an insurance company or payroll company) and said provider typically makes money on “revenue-sharing,” which is a fancy way of saying that they get a cut of the mutual fund management fees. This means the funds in the plan are often expensive, and low-cost index funds, which don’t “pay to play,” are suspiciously missing from most plans (despite overwhelming evidence they outperform over time). Another common revenue source is the use of proprietary name-brand funds which often more profitable. And let’s not forget the local third-party administrator who can often get a cut of the action as well.
Related: Going Solo Doesn’t Mean Going Without a 401(k)
I know this all sounds like a bummer, but there is a silver lining. Any time there are high costs or unnecessary middlemen, capitalism finds the path to disruption. In the same way that Uber has transformed the taxi cab industry, next-generation 401(k) solutions are putting the traditional 401(k) providers on notice. Many of these solutions can have “asset-based” fees of just 0.65 percent annually, a 50 percent-or-more reduction from today’s averages.
Not only are fees coming down; how we interact with our 401(k) plans is also changing. Gone are the days of cafeteria-style meetings where employees have to listen to canned presentations. People want to interact with their plan provider in their car on their phone while waiting to pick up their daughter at soccer practice. Mobile devices have put the power back into the hands of participants who would rather have an on-demand experience.
In order for a true sea change to begin, business owners need to step up and rescue their 401(k) plans from high costs and unnecessary middlemen. The first step is to uncover all of the fees which are often buried deep in lengthy fee disclosures. Once this financial archeology is done, the answer to whether or not a company should switch plan providers will become abundantly clear.
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YouTube has become a commercial advertising powerhouse in recent years, with short-form commercials before the start of almost every video you watch on the site.
We’ve all seen or heard countless minute-long or even 30-second commercials that come with traditional media, like television and radio. Those ads are too long; your interest usually dissolves within the first 10 seconds.
Related: How to Start a YouTube Channel
YouTube advertisers, unlike traditional advertisers, are able to consistently engage viewers within a short span, making their video marketing more efficient and effective. You should be taking advantage of short-form videos, too.
The average human attention span is getting shorter as social media dominates the world with visual experiences. Short-form videos give you more freedom to produce hard-hitting, relatable videos that get to the point, without the overhead of creating more in-depth content. People buy on emotion for logical reasons, so appealing to their emotions in a short period of time admittedly becomes more of a difficult proposition.
Content-focused strategies have dominated the way companies, individuals and newer brands market themselves. Short-form video can come in a variety of different ways: livestreams, Snaps, sizzles, teasers, branded content, etc. Regardless the forum, you need to stimulate the interest of your audience. Be aligned emotionally (remember, buy on emotion for logical reasons).Then, as a marketer, transition the interest you stimulate in your brand or services.
Related: Video Is a Massively Powerful Marketing Tool. Here’s How to Optimize It.
There is a strategy that I call the “stage theory” that allows us to amplify and repurpose any content we create.
Content. Content. Content. Capture everything. Your audience wants to see behind the scenes, the day-to-day, the success, and the failures. Treat everything you do as a stage. Every action, every thought, every intention. Treat every experience, activity, or every event as a stage.
Many people tease teenagers, saying that if something wasn’t posted on social media, it never happened. Nowadays, this perception is true, which is why we should treat everything as a stage. The more you document what is relevant to your brand or your philosophy, the more connections you will gain. The more connections you have, the more relationships you will build.
Related: 5 Low-Cost Ways to Get Started With Video Marketing
For example, you booked your big interview on TV and can’t wait for everyone to tune in — chances are that very few of the people you wanted to see it actually saw it.
Naturally, you’re going to share this interview on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or an e-mail to everyone, sending out the video of your appearance makes you look like a self-promoter, so utilize that appearance as the stage instead. Instead, Make it a vlog, sharing with everyone your process and success. Capture the beginning, middle and end of the interview, the green room, the pre-interview and the cab ride home to extend your appearance in the form of a short, emotionally engaging video.
Why should we go to short-form?
Easier to distribute: Now, you can easily share the shorts on eight- to 10-second sizzles, since they are small in file size.
Easier to remember: This is a huge factor, which aligns directly with the short attention span that we have. Think about it from the audience’s point of view. Do we remember Martin Luther King’s entire speech or just the one line, “I have a dream”? The same thing applies to short video. Keep it concise. Capture the important shots, images, overlays and the emotion that is created at every stage.
Easier to repurpose: Since our attention span is shorter and timelines are more stuffed, so content changes quickly. Once you capture it, you have the green light to repurpose your content and put it into perpetuity.
Related: How Many of These Video Marketing Mistakes Are You Making?
Short-form videos and branded content are two of the most powerful to make the most of this stage. Take advantage to share your value with the world and the 3.2 billion people on the internet.
Learn to capture, repurpose, and perpetuate content, in order to amplify your message. Show the world your stage. Don’t forget, people buy on emotion for logical reasons and short-form video is the best way to tap into those emotions today.
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So, you have a great new idea or invention, and you are ready to open your startup business. But, you’ve been scared by the well-publicized statistic about startup failure — more than 50 percent of small businesses fail in the first four years.
Opening and operating a successful startup requires some luck hard-work and thoughtful planning — as well as the ability to adapt that plan. Having been involved as a consultant to numerous startups over the past decade, I have seen some fail, some achieve a modicum of success, and some make it big. Here are a few do’s and don’ts that will help guide your startup to the promised land:
Related: How to Start a Business With (Almost) No Money
Related: The Complete, 12-Step Guide to Starting a Business
Related: Need a Business Idea? Here are 55
To have big success as a startup, you’ll have to master all the do’s and don’ts above, and that’s a daunting task. So, before you begin, the question you must ask yourself is: “How badly do you want it?!”
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Pro athletes aren’t waiting for retirement — they are taking their competitive fire from the field and court and bringing it to the boardroom, building innovative companies and investing in big ideas right now.
To celebrate the biggest names in sports and their involvement in entrepreneurship, Entrepreneur and VaynerSports teamed up to host an unforgettable event at Super Bowl LII: the first annual Champions Circle.
Presenters Gary Vaynerchuk and Dave Meltzer lit up the room with inspiring tributes to our first class of Champions. Be sure to check out the complete list of winners here.
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