David Lidsky's Blog, page 2649
August 24, 2016
Tapping The Hidden Team-Building Power Of Ropes Courses
Ropes courses can take teams to new heights, but experts advise researching ahead and being prepared for surprises.
Ropes courses can take teams to new heights, but experts advise researching ahead and being prepared for surprises.
Imagine being blindfolded and silenced, yet still expected to express yourself. Now imagine that you have to do this with a coworker that you barely know. That's exactly the situation Lee Esmond, vice president of integrated marketing at Mosaic, an experiential marketing agency, found herself in during leadership training on a ropes course at Soderquist Center.
August 23, 2016
MIT Researchers Radically Boost Wi-Fi With Smart Routers That Talk To Each Other
Tech lets wireless access points cancel out interference, providing a speed boost for crowded venues. It might help cellphone towers, too.
Tech lets wireless access points cancel out interference, providing a speed boost for crowded venues. It might help cellphone towers, too.
Look at the night sky on a camping trip and the stars are everywhere. Look from a city full of lights and you barely see any. The disappointment is similar when you go from a Wi-Fi network in isolation to one crowded with dozens, maybe hundreds, of other users. The problem, in both cases, is interference: signals crashing into each other. Adding more Wi-Fi access points, or APs, to extend the coverage area can cause more collisions, since they are all fighting over the same limited spectrum.
How Twitter Got Angry
As Twitter attempts to stem abuse, a look back at the service's earlier design shows how it became so ripe for abuse.
As Twitter attempts to stem abuse, a look back at the service's earlier design shows how it became so ripe for abuse.
Twitter is suffering from a systemic harassment problem. This isn't news—it's been written about over and over again, and has become a trope in the cultural mainstream. "We suck at dealing with abuse and trolls on the platform, and we've sucked at it for years," the company's CEO wrote in an internal memo last year. Recently, Paul Ford summed it up: "Google has search. Facebook has the social network. Twitter has the angry social network."
Photographing A Different Side Of The Olympics: The People They Evicted
The games are over, but their impact on Rio will last for generations—for better or worse.
The games are over, but their impact on Rio will last for generations—for better or worse.
On Sunday, closing ceremonies marked the end of this year's contentious Olympic games in Rio de Janeiro. But even as athletes and tourists vacate the city, Rio's residents are left to contend with a city that has changed profoundly—both economically and socially—since it was awarded the Olympic bid in 2009.
The Surprising Scientific Link Between Happiness And Decision Making
There's a happiness gap between wanting the best and accepting good enough. Here are some science-backed ways to close it.
There's a happiness gap between wanting the best and accepting good enough. Here are some science-backed ways to close it.
How do you make decisions? Some people want to find the absolute best option ("maximizers"). Others, known as "satisficers," have a set of criteria, and go for the first option that clears the bar.
5 Things You Can Do At Home To Improve Your Life At Work
Don't underestimate the power of small things done at home to impact success on the job.
Don't underestimate the power of small things done at home to impact success on the job.
We all want to find happiness at work and at home, but 24% of U.S. employees say the balancing act is getting tougher to manage, according to a study by Ernst & Young (EY). That's because work is spilling into time that should be spent on personal pursuits. About half of managers work more than 40 hours a week, the EY report found, and a study by Project: Time Off found that the majority (55%) of us end the year without taking advantage of paid time off. That unused vacation time totals 658 million days.
Worried You Might Be Laid Off? Here's What To Do
Don't panic—or sign anything.
Don't panic—or sign anything.
One of the most shocking conversations you will ever have in your job is when your boss tells you that you're done working for the company. Maybe it's a layoff that completely blindsides you. Maybe it's a performance-related issue that you were aware of.
When To Avoid Negotiating
Striking a deal is stressful enough. You shouldn't do it when you've got other pressures to deal with.
Striking a deal is stressful enough. You shouldn't do it when you've got other pressures to deal with.
Even if you train yourself to be the best possible negotiator you can be, there will be times when you should put off trying to seal a deal because you aren't prepared or in the right mind-set. These types of instances are often tricky to identify. Here's what to look out for.
This Is Your Brain's Default Setting--Here's How And When To Change It
We may be hardwired for overconfidence, but there's more than one trigger for it and it's not always a bad thing.
We may be hardwired for overconfidence, but there's more than one trigger for it and it's not always a bad thing.
We love stories about blind faith—Sylvester Stalone turning down deals until someone let him play Rocky, J.K. Rowling going from a single parent on public assistance to the creative force behind a billion-dollar multimedia empire. People who show extreme, even irrational self-confidence in the face of long odds show us that some degree of that might be helpful.
August 22, 2016
Whatever Happened To Dual-Screen Smartphones?
Smartphone screens can't grow any larger. Maybe they should multiply instead.
Smartphone screens can't grow any larger. Maybe they should multiply instead.
Back in 2011, an unknown smartphone brand called Imerj began to show off a slick prototype for a dual-screen smartphone.
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