Is Your State's Highest-Paid Employee A Coach?

You may have heard that the highest-paid employee in each state is usually the football coach at the largest state school. This is actually a gross mischaracterization: Sometimes it is the basketball coach.

 Read "Is Your State's Highest-Paid Employee A Coach? (Probably)."

Which State Is Best for Small Business?

Read the article "Which State Is Best for Small Business?"

World Religions

Interesting information on religions from LDS Living Magazine:

Happy May 4th

Get this on a t-shirt.

Who Is the Best Mormon Celebrity Dancer?

Napoleon Dynamite's Jon Heder?  
 
Or baby Ryan Gosling?  
 

Twitter Drops Vowels

Starting today, Twitter is shifting to a two-tiered service: Everyone can use their basic service, Twttr, but you only get consonants. For $5 a month, you can use their premium “Twitter” service which also includes vowels.

From Twitter's blog: "We’re doing this because we believe that by eliminating vowels, we’ll encourage a more efficient and 'dense' form of communication. We also see an opportunity to diversify our revenue stream."

National Debt

A short, brilliantly done funny skit that demonstrates very simply why we're in this economic mess. Length: ‎3:08

Space-Saving Furniture from Resource Furniture

Amazing engineering and design.



See more at Space-Saving Furniture from Resource Furniture

Next Generation Mobile Apps: Infographic

 http://ldsmediatalk.com/2013/03/18/next-generation-mobile-apps-infographic/

Teens and Technology

The Pew Research Center has issued their Teens and Technology 2013 report on parents and teens (ages 12-17) in the USA.

Here are the key findings:

Smartphone adoption among American teens has increased substantially and mobile access to the Internet is pervasive. One in four teens are “cell-mostly” Internet users, who say they mostly go online using their phone and not using some other device such as a desktop or laptop computer.

• 78% of teens now have a cell phone and 47% of them own smartphones. That translates into 37% of all teens who have smartphones, up from just 23% in 2011.
• 23% of teens have a tablet computer, a level comparable to the general adult population.
• 95% of teens use the Internet.
• 93% of teens have a computer or have access to one at home. 71% of teens with home computer access say the laptop or desktop they use most often is one they share with other family members.

The nature of teens’ Internet use has transformed dramatically — from stationary connections tied to shared desktops in the home to always-on connections that move with them throughout the day. In many ways, teens represent the leading edge of mobile connectivity, and the patterns of their technology use often signal future changes in the adult population.

British council bans apostrophes from street names

Forget the national debt, the economy, and America's march toward socialism. There's a larger problem we are ignoring--the proper use of punctuation.

A district council in Britain has banned apostrophes from street names.

To help slow our descent on this slippery slop to ruin, I urge you to support the Apostrophe Protection Society.

Performance Issues

How do you address a performance issue? We often immediately assume that training is the answer. Often, the problem is that there are deterrents to good performance. Use this handy decision tree to determine how to respond.

How Great Leaders Inspire Action

Great TED Talk by Simon Sinek "How great leaders inspire action."

I recommend it to you as worth the 18 minutes it takes to watch it.

U.S. Constitution

My favorite quote about Joseph Smith and the U.S. Constitution was given by President Ezra Taft Benson in 1986 in a speech at BYU beginning the bicentennial year celebration of the birth of the Constitution:

“We are fast approaching that moment prophesied by Joseph Smith when he said: Even this Nation will be on the very verge of crumbling to pieces and tumbling to the ground and when the constitution is upon the brink of ruin this people will be the Staff up[on] which the Nation shall lean and they shall bear the constitution away from the very verge of destruction.” (Ezra Taft Benson, “The Constitution—A Heavenly Banner,” September 16, 1986, Brigham Young University, emphasis in original) Read the full talk at http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=viewitem&id=87

Here's another great quote from that talk, under the heading "Governments Should Have Limited Powers:"

"By deriving its just powers from the governed, government becomes primarily a mechanism for defense against bodily harm, theft, and involuntary servitude. It cannot claim the power to redistribute money or property nor to force reluctant citizens to perform acts of charity against their will. Government is created by the people. No individual possesses the power to take another's wealth or to force others to do good, so no government has the right to do such things either. The creature cannot exceed the creator."

Bus Sign

Sign on the rental car bus in Las Vegas. It's a sad commentary on society that such a thing even has to be said.

How to Donate to Charities

Fundraising organizations took 62% of the money they collected for charities in 2012, and only 38% actually went to the charities.

Therefore, if someone calls you to raise money for a charity you like, I recommend you say "no" and then go directly to the charity's website and donate to them so that the charity gets the entire amount.

Compact Flourescent Light Bulbs Save Money, But May Cause Cancer

Money saving, compact fluorescent light bulbs emit high levels of ultra violet radiation, according to a new study. Research at Long Island’s Stony Brook found that the bulbs emit rays so strong that they can actually burn skin and skin cells.

Researchers suggest staying at least two feet away from the bulbs at all times to avoid premature aging and skin cancer. Learn more at CBS Miami.

Web Site Search, Online Checkout, Landing Page Optimization

For my web and tech friends, here are 3 hilarious videos (at least they'll be hilarious to my web and tech friends...)

Site Search: Click this link to see the video.



Online Checkout:



Landing Page Optimization:

Mayan Doomsday Memes

Nothing can make fun of impending doom like a meme. See this article for a summary of some of the best memes circulating about the end of the world supposedly predicted for today.

Things To Do If the World Ends Today

Things to do if the world, as predicted, ends today – December 21, 2012:

1.    Hug and kiss your family, whether they want you to or not.

2.    Forgive all those offenses you are still hanging on to.

3.    Hang out at the temple.  Location, location, location.

4.    Don’t worry about cleaning your house, making your bed, or picking up your socks.

5.    Spend the day on your knees.  You are going to end up there anyway, might as well beat everyone to the punch.

6.    See how many calories you can consume in one day…pass the chocolate.

7.   Turn on your favorite tunes….and dance like no one is watching.

8.   Don't go to work.
9.   If there are any gifts under the tree... open them now, no really, go now!
10.   Look forward to finally getting some rest.
11.   Don't worry about it. Life is eternal.

Oh and just in case… have a nice weekend.