Recent Articles
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A new outlook from full-timing in an RV
Cindy Belt Recreation & LeisureMy husband and I took annual vacations and weekend trips in the past, but when we started full-timing we slowly changed our way of looking at life. The choice of living in an RV and traveling the country opened us up to new ideas and ways to see the world. You may have seen these changes in yourself.
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Clear as muck: When the only thing that’s certain is more uncertainty
Linda Popky Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementAs we get to the end of what’s been a long and challenging year for most of the world, we can all look forward to … who knows? We are just under a month away from a presidential election that may or may not have a clear winner on election night. We’re expecting an effective vaccine to protect us from the virus in the next month or two — or maybe the next year, or maybe not at all. Virtually none of this is clear. Yet, we need to continue to move forward, run our businesses, support our customers, take care of our families. How do you maintain a sense of balance when nothing is certain? Here are a few suggestions.
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Let’s shake up special education
Savanna Flakes EducationDon’t worry, special education isn’t broken; in fact, I’ve worked with amazing special education teachers and school communities around the world! Teachers around the world are doing amazing things to facilitate inclusive practices, differentiated instruction, and Universal Design for Learning. In addition, as times and students change, we can continue to shake up our instruction and invigorate our teaching and learning practices for students with exceptionalities. So, what are the three big things that can help us shake up special education at this critical moment in education history?
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US payrolls add 661,000 jobs; unemployment rate falls to 7.9%
Seth Sandronsky Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementAmerican employers created 661,000 nonfarm jobs in September after hiring 1.4 million workers in August, according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. September’s jobless rate dropped to 7.9% from 8.4% in August. The jobs numbers reflect in part the easing of social restrictions and reopening of businesses to stem the spread of COVID-19. However, government employment, mainly in public education at the state and local levels, dropped in September from August.
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Tips for interrupting unconscious bias
Michelle Silverthorn Business Management, Services & Risk Management"Why do you brush your teeth?" When I ask that in my unconscious bias trainings, people give me a very strange look. Because you want healthy teeth and fresh breath, obviously. Except, for millennia, humans were perfectly happy without either. So what changed? Advertising. Marketing. Pepsodent, especially. They made you want to brush your teeth. They made you desire that clean feeling. They made it into a habit. A habit is changed behavior. And making people want to do something is how we always think habits should form.
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Drug use rises among US workers amidst the pandemic
Grace Ferguson Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementLockdowns, social distancing, layoffs, and uncertainty about the future are well-documented effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Research also shows higher rates of substance use and misuse. A May 2020 report by Well Being Trust and The Robert Graham Center says, "The growing epidemic of ‘deaths of despair’ is increasing due to the pandemic — as many as 75,000 more people will die from drug or alcohol misuse and suicide."
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A look at 2 alternative cartridge options for the AR-15
John McAdams Recreation & LeisureWhile the majority of rifles built on the AR-15 platform still use the ubiquitous .223 Remington and 5.56x45mm NATO cartridges, hunters and shooters do have a couple of other options if they want to use a different cartridge in their AR. Today, we’ll discuss two in particular: the 6.5 Grendel and the 6.8 Remington Special Purpose Cartridge.
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Report: 39% of contractors say it’s business as usual during COVID-19
Justin Gitelman Construction & Building MaterialsAccording to a new Construction Payment Report from Levelset, more than 1 in 3 contractors say they have yet to change any of their business practices in response to COVID-19. The report is based on a Levelset survey of more than 600 construction professionals, conducted in August 2020. In the months following its initial outbreak, the coronavirus pandemic upended the construction industry across the country, shutting down or delaying projects. Even where construction was considered an essential service, contractors faced financial strain from stalled funding and slow payments.
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Study: How ‘empathy lens’ marketing can increase your brand’s…
Lisa Mulcahy MarketingAs a marketer, you know the importance of brand outreach. Yet, the COVID-19 pandemic has made it more important than ever for your customers to respect and identify with the "faces" representing your products and services. You want your customers to like the point people they deal with initially and bond with them on a fundamental level. How can you most effectively achieve this goal? A recent study published in the Journal of Marketing may hold the key.
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Not ‘The Jetsons,’ but close: Walmart testing drone delivery…
Scott E. Rupp Medical & Allied Healthcare"Jetsons"-like technology is coming to healthcare, like it or not. Blame COVID-19. If nothing else, the recent news from Walmart, Quest Diagnostics, and DroneUp is pretty exciting. The three are launching a pilot program that provides drone delivery of COVID-19 self-collection kits to single-family homes in North Las Vegas. Sin City brings us many things innovative — Wayne Newton residencies, the annual blockbuster CES technology conference, and now drone-delivered COVID-19 test kits.