Post Boomers Not Getting Married

In our book, The Young Adult’s Guide to Understanding Personalities, my daughter, Toni Rothpletz, and I write about the changing interests of post-boomer generations.

The Wall Street Journal reported today that less young people are deciding to get married. “ Marriage rates among young adults have been dropping for decades. But data released Tuesday by the Census Bureau show that for the first time the proportion of people between the ages of 25 and 34 who have never been married exceeded those who were married in 2009—46.3% versus 44.9%, according to an analysis by Mark Mather, a demographer at the Population Reference Bureau, a non-profit research organization in Washington.” The changing interests of this post-boomer group has been evident in the workplace for a while now. Sixty Minutes did a nice article on how millennials have unique work expectations. Now we are seeing that this group also has unique coupling/marriage ideas.

For more  information check out the WSJ article by clicking here.

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Tainted Tylenol Ethical Issues

I teach several different ethics courses where we look at individual companies and how they handled ethical issues.  Beech-nut selling a product they called apple juice that technically had no apples in it, was a classic case example of a non-ethical way to do business.  

In the 80s, Johnson and Johnson had to deal with tainted Tylenol (The Tylenol Murders) due to product tampering. Their quick and responsive resolution to a potentially imagine-ruining situation has made J&J stand out as a good example of an ethical business. 

Now J&J’s reputation has come into question though as they used bacteria-tainted materials to create their children’s Tylenol.  Although they claim that only the raw material was tainted and the finished product showed no reports of illness, the company had to recall their product. The Wall Street Journal reported, “J&J’s handling of the problem has become a focus of a congressional investigation into manufacturing problems.  J&J has issued more than a half dozen recalls of popular over-the-counter medicines  over the past year.”

8 Things to Learn From Apple and Steve Jobs

In the management courses I teach, we often discuss Apple and Steve Jobs’ management style. BusinessInsider.com has some interesting articles about Apple and Jobs. To see the article “8 Management Secrets I Learned Working at Apple” click here.

To learn about 8 innovation secrets from Steve Jobs, click here.

Top Reasons Why Google Needs to Buy Twitter

In a recent article from BusinessInsider.com, Henry Blodget gives some compelling reasons as to why Google needs to buy Twitter. Here are just the highlights. For the complete article, click here.

• Apple, Google’s other nemesis, is now making its first push into the social networking business, and there is presumably more where that came from.

• Google’s attempts to break into the social business organically have utterly flopped.

• Google has ~$30 billion of cash rotting on its balance sheet earning nothing, and it piles up another ~$2 billion of new cash every QUARTER.

• Twitter is now large and self-sustaining enough that Google might be able to avoid screwing it up.

• Google has so much cash that it could buy the top 10 companies in the “Twitter ecosystem” tomorrow for peanuts.

• Twitter is now experimenting with revenue models, and Google CEO Eric Schmidt appears to believe that Twitter will coin money someday.

How much would it cost Google to buy Twitter? Probably $5 billion.

Having Difficulty Making Decisions? Take a Quiz to See if You see Things in Black and White or Shades of Gray

There was an interesting article in the Wall Street Journal today about why people can’t make decisions. 

Of interest was how some people are so ambivalent. Shirley Wang’s article in the WSJ stated: Now, researchers have been investigating how ambivalence, or lack of it, affects people’s lives, and how they might be able to make better decisions. Overall, thinking in shades of gray is a sign of maturity, enabling people to see the world as it really is. It’s a “coming to grips with the complexity of the world,” says Jeff Larsen, a psychology professor who studies ambivalence at Texas Tech University in Lubbock.

Do you see the world in black and white or in shades of gray?

Different Strokes PEOPLE WHO SEE THE WORLD AS BLACK AND WHITE TEND TO…

 • Speak their mind or make quick decisions.

 • Be more predictable in making decisions (e.g., who they vote for).

 • Be less anxious about making wrong choices.

 • Have relationship conflicts that are less drawn out.

• Be less likely to consider others’ points of view.

PEOPLE WHO SEE THE WORLD IN SHADES OF GRAY TEND TO….

• Procrastinate or avoid making decisions if possible.

 • Feel more regret after making decisions.

• Be thoughtful about making the right choice.

• Stay longer in unhappy relationships.

• Appreciate multiple points of view.

 To find out what type you are, take the test, by clicking here.

Few Women in Management

Women made little progress in climbing into management positions in this country even in the boom years before the financial crisis, according to a report to be released on Tuesday by the Government Accountability Office.

As of 2007, the latest year for which comprehensive data on managers was available, women accounted for about 40 percent of managers in the United States work force.

In 2000, women held 39 percent of management positions. Outside of management, women held 49 percent of the jobs in both years.

Across the work force, the gap between what men and women earn has shrunk over the last few decades. Full-time women workers closed the gap to 80.2 cents for every dollar earned by men in 2009, up from just 62.3 cents in 1979.

Much of this persistent wage gap, however, can be explained by what kinds of jobs the sexes are drawn to, whether by choice or opportunity.

The new report, commissioned by the Joint Economic Council of Congress, tries to make a better comparison by looking at men versus women in a specific industry and in similar jobs, and also controlling for differences like education levels and age.

For the full story see:  The New York Times

New Kindle For the Web – Embed Book Excerpts

Readers can now read the first chapter of Kindle books for free through web browsers – no download or installation required Bloggers and website owners can embed Kindle book samples and earn referral fees on salesSEATTLE, Sep 28, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) –Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) today introduced the beta version of “Kindle for the Web,” making it even easier for customers to discover new books and authors by sampling Kindle books directly through web browsers–no installation or downloading required. Amazon is also inviting bloggers and website owners who are participants in the Amazon Associates Program to be part of Kindle for the Web by embedding samples of Kindle books on their websites. These website owners will earn referral fees from Amazon when customers complete book purchases using the links on their websites. More information about Kindle for the Web and how to embed Kindle book samples is available at http://www.amazon.com/kindlefortheweb. Customers simply click the “Read first chapter FREE” button on a book product page on Amazon or on other websites, and the first chapter will open within the web page. Customers can change the font size and line spacing, adjust the background color, and share their favorite books with friends and family via Facebook, Twitter, and e-mail–all without leaving the book in the browser. “With Kindle for the Web, it’s easier than ever for customers to sample Kindle books – there’s no downloading or installation required,” said Dorothy Nicholls, Director, Amazon Kindle. “Kindle for the Web is also a great way for bloggers and authors to promote books on their websites by letting visitors read a chapter without leaving their site.” To see examples of Kindle for the Web on authors’ websites, go to the blog of author Karen McQuestion at http://www.mcquestionablemusings.blogspot.com and the free sample of her bestselling Kindle book “A Scattered Life,” or the website of author John Miller at http://www.heymiller.com and the free sample of his book “The First Assassin.” Kindle offers the largest selection of the most popular books people want to read. The U.S. Kindle Store now has more than 700,000 books, including New Releases and 108 of 111 New York Times Best Sellers. Over 575,000 of these books are $9.99 or less, including 80 New York Times Bestsellers. Over 1.8 million free, out-of-copyright, pre-1923 books are also available to read on Kindle devices. Kindle lets you Buy Once, Read Everywhere–on Kindle, Kindle 3G, Kindle DX, iPad, iPod touch, iPhone, Mac, PC, BlackBerry and Android-based devices. Amazon’s Whispersync technology syncs your place across devices, so you can pick up where you left off. With Kindle Worry-Free Archive, books you purchase from the Kindle Store are automatically backed up online in your Kindle library on Amazon where they can be re-downloaded wirelessly for free, anytime. The all-new Kindle has an electronic-ink screen with 50 percent better contrast, a new sleek design with a 21 percent smaller body while still keeping the same 6-inch-size reading area, 15 percent lighter weight at just 8.5 ounces, 20 percent faster page turns, up to one month of battery life with wireless off, double the storage to 3,500 books, no glare even in bright sunlight and built-in Wi-Fi–all for only $139. The all-new Kindle 3G with all of these new features plus the convenience of free 3G wireless is only $189. In the future, Kindle for the Web will include optimization for mobile browsers and other features. For more information about Kindle for the Web, including instructions on how to embed Kindle book samples, go to http://www.amazon.com/kindlefortheweb.

How to Prepare For Employment Tests

Many companies are testing their potential future employees. What can do you do to be sure you ace those tests? It helps if there is a way to find out what type of test they will be administering. If you know someone who works for the company, they may be able to tell you. When I was applying to be a pharmaceutical representative in the 80s, they gave me a personality test where I had to chose from groups of words that I would use to describe me and from words I would think others would use to describe me. Today, there are a lot more tests out there and it can be a challenge to find out which ones are being used.

The Washington Post had some advice for the job applicant faced with taking a test. Some of the advice they gave were to find out details about the test, search online for practice tests to try ahead of time, try not to over-analyze the questions, don’t get freaked out if you just simply can’t remember something, and ask for your results so that you can improve on areas where you didn’t do as well.

It is important to realize that testing is becoming part of the norm.  According to Forbes, “Psychological scrutiny and rigorous simulations are fast becoming a requisite part of the interview process. Gone are the days when a clutch golf swing or well-schmoozed dinner might score you a spot in the C-suite. The downturn has shed a decidedly unflattering light on subjective hiring practices. Even the standard application-interview-résumé-and-reference-check formula has come under fire for being too soft and unreliable.” 

To try out some free aptitude and employment tests, check out:

http://www.jobtestprep.co.uk/jtpsite/content/en-GB/3/chooseTrial.aspx

http://www.careerpath.com/

http://sjlibrary.org/research%5Cweb/iguide_subjectList.htm?t=36&catID=1095

Are American Brains Less Powerful?

Is the American education system failing our students?  Recent reports are showing that our students are performing badly in math and science comparative to students overseas.  According to Fox News, “Though the United States is still a leader in innovation and produces a disproportionate share of the world’s wealth, other countries such as China are investing heavily in research and education and, according to the new report, threatening America’s competitiveness.” To read more, click here.

 

 

What Kind of E-Reader Are You?

In the past couple of weeks, I’ve posted several blogs about e-books and devices.  Check out today’s Wallstreet Journal for an  interesting article about deciding what type of e-reader is best suited to you. For the complete article, click here.