Be More Frugal

It is nice to have money because you can do more things with it and even if it doesn't fix your problems, most people would go for the option with more money. Some of the world's wealthiest people actually live way below their means and do not necessarily have a stable of Ferraris. One of the ways that these people save money is by living in a modest house. While your home is an investment and finding the right one is a great idea, you also need to consider the fact that a lot of your budget is going to go towards your mortgage or rent. Bottom line is to buy what you actually need. A great way to budget, especially when shopping, is to make a list of only the things you need and take enough cash to cover those expenses so that there are no impulse buys. There are some great mobile applications for this purpose as well. It is also important to pay yourself first. In the long run, your future self will be very grateful.

Virtual Theme Park Attractions

The virtual reality market has exploded in the past several months with the announcements of the hardware and the shift to the software development for virtual reality. One of the biggest ideas in this industry is a theme park. The disadvantage to virtual reality is that you need room in the real world to move around in the virtual world. This is hard to do for people that live in crowded cities where spaces comes at a premium. This is where the theme parks come in. The great part of the parks is that you do not have to deal with health and safety issues. There's just issues that have to deal with how far you can go to entertain and excite an audience given all those sort of permitters, including steel and concrete and all the physical aspects that go into creating a theme park attraction. Another interesting concept that comes into play is that people not physically at the park can participate from where they are. There is a strong social aspect with the number of people on the order of millions.

Horrors of Technology

With all the wonderful things that technology have created, it is just as important to take a step back and see the horrible paths it can take. Software development and communication services are going in the right direction generally but there are some potential paths that it might take that are not to our advantage. Every advancement that we have is about relinquishing responsibility in exchange for convenience. For example, if all the cars on the road were driverless, it would actually make traffic a lot slower. Also, there has been a trend of robots taking care of some of the work in hospitals. In such an environment, it might not be a good idea to have robots doing some of the work because there is the emotional element that is missing which is absolutely crucial. Next, what will happen when robots know us better than we now ourselves? The question of humanity is something that we will have to deal with. As the line between humans and machines is getting more and more blurred from both sides, we will need to tread lightly in this area. AI is not something to be taken with a grain of salt. It is very real.

Never Too Busy For Healthy Habits

Summer has officially started everywhere and it is time to get back in shape because you can't just cover up with sweaters anymore. All it really takes is a couple minutes a day to improve your health and actually get in shape. The first thing that you should do is set short term and long term goals. As the saying goes, you cannot hit a target that you cannot see. Once you have your goals in order, you could find support from people that have the same goals. It will help you achieve your goals faster and motivate you some. A great thing about moving is that you do not have to set aside time for it. You can combine it with your lunch break or if you are running errands, make sure to park at the end of the parking lot to get more of a walk in. Mobile applications and the activity trackers will help significantly and show you where you stand. While you are moving more, make sure to stay hydrated with water and water only. It will actually help you keep the weight off. Do you have any more tips on staying healthy with a busy life?

Live Life With Meaning

You may have wondered or spent more than a few seconds thinking about the meaning of life. What if that is the wrong question to be asking? One of my favorite authors says that there is not meaning in life but rather meaning in living. I feel that that idea put things into a better perspective. It also means that we are in control of the meaning. So how do you live life with meaning? First of all, be grateful -- for every breath we take, every song we sing, every person we love, every day we discover. Another interesting thing is that you will discover more when your nose is not constantly in a mobile application or communication service. Just being grateful helps us to notice and appreciate all the blessings and opportunities around us. Meaning must also be sought and earned and made one's own. All of which requires courage. There are two universes to explore -- one inside yourself and one outside. You can travel as far as you would like in both because as far as we are concerned, both are infinite. One last thought on the matter that I learned from my four legged friend: live like someone left the gate open.

Little Tips You Wish Someone Told You

Do you ever wish that someone had told you certain things when you were younger so that you could stop wasting energy on those problems that are now so insignificant or just to give you some tips because life did not come with instructions or its own mobile application? Well here are some with might help sometime in the future. First of all, if you want to move somewhere new, do it now. The longer you wait to start that new life, the harder it will be. On that same note, do not wait to do something until you have money. If you have to save money to do something, start today. Also, there is nothing wrong with living at your parents' till you are in your mid-twenties. Don't think you're magically going to have money to do something in a few years. Next, whatever you do and wherever you go in life, make sure that you keep in touch with professional contacts. This is important because you never know when you might need help from them or they will ask you a favor which that they will return. Lastly, not everyone is going to like you and you are not going to like everyone you meet so quit giving such a crap about it. Be yourself and you will be happier for it.

The Internet of Things and Your Home

Software development and mobile applications have come so far that pretty soon your home might be part of the internet of things and be connected to the network. With every appliance that you have, you will probably have an online account to go with it for support or software updates. It could get hacked through data breaches at the corporate level and we have seen that happen many times. If it is not a person taking your information from the accounts, it could be malware that affects yours connected devices. It could either be used at a botnet or to steal stored information. If it does become a botnet, it could lead to Internet service providers blacklisting your home's IP address, which means you could have trouble sending emails or using certain online services. There's also a strong chance that at some point malware that infects your home will cause an appliance to malfunction. This may or may not be the goal of the malware, but either way it could happen.

The Last Shoe You Will Ever Own

It seems we’re only just beginning to see the potential of e-ink. Its broadest usage is, of course, in e-readers; then there’s the Pebble smart watch, the e-ink YotaPhone, the e-ink multi-card, even e-ink pricing tags for supermarket displays. But it also has strong potential in fashion — especially since the invention of flexible e-paper. ake the Volvorii Timeless peep-toe heels, created by new Lithuania-based startup iShüu Technologies. The shoes come in both black and white, and it can be customised to a variety of patterned outfits thanks to a flexible e-ink display that is integrated into the shoe’s upper. The shoe can be programed to display an design but taking a step further, even color can be added so that it really does match any outfit. It would even be more awesome if it would be control with a mobile application. The best part is that e-ink require so little power that it needs to be charged every few weeks at most.

Creating Good Karma

Being selfless ends up making you feel good and even happy. You might be thinking that at a certain point it stops being selflessness. The truth is that we may be hardwired to be able to feel good after doing things for others. Either way, all this overthinking should not stop you from keeping up the habit of doing good things. The best way to start out is to offer a compliment, and a genuine one at that. It is a great way to start the positivity going. Another thing that you can do is help someone find a job. Even though unemployment is down, there are still people looking. For example if you happen to know a friend that is in need of a web development professional and you just happen to know that type of person, it would do wonders to bring the two together. They will both think highly of you in the time to come. Often, the best thing to say is nothing at all. That's not just to avoid saying the wrong thing, but also to stay quiet long enough to listen to others. It can be the greatest gift we have to offer--simply to listen actively and truly hear what others have to say.

Discrimination Online

The internet is a place where women are treated with a lot of discrimination. They are earning less for the same work and this is evident in software development companies. Though, this does not just happen in the tech industry. There are a slew of examples of women even receiving death threats for just speaking their minds in the tech industry. There need to be solutions to this type of treatment of women. There needs to be consequence even for these threats. Threats do not have the freedom of speech protections and they do carry weight. Having more women in tech may require changing a system that from its funding, to its hiring and promotion, to its never-ending workdays, is designed to send women running the other way. But that's just what needs to happen. There also needs to be a review of how much males and females are being compensated at the same level. it might be a good idea to have an outsider come in and do the review because there are things that the CEO might miss. Lastly, it is important to completely change the internet culture. Any more suggestions?

Office Culture

These are the people that you spend a third of your day with, if not more. It is important to create an office culture that will promote growth and enable your employees to be their absolute best. You could start by organizing fun office challenges. It can range from a cook-off to a foosball tournament to ping pong. They are fun and bring the much needed break from the daily grind. It is also possible to foster teamwork and improve fitness at the same time by exercising in the office together and doing a certain challenge. You could also have walking meetings although it might be harder if you usually use internet phones for that. Another way that you can create a great office culture and atmosphere is by celebrating special occasions in unique ways, for example, birthdays or holidays. Do you remember back in grade school when you would get so excited to go on a field trip? Have those feelings again by have the whole office take half a day and go on a field trip. You could spend time volunteering or having a picnic. Any other ideas or suggestions?

Sitting: It May Be Killing You

I am sure that you heard about all those studies that support the claim that sitting will eventually kill you prematurely. It is true that we have a whole culture around sitting. Even back in grade school you were told to sit down and keep your mouth shut. Now when we drive, we sit and when we are working on software development, we sit and so on. This has spurred the whole movement of standing desks, but is it enough? There are new studies coming out that say that sitting is damaging even if we exercise regularly. It has to do with the stretch of time that we sit. To mitigate the effects, try setting a timer or use a mobile application to remind you to get up for a couple minutes every half hours. Go for that standing desk, even if your co-workers look at you funny. You health should be more important. In fact, the standing desk can improve your concentration, stamina, and energy. If you must watch TV, get up during the commercials.

Digital Economy

Consumers are buying less of the physical media at an increasing rate. Instead they are leaning more toward renting. If you're not paying for a service with cash, the company is using your data as a currency. This trend will continue, forcing us to learn how to trade data the way we trade other currencies. The economy is also trending toward the "I want it now" landscape. On-demand is nothing new but with the expanding technology and cloud services, it is easier than ever to get things that you want right that second. On-demand video and audio are very commonplace but on-demand car services and hotel rooms are also emerging and it is creating some uproar. These are the trends and they are not going to slow down any time soon. The internet of things as well as the hardware are getting closer to replacing workers and certain jobs. It will happen, just look at how far we have come now from the past decade.

Getting More Sleep

This should definitely be at the top of everyone's new year's resolution list. Bedrooms serve as the backdrop for efforts to arrive at quality sleep, and factors such as light, temperature, noise and distractions can have a big impact. Start the year off right by organizing and decluttering the room. Avoid disrupting light by limiting electronics and phone services and using blackout shades or an eye mask. Another thing that you should watch out for are stimulants. Hot spices, sugar, and caffeine should be avoided before bedtime. You should also try to go to bed and get up at the same times even on the weekends. Keeping a routine will help with your biological clock and getting better sleep. If you are one of those people that is able to take a nap, make sure that it is around lunch time and limit the nap to 30 minutes. Lastly, keep checking on your progress because a lifelong great sleeping habit will have a lot of benefits.

Traits for Happiness

No mobile application can really help with these traits. This is something that you have to find and embrace on your own. Fear will steal happiness. It can just sneak up on it and destroy resolve and commitment. Courage needs to be cultivated in order to keep fear in the margins. Courage enables us to approach life and problems and lets us find solutions which will lead to greater satisfaction in life. Challenges are inevitable in life so courage will definitely come in handy. Right next to courage sits forgiveness. If you do not forgive, your wounds will just keep being open and fester causing even more pain. Another trait that is utterly important is patience. Learning to allow and accept, to move with the flow and somewhat relax is crucial to living a life of happiness. There are parts of life that we cannot control so it will only frustrate you more to attempt to do so. The way to get those problems not seem too overwhelming is to have gratitude. When we are grateful, our problems do not disappear, they just occupy less space in our lives, minds, and hearts.

Things Holding You Back

As you are trying to keep up with those new years resolutions and it is not working so well? What if the reason that it is so hard to move forward is because there are still many things holding you back? First of all, it is really important to let go of laziness and the excuse you have been making. Outrageously successful people take care of themselves, help others, and engage in practices that create and maintain a healthy mindset. Secondly, stop thinking that there is not enough time. Time does not discriminate and everyone in the world has the same amount of hours in the day. Unless of course you figured out a way to time travel. Just do not mess up the space time continuum in the mean time. If you often get caught up in menial chores or allow yourself to get sidetracked, there's a deeper issue going on. Get help to understand what it is and stop applying bandages to it with productivity mobile applications that don't work for you. You are very welcome for that little dose of reality. Everyone needs it every once in a while.