Lifestyle Archives - Page 19 of 22

October 21, 2014October 21, 2014

Watch as the Innovator Who Transformed the Music Industry Speaks On What It Is Like to Be a Black Inventor

Source: pianonator – Dr. James E. West, formerly of Bell Laboratories, now research professor at Johns Hopkins University, interviewed on June 10, 2009, for the occasion of the Juneteenth celebration by the Student Technology Services, celebrating contributions to science and technology by African-American innovators. West, together with Gerhard Sesslar, invented the Electret Microphone, which is used in roughly 95 percent of microphone applications today.

October 17, 2014October 17, 2014

Childish Gambino Teams Up with Ubisoft for ‘Far Cry 4’ Trailer – Video

Childish Gambino, better known by some as actor Donald Glover, recently teamed up with Ubisoft for a rather unexpected project.

While it may not be the first place you would expect to hear the hip-hop star’s music, the trailer for the action-adventure first-person shooter Far Cry 4 uses one of Childish Gambino’s 2013 hits to add some energy and a bit of comedy to the game’s trailer.

It isn’t clear if a hip-hop soundtrack will be used to set the tone in the actual game, but it certainly made a surprisingly pleasant match in the game’s trailer.

Scenes of intense, rated-M gore, extreme violence and hand-to-hand combat are accompanied by Crawl playing in the background.

While some fans may be surprised to hear the song paired with the video game teaser, the hip-hop star himself says Crawl is the perfect match.

The 31-year-old actor and rapper recalled the day he was in the studio making the song and that’s where the connection with the game comes in, he said during a short appearance on the trailer.

He said he remembered someone telling him, “You should go hard on this.”

To that statement he simply replied, “You know what, you’re right.”

He went on to say that the song’s twisted political nature is a perfect fit for the game’s action-packed trailer.

“Where we were, kind of thing, bet you crawl, all alone,” Canadian pop star Kai sings on the song’s chorus.

In the midst of shots of a player gunning down a helicopter and stabbing enemies, a hint of comedy is still introduced into the trailer.

Right when Childish Gambino raps “looking at her booty” the game’s trailer focuses on the giant rear end of an elephant before quickly returning to the action-filled clips.

Far Cry 4 is scheduled to be released in the U.S. on Nov. 18.

The full trailer for the video game can be seen below. Warning: Content rated M for Mature.

October 15, 2014October 15, 2014

Embracing Your ‘Inner Geek’ Could Change the World

When people discuss how to make science interesting and exciting, the conversation usually gravitates around children and younger audiences.

Esteemed astrophysicist and Cosmos host Neil deGrasse Tyson, on the other hand, wants to shift the conversation toward adults.

According to Tyson, it’s just as important for adults to embrace their “inner geek” and become fired up about science as it is for children to feel the same way.

For each person, that “inner geek” is going to be something different, but Tyson explained that the important thing is just making sure you remain curious and nurture your thirst for knowledge.

“Your inner geek is simply what empowers your curiosity about the natural world,” he told National Geographic. “When you see a problem, you ask, ‘I wonder how we can solve it?’ rather than, ‘I wonder how fast we can run away from it?’”

Tyson believes that many adults just need a small spark to ignite their inner geek while others may need a little more coaxing to really get interested in the scientific mysteries that surround us every day.

“In most adults I’ve met, there is some ember within that carries their soul of curiosity,” he added. “For some it is almost extinguished and needs to be fanned. For others it’s like a pilot light. You just have to put some extra fuel there, and it ignites.”

A huge part of adding fuel to the fire is by simply acknowledging how vital science really is.

Without a thorough understanding of the world around us, our quality of life may not improve and innovation may come to a screeching halt.

“I don’t know if science can save us,” Tyson told National Geographic. “What I do know is that the absence of science will kill us. If you look at the improvement in quality of life around the world, it is entirely brought about by advances in science and technology.”

He went on to explain that those years of innovation and improving the quality of everyday life are exactly why we aren’t worried about the same things that civilizations from hundreds of years ago were worried about.

“If you polled people in 1900 and asked them what they feared most for civilization, they’d say they worry about hunger and overpopulation,” he said before explaining that there were not efficient farming methods at the time.

Fast forward years later and people have figured out how to farm in an efficient manner – in a manner that makes starvation less of a worry than it was in the past.

“Starvation was a big issue because they knew what the production levels of farms were and saw the rate of population growth,” Tyson continued. “What they didn’t know was that we’d figure out how to farm better. They were not considering innovation.”

October 13, 2014October 13, 2014

FIFA-Obsessed YouTube Star Earns Millions Playing Video Games

At the age of 21, Olajide Olatunji is living a life that most young men only dream about – playing video games all day and getting paid substantial amounts of money for it.

Olatunji is better known by over 9 million YouTube subscribers as KSIOlajidebt. Many refer to him as KSI for short.

The United Kingdom teen’s name is yet another one to add to the list of school dropouts-turned-millionaires, and it’s all a result of his obsession with video games.

His YouTube channel is full of videos of him playing FIFA and a few other popular games, but FIFA is certainly the foundation of his viral success.

“FIFA is my baby,” Olatunji told The Telegraph. “I have to pinch myself sometimes … I am living a lifestyle most guys my age would love to lead, playing computer games and earning good money.”

He uploads roughly 30 videos every month; sometimes, he has managed to post more than 40. Each video typically earns about 2 million views.

So how is a young man raking in so much money by simply playing video games?

He has tapped into a relatively new market that wouldn’t be in existence without YouTube.

Users from all over the world have garnered much success posting these videos of themselves playing video games.

Some videos are impressive merely because the gamer is skilled and seems unbeatable. Other gamers focus on showing different tips and tricks that other gamers can utilize. Others play lengthy adventure games and time how long it takes them to complete it.

KSI simply plays FIFA, and it just so happens that he’s pretty good at it.

“I would say in a year I spend maybe half of that playing FIFA,” he told The Telegraph. “I love it that much. I think I must have spent 200 hours on the new game already.”

With millions of people clicking and watching his videos, he earns cash rewards through YouTube’s partnership program, which splits revenue from pre-roll advertisements.

Some YouTube celebrities struggled to bring in more than $5 every day, but WorthOfWeb.com predicts that KSI could be bringing in around $170 every day and more than $5,000 every month.

That wealth doesn’t include paid appearances and his many sponsorship deals.

In addition to earning wealth, the YouTube star has earned an incredible amount of influence and celebrity.

He is ranked among the most-viewed UK YouTube Channels of August 2014, just under One Direction’s official Vevo.

According to a survey by Variety, he is the fourth-most influential figure among American teenagers — ranking him above pop star Katy Perry, Hollywood heartthrob Leonardo DiCaprio and Hunger Games star Jennifer Lawrence.

In all honesty, Olatunji explains he didn’t expect things to become as big as they have and it wasn’t even what he wanted.

“I didn’t really want to become huge, I never saw myself as being a big celebrity,” he explained to The Telegraph. “I just wanted to do videos because I enjoyed doing it, and I saw people were making a bit of money.”

The path to stardom wasn’t easy either. It has been wrapped in controversy.

Olatunji was only 18 when he started grasping fame through the videos, and his immature antics didn’t rub his fan base the right way.

He made videos about something he deemed the “rape face” and was banned from attending Eurogamer Expo events in 2012 for inappropriate behavior toward women there.

He was also dropped by one of his biggest sponsors, Microsoft, due to all the sexist allegations that plagued his reputation.

October 9, 2014October 9, 2014

What Is Your Personal Legend? Two Things I Learned From the Book, ‘The Alchemist’

I recently finished listening to the audio book The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. I know, I know, I’m a little late to The Alchemist party, as it’s been an incredibly popular book for a long time.

The book introduces the idea of one’s Personal Legend, so I started thinking about my own Personal Legend. And as I got to the end of the book and saw all the sacrifices the main character was willing to make in order to accomplish his own Personal Legend, I began to reflect on my entrepreneurial journey and wondered about the journeys of other entrepreneurs.

What Is Your Personal Legend?

A Personal Legend, as it’s referred to in The Alchemist, is one’s destiny in life. It’s identifying one’s purpose in life and pursuing it. My Personal Legend is to be a successful entrepreneur and inspire others to do the same.

I’ve known what my life’s purpose was since high school, but I wasted a lot of time working for other people instead of being an entrepreneur. Yeah, living a life as you believe it was intended to be can be challenging, but this is the first time in my life I truly believe I am living on purpose. And there has got to be power in that, right?

You Gotta Be Willing to Get Your A** Kicked to Get What You Want

This is lesson No. 1.

I’ve learned that while pursuing your Personal Legend, there will be difficult times. I recognize this is different for everyone, but anyone I know who has chased their dreams has had lots of obstacles to overcome.

I’ve realized sometimes you gotta be willing to get your ass kicked to get what you want in life. This realization was supported in the book, The Alchemist, in which the main character, after making tremendous sacrifices to fulfill his Personal Legend, was beaten to within an inch of his life and then “randomly” got an important piece of information that helped him realize his dream.

This blog is littered with my personal stories of obstacles and sacrifices. So, I wanted to reach out to a few entrepreneurs to get their take on challenges during their entrepreneurial journeys. Below is what they said.

Mario Armstrong, Digital Lifestyle Expert and Today show correspondent, in my video interview with him:

In 2007, my wife and I were working on a huge deal with AOL, which we were certain was going to close. Then we got the call that the deal was not going to happen.

The recession hit in 2008 and everything dried up. We were willing to do anything except lose the house and change my son’s quality of life [to realize our dream].

We cashed out our 401(k)s and all four bank accounts went negative. Credit cards were maxed out. I had to pack up loose change to go to the Coinstar machine to get gas money. This was the roughest, toughest, humbling, most deprecating experience ever.

Not knowing how we were going to make our mortgage payment every month was the most unsettling thing.

Bronson Taylor, parent of twins, and founder of Growth Hacker TV, an educational resource for founders and entrepreneurs who are trying to grow a startup:

Nothing has been easy.

I grew up in a rural Kentucky town with almost no opportunities. My parents divorced when I was 10, and my mother married 5+ times. The Internet was the only thing that made me feel alive, and I knew it was going to change every aspect of my existence.

Others stayed in Kentucky. I packed up a U-Haul at age 18 and never looked back.

Others worked 9-5. I started multiple companies until something worked.

Others think I’ve reached my potential. I haven’t even begun.
Life is a fight.

You Better Get Yourself a Woman (or Man) of the Desert

This is lesson No. 2.

In The Alchemist, there is a woman of the desert. And she is a woman who accepts life as it comes, and she waits for her man who has gone out into the desert to return (from pursuing his dream).

A woman of the desert knows that her man must complete his destined dream (or Personal Legend) or else he will come to resent her for not allowing him to do so. Once her man completes his sacred purpose, she trusts that he will return to her and she will wait for him no matter how long it takes.

What an incredibly powerful metaphor.

I am super-blessed to absolutely have a woman of the desert in my wife, Ayana. I’ve written about how important her support has been during my entrepreneurial journey the last three years, and she constantly amazes me with her level of belief in me and WeMontage.

If you’re an entrepreneur, or anyone willing to pursue one’s life purpose, you better have a spouse/significant other who will support your efforts. I’ve heard too many stories from friends who were in relationships/marriages in which their significant other/spouse did not believe in their dream, or their ability to accomplish it, which led to resentment, breakups and, in some cases, divorce.

It might be hard to figure out on the front-end if your partner is a woman/man of the desert. But if you are inclined to fulfill your Personal Legend, it’s a good idea to try and somehow get a sense of this up front because you will absolutely need their support along your journey. How do you figure this out? I don’t know. I got lucky. And I only have questions, not answers. Sorry.

What is your Personal Legend and what has it been like working to fulfill it? Has your partner/spouse been supportive in the process? I’d love to hear about it in the comments.

James Oliver, Jr. is a husband to an amazing wife, Ayana, and co-founder of the world’s cutest twins, Thaddeus and Zoe. James is a tech entrepreneur who successfully raised private investment capital for his startup, WeMontage, the world’s only website that lets you turn your photos into large collages on removable wallpaper. James graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Morehouse Collage and has an MBA from the Kenan-Flagler Business School at UNC-Chapel Hill. Follow @jamesoliverjr on twitter and via treplifedad on Facebook and G+. You can connect with James via his lifestyle blog for parent entrepreneurs: www.treplifedad.com.

September 30, 2014September 30, 2014

How I Managed the Disappointment of Not Getting on ‘Shark Tank’

Disappointment is a part of life. This may be a biased comment, but disappointment feels more acute for people like entrepreneurs, who risk everything to make their dreams a reality.

Entrepreneurs quit their jobs, sacrifice relationships with friends and family, cash out their 401(k)s and run head-first into the unknown — that place in the universe filled with possibilities, tremendous joy and fulfillment. But also with lots of disappointment.

I’d like to share how I overcame the disappointment of not making it to the final round of auditions to get my company, WeMontage, on the incredibly popular TV show Shark Tank.

Why I Wanted to Get on Shark Tank

I recently listened to a great audio book by Ben Horowitz called, The Hard Thing About Hard Things. I had one really great takeaway from the book:

When things get hard in your business and you’re not sure if there is anything you can do to make a difference, you ALWAYS have a move.

Let me repeat that. You ALWAYS have a move.

Things have been extremely challenging at WeMontage since we ran out of funding back in the spring. I have a great product with hundreds of happy customers, but the biggest issue for the business is lack of consistent national exposure.

Shark Tank has 20 million viewers. So, while it was a complete long-shot, getting on the show was my move. And doing so obviously would have addressed what I’ve identified as the major issue for the business.

I made it to the next-to-last round of auditions, but did not get the call to go to LA to pitch to the Sharks. Cause for disappointment? Perhaps…

How I Handled the Disappointment of Not Getting on Shark Tank

I initially thought I didn’t make it to the second round of auditions because people in line around me at the audition got their call back and I hadn’t; I was really upset about this because the producer said my pitch was great. I eventually did get the call a few days later and was super-pumped about it.

After I prepared my nine-minute pitch video for the producers and submitted my lengthy application, a funny thing occurred. I made a conscious decision that it didn’t matter what happened next, as I knew I had put forth my absolute best effort. I think that choice was inspired by something Ariana Huffington said in an interview about her new book, Thrive.

Ariana, a super-Type A personality, said she realized she can only control 10 percent of what happens in life, so she does her 10 percent at 100 percent of her ability and trusts the Universe to handle the other 90 percent. So, maybe that’s what I did, too. Or maybe I just released the whole thing because I’ve learned that my greatest disappointments in life have been when I expected a certain outcome and it didn’t come to pass. Or maybe it was some subconscious effort to protect my mental health. I actually think it was a combination of all three of these things.

Surprisingly though, I wasn’t disappointed to learn I didn’t make it to Shark Tank.

Disappointment of Others Who Support You

My wife has been incredibly supportive throughout this entrepreneurial journey. When I didn’t hear back about making it to LA, she was still optimistic it was going to happen. Once the trailers for the new season of Shark Tank started airing, the reality set in that I wasn’t going to be on the show and I could tell she was disappointed. And for the first time in the last three years, she began to question the feasibility of me accomplishing my dream of making WeMontage a household name.

She asked me, “Do you think WeMontage is going to happen.” My answer surprised even me. I didn’t hesitate in my response, “Yes, I do. I don’t know exactly how at this point, but I’m OK with that. I have a few tangible things coming up soon, that should make a huge difference.”

I was grateful she accepted that answer without hesitation. I was even more impressed that I still had the resilience in me to respond so affirmatively and so quickly in that way.

Suggestions for Managing Disappointment

I looked around the Internet to see what others recommend for handling disappointment. I found a few practical, platitude-free suggestions in an article over at PsychCentral.com. Here are six recommendations in the article for how to effectively cope with disappointment.

1. Manage emotion
2. Don’t take it personally
3. Review expectations
4. Take a big picture perspective
5. Try again — or try another tack

I think I’ve used all of these tips during the last three years of chasing my dream. The thing I think I’m best at on this list though is number “6”, which is being resilient.

Resilience Matters

In my experience, the one thing that has consistently kept me moving forward, other than the support of my amazing wife, loving family and friends, is resilience.

There have been plenty of times I’ve wanted to quit, but I haven’t.

I still might quit…

But not today.

How have you dealt with disappointment as it relates to being an entrepreneur? Are there things you can share that might help others? Please do so in the comments.

James Oliver, Jr. is a husband to an amazing wife, Ayana, and co-founder of the world’s cutest twins, Thaddeus and Zoe. James is a tech entrepreneur who successfully raised private investment capital for his startup, WeMontage, the world’s only website that lets you turn your photos into large collages on removable wallpaper. James graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Morehouse Collage and has an MBA from the Kenan-Flagler Business School at UNC-Chapel Hill. Follow @jamesoliverjr on twitter and via treplifedad on Facebook and G+. You can connect with James via his lifestyle blog for parent entrepreneurs:www.treplifedad.com.

September 26, 2014September 26, 2014

Interview With Digital Lifestyle Expert Mario Armstrong: ‘You Are In Control Of Your Destiny’

This is an interview with Mario Armstrong, a digital lifestyle expert, a TV personality, a parent, and an entrepreneur. Armstrong has been featured on The TODAY Show and a few other places. Mario is a committed husband and dad, and recognizes his commitment to his family first and foremost. Mario talks about why, in business, it’s important to build a community BEFORE you need it, and the challenges of getting his own TV show.

Video credit: James Oliver, Jr. is a husband to an amazing wife, Ayana, and co-founder of the world’s cutest twins, Thaddeus and Zoe. James is a tech entrepreneur who successfully raised private investment capital for his startup, WeMontage, the world’s only website that lets you turn your photos into large collages on removable wallpaper. James graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Morehouse College and has an MBA from the Kenan-Flagler Business School at UNC-Chapel Hill. Follow @jamesoliverjr on twitter and via treplifedad on Facebook and G+. You can connect with James via his lifestyle blog for parent entrepreneurs:www.treplifedad.com.<