Calico: a new Google company focused on extending life expectancy

Google's making a long-term business bet that, at first glance, may seem out of the ordinary: it's getting into healthcare. Its new company, Calico, will be focused on addressing the illnesses affecting the geriatric community, as well as aging in general. In Google CEO Larry Page's own words, the new enterprise, headed up by current Apple and Genentech chairArthur D. Levinson, is geared towards "moonshot thinking around healthcare and biotechnology," so expect some pretty futuristic developments to come from the initiative.

In an interview given to Time magazine, Page said that Calico will re-evaluate traditional thinking and approaches to healthcare, like cancer research, the advancement of which he concludes might "not [be] as big an advance as you might think." Page isn't dismissing that vein of research altogether, but claims any cures could only add about three years to a survivor's life -- a trivial gain in the long-run. Though he was willing to go on record with what's wrong with the current state of healthcare R&D, Page wouldn't elaborate as to what future products Calico could produce, saying only that Google, with its vast resources, should be doing more to contribute to the world's greater good.

SOURCE: Google
MORE COVERAGE: Time

Great Resources for Entrepreneurs in New York

By Adelaide Lancaster

I find myself sharing the same excellent resources over and over again, so I decided to put them in a post. This is the start of a list of resources available specifically to entrepreneurs in New York. Next week, I’ll share a list of virtual resources as well.

Feel free to suggest other places in the comments section and we can add them into the post.

Places to learn:

In Good Company – A community for women entrepreneurs. Membership provides women business owners with professional peers, events, learning opportunities, and a variety of office space solutions. Through our programming and content we are committed to helping teach women entrepreneurs the business of running a business.

Skillshare – A community marketplace to learn anything from anyone. We believe that everyone has valuable skills and knowledge to teach and the curiosity to keep learning new things. Our platform helps make the exchange of knowledge easy, enriching, collaborative, and fun.

Levin Institute – The Levin Institute is a 21st century model of high quality professional education and public engagement. The Levin Institute programs and projects serve New York City and New York State with global economy research and expert panels, as well as provide mid-career professionals the skills they need for a new career.

The Hired Guns – The Hired Guns help the digital creative class expand their potential far beyond the 9-to-5, bringing their expertise to companies in unexpected and exciting ways and guiding their careers through transitions from freelance gigs to fulltime jobs and back again. Through The Hired Guns Academy, Guns are helping Guns learn to work independently or start their own companies so they can work their magic on their own terms.

Media Bistro – Media Bistro is dedicated to anyone who creates or works with content, or who is a non-creative professional working in a content/creative industry. Our mission is to provide opportunities to meet, share resources, become informed of job opportunities and interesting projects and news, improve career skills, and showcase your work.

Structure Lab – A day-long learning experience different from any other. It provides you with an accessible way to evaluate the myriad of structural options and a means to strategically move your venture forward.

Etsy Labs – The Etsy Labs host a free weekly craft night, a monthly Church of Craft meeting, as well as special creative community events. Want to learn a new skill? Like sewing your own clothing and totebags, making jewelry, binding books, embroidering, knitting and crocheting? Then, you’ve come to the right place.

85 Broads – A global network of over 25,000 trailblazing women who are inspired, empowered, and connected. Our Regional Chapters develop and strengthen our global presence through exclusive workshops and events featuring industry experts.  Currently, we have 34 professional Regional Chapters worldwide.  New Chapters are created at our members’ request.  Our Regional Chapters are organized and run by members of the network who passionately believe in the value of investing in smart women, from student to senior executive, globally.

WIBO – The Workshop in Business Opportunities (WIBO) is a private non-profit organization that is committed to assisting men and women with the drive to become successful entrepreneurs.  WIBO’s “How to Build a Growing Profitable Business” workshop kicks off September 2011.  The 16-week workshop is for people who are currently running a business or who plan to open a business they are familiar with. It is for anyone who wants to learn how to build a business and what it takes to conduct each phase of that business.

The Hatchery – A venture collaboration forum, building a community of entrepreneurs, emerging companies, and investors, via its events, advisory services, and incubator.  We bridge investor and entrepreneur communities, so they can talk to each other instead of at each other.

SCORE – SCORE is a nonprofit association dedicated to educating entrepreneurs and helping small businesses start, grow, and succeed nationwide. SCORE is a valuable network of 13,000+ volunteers who offer small business entrepreneurs confidential business counseling services at no charge. Our dedicated volunteers represent over 270,000 years of experience across 62 industries.

NYC Business Solutions – NYC Business Solutions was established in 2005 by Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. NYC Business Solutions offers businesses in New York City free services to help them succeed.

Baruch College Small Business Development Center – One of 23 Centers in the State of New York that provides one-on-one counseling and training services on all aspects of starting and operating a business.  Professional experts provide assistance with a wide range of business challenges including the creation of a focused business plan, selecting funding alternatives, financial statements, developing marketing plans and complying with licensing and regulatory requirements among others things.

Foundation Center – Established in 1956 and today supported by close to 550 foundations, the Foundation Center is the leading source of information about philanthropy worldwide. Through data, analysis, and training, it connects people who want to change the world to the resources they need to succeed.

Coworking Spaces:

In Good Company – A community for women entrepreneurs. Membership provides women business owners with professional peers, events, learning opportunities, and a variety of office space solutions. Through our programming and content we are committed to helping teach women entrepreneurs the business of running a business

Paragraph – Paragraph is a membership organization dedicated to providing an affordable and tranquil working environment for writers of all genres. We are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Paragraph was created by writers for writers, with an understanding that writers work best in a quiet, comfortable space away from the hurry and obligation of urban life.

Greenspaces – Our vision is to forward the sustainability globally through widespread local hubs that cultivate social entrepreneurs, startups, and freelancers alike. We have coworking spaces in New York and Colorado.

Hive at 55 – The Hive at 55 is a shared workspace AND a community of like-minded people who find our space a comfortable, professional place to do business. Our members include freelancers, entrepreneurs, small businesses, and startups eager to collaborate and share resources.

We Work – WeWork is revolutionizing the traditional definition of work place by providing a collaborative and creative environment where innovative businesses and individuals can flourish. We provide all the basics, so you can focus your efforts on getting the job done.

Free places to work:

Ace Hotel –Ace Hotel New York is a 12-story hotel in the heart of Midtown Manhattan, The hotel lobby is a co-working space.

NYP Library – Science, Industry and Business Library, 188 Madison Avenue.

Wix Lounge – Free work and event space for creative professionals in New York City.

-Adelaide

- See more at: http://ingoodcompany.com/2011/08/great-resources-for-entrepreneurs-in-new-york/#sthash.ANRZxSJr.dpuf

How To Get Half Of A Wharton Education For Free

This week, Wharton announced that it would be the first business school to offer much of the substantive core of its MBA program online for free. If you have a whole lot of time on your hands, you can get a large hunk of the education that MBA students pick up, and instead of paying six figures, you'll pay nothing.

In addition to the five electives already offered through the Coursera platform, Wharton is offering what it's calling the "Foundation" series, made up of introductory courses in financial accounting, operations management, marketing, and corporate finance, taught by some of its best-known and most senior professors. 

The courses are made up of a series of pre-recorded lectures and interactive exercises. They range in length from six to 10 weeks, and take an estimated five to eight hours a week each. Students can already enroll in the accounting course, and the other three start in staggered two-week intervals. The next to begin will be operations management on September 30th.

Don Huesman, the managing director of Wharton's innovation group, told Bloomberg Businessweek that those four courses alone would replicate much of what a first-year student learns. Wharton students who actually make it through the school's rigorous admissions process are required to take nine core courses, four of which are now available online, and six electives.

The online versions replicate the content of the courses so well that some professors are asking students to watch the Massively Open Online Course (MOOC) versions of the lectures ahead of time so the in-class time can focus on discussion.

Students can simply watch the courses casually without additional work, but there are integrated quizzes, readings, homework assignments, and final exams for the more committed. Coursera also gives the option of paying $49 to enroll in a "signature track," which give students a verifiable online certificate for completing the course should they meet the course's standards. 

Enrolling in the free track takes just a name, an email, a password, and agreeing to Coursera's honor code. Someone looking to take their first MOOC might want to consider the marketing course. It's one of the less time intensive classes, and is team taught by the three of Wharton's top marketing professors, from a department ranked as one of the world's best.

After signing up for the accounting course, I immediately got access to the first week's videos, lecture slides, homework, and a forum where students discuss the course and ask questions.

Required core courses for a Wharton MBA that are missing from Coursera include an introductory macroeconomics course and regression analysis, a statistics course for future managers. But an enterprising student could fill that skills gap with MIT's highly regarded and popular introductory microeconomics course and Coursera's data analysis course from Johns Hopkins. 

You'd still be missing the networking opportunities, career services support, alumni network, and the prestige of the degree, but a dedicated student can pick up a lot of the practical skills a business requires.

Why is Wharton giving this away? While students get access to high-quality education, Wharton gets to present its best face to hundreds of thousands of people that only vaguely know it. They've already reached more people with the five existing courses than the school has educated in more than a century of existence.

You can't earn Wharton credit by taking the free courses, but a future student could potentially use them to test out of the core classes and spend more time on advanced and career-specific studies, according to Huesman.

The issue that providers of online courses and the schools that provide the content face is how to get employers to appreciate the effort people put into these courses, and verify that students have put in the work in a rigorous way. 

Though there are already highly successful online degree-granting programs, they're far less open, more expensive, and require more of a time commitment, which excludes many people. Hundreds of thousands of people have taken Wharton's online courses, and thousands more will take these new offerings, but it's hard to prove to a potential employer that you've picked up Wharton-caliber skills from them. 

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/wharton-online-mba-courses-2013-9#ixzz2fI5vd8Mq

Bob Proctor : How To Develop Your Higher Mind's Faculties

Let's Not Procrastinate

The Billionaire College Dropout Infographic

Presented By SNHU.EDU Online College

MLM Recruiting 5 Tips To Enrolling More People

This may be the most important blog post I have ever written on MLM Recruiting. Because I’m thinking back all the way to 2002 when I first started in network marketing. So this will help the newbie just getting started, and also the MLM leader who may have forgotten this is how they got there.

You see, my story is only “half” the typical story you hear these days. You know the one, how everyone who is successful in MLM was dead broke when they started, and they struggled for years and years before they made any money at all.

Well, I was dead broke, living on $900 per month disability, but I didn’t struggle for years. Because of one key strategy I applied from the very beginning, I enrolled 3 people my very first month in network marketing, then I enrolled 5 my second month, another 5 my third month, and by my fifth month I was enrolling over 20 people every single month.

So what are my MLM Recruiting Secrets?

Well, first I’ll admit what I’m about to tell you is NOT what I do much of today. I’ve been networking for almost 10 years and have built a funnel that attracts people to me now, BUT if I had to start all over, I’d do it the exact same way I did it the first time. Because no matter what anyone tells you, in order to build a network, you have to connect with new people every day and follow up with them. It’s the continued exposure that builds networks.

MLM Recruiting Tip #1:

Talk to at least 2-3 new people every single day, at least 5 days a week. Whether you are talking to people you know and asking for referrals, or buying leads, you should be talking to NEW people every day.

This will start to fill your pipeline, and also create that sense of lead prosperity. You NEVER want to get into a situation where you don’t have at least a few people a day to connect with and start to build what I call your “A” list, which I’ll talk more about below.

See my high quality low cost lead source Here.

MLM Recruiting Tip #2:

Understand that most people whether it’s people you know, leads you buy, or leads you generate yourself, aren’t going to join your business on the very first contact.

This was one of the most important things I learned early on. Just knowing that 99% of people you connect with aren’t going to just jump in will set your mind at ease, knowing that it will take many exposures.

MLM Recruiting Tip #3:

Create your “A” list. As you connect with your 2-3 new people every day, you’ll start to find people who are interested and more importantly people that you may relate to better than others. Keep a separate notepad with a list of these people and their contact info.

I recommend rating each person with 1 to 5 stars, based on your gut feeling of how interested they are and how you related to them. As your “A” list grows you’ll want to follow up more with your 5 stars than your 1 stars.

MLM Recruiting Tip #4:

The fortune is in the follow up. Now that you’re talking to new people everyday, and building that “A” list of hot prospects, the follow up begins. A LOT of people drop the ball on this one, and it’s the most important aspect to mlm recruiting.

Like I mentioned above, most people aren’t going to join you on the first contact, just like it takes several TV commercial exposures for someone to buy, the same is true in network marketing.

There are a couple ways you can initiate the follow up, but make no mistake the telephone is by far the most important. To many people are relying solely on email or text these days, and although I highly recommend email follow up, an occasional phone follow up will usually make the difference in whether you end up sponsoring that person or not.

See my recommended email follow up system Here.

MLM Recruiting Tip #5:

Just stay consistent. If you follow the above tips, talk to new people every day, don’t get discouraged when people don’t jump right into your business, keep track of your hot prospects, and follow up in several different ways including the telephone, you will start to enroll more people into your network marketing business.

If your upline does not have a blueprint for success in MLM, or you’d like the learn the secret formula to generating leads online to build your network marketing business –Click Here Now for Instant Access!

9 Young Entrepreneurs Who Became Personal Finance Prodigies

It’s hard learning how to manage money responsibly, especially when you’re young and think you have a disposable income and zero responsibilities. Getting a head start on learning the value of money and how to budget your personal finances will better prepare you for your adult life as you struggle to manage multiple fiscal responsibilities.

While some young adults might squirrel aside some money by putting it in a piggy bank or opening a savings account, others have combined their cash with a good idea, a lot of hard work and a bit of luck to turn their investments into multi-million dollar enterprises. Here are 9 young entrepreneurs who don’t have to worry about personal finances ever again (if they’re smart with their money, that is).

Sean Belnick, Founder of BizChair.com

When Sean Belnick was 14 years old, he spent $500 to build an online marketplace for office chairs. That marketplace evolved into BizChair.com, an e-tail site with over 250,000 products and 75 employees. At just 22 years of age, today Belnick’s net worth is reported to be $42 million.

Sean Belnick -- http://www.bizchair.com

Catherine and David Cook, Founders of MyYearbook.com

In March 2005 Catherine and her brother, David, were flipping through a high school yearbook and came up with an idea for a social networking site. They started MyYearbook.com when they were 14 and 16 years of age. The website has over 2 million users and attracts 20,000 new accounts each day, and the young entrepreneurs (now 19 and 21 years old) operate an enterprise that’s valued at $10 million.

Catherine and David Cook -- http://www.myyearbook.com

Benjamin Sann, Founder of BestParking.com

When he was in high school, Ben Sann (now 19) created BestParking.com, a site that allows people to compare parking rates in various cities. The company got incorporated this year and has a lot of potential to earn money from partnerships with parking companies, ad revenue, and applications.

Benjamin Sann -- http://bestparking.com

Ashley Qualls, Founder of WhateverLife.com

At 14 years of age, Ashley Qualls started a hobby website called WhateverLife.com, which provides free MySpace templates and HTML tutorials to young people. The site quickly grew in popularity and currently attracts more than 7 million unique visits and 60 million page views each month. She’s now 19 years old and pulls in over $1 million a year.

Ashley Qualls -- http://www.whateverlife.com

Ben Kaufman, Founder of Mophie

Mophie, an iPod accessories website, was founded by Ben Kaufman when he was 18 years old. The company makes iPod cases, clips, bands and more, and it draws much of its success from its online user base of members who contribute product ideas. Mophie currently clears about $5 million in annual revenue.

Ben Kaufman -- http://www.mophie.com

Fraser Doherty, the Homemade Jam Man

In 2008 Fraser Doherty was named the College Entrepreneur of the Year for developing a “SuperJam” made from high-nutrient fruit and fruit juice. The young man started making jam with $5 worth of supplies when he was 14 years old, and now at the age of 20 he has contracts with the UK’s biggest grocery retailers and brings in over $3 million in revenue a year.

Fraser Doherty -- http://www.superjam.co.uk

Juliette Brindack, Founder of MissOandFriends.com

When she was 10 years old, Juliette Brindack thought of the idea for MissOandFriends.com, a website catered to young females that aims to build up self esteem and positivity. Now Juliette is 19 years old and her website, worth $15 million, is visited by millions of girls each month.

Juliette Brindack -- http://missoandfriends.com

Paul Bourque, Affiliate Marketer

When Paul Bourque was 18 years old, he started learning about affiliate marketing. Less than a year later, he’s now earning over $300,000 a month through AzoogleAds and works full-time as an affiliate marketer. Paul also runs an affiliate marketing blog and puts most of his earnings towards future investments.

Anshul Samar, Founder of Elementeo

When he was a middle school student, Anshul Samar created Elementeo, a gaming startup that teaches chemistry via fun card games that are similar to Magic: the Gathering or Pokemon. He’s now 14 years old and his company was estimated to have hit $1 million in revenue its first year of operation.

Anshul Samar -- http://www.elementeo.com

17 Websites to Boost Your Designer Profile

Freelance designers have a number of different methods for finding work. In many cases, simply getting your profile and your work exposed to more people can lead to an increase in work. There are a number of sites that provide excellent opportunities for designers to show-off their work and send visitors back to their own portfolio site.

Some of the sites on this list require more of an ongoing effort in order to truly produce results. I don’t suggest trying to use all of these sites. For the best results, choose a few that you think will work best for you, and become an active user.

1. Behance Network

Behance Network is a huge, “free platform for the world’s leading creative professionals.” You can set up a profile, share some of your work, network with other designers and professionals, and even look for work.

2. Flickr

While flickr is primarily a place for users to store their personal photos, it’s also used by a growing number of designers to display and share their work. Users can set up their own accounts and profiles, and they can also join groups, such as the PSDTUTS group.

3. Virb

A good percentage of Virb users are in the music industry, but it is a home to all things creative, and many designers are setting up profiles. The pages can be completely customized to show off your creativity if you’re ambitious.

4. Carbonmade

Carbonmade is a site for displaying your online portfolio. You can create an account and upload some of your work in just minutes. There are both free and paid options.

5. deviantART

For almost 8 years deviantART has provider artists of all kinds with a thriving community. Once you’ve signed up you can create your profile page and upload some of your own work. The site is home to a variety of types of art, including photography, illustration, graphic design and more.

6. Twitter

Twitter is a great way to connect with others, and you can also set up a brief profile with a link back to your website or blog. While Twitter doesn’t offer the ability to display your work, it will give you a chance to network and encourage people to click-through to your site from your profile.

7. illyPads

For those who specialize in graphic design and illustration, illyPads is a great place to set up a profile. At illyPads you can enter information about yourself and your areas of expertise, and you can upload some samples of your work for others to see.

8. LogoPond

From the makers of illyPad, LogoPond is a home to profiles of various logo designers. Much like illyPads, you can set up your own profile page with all the details and samples of your work.

9. CSS Globe

CSS Globe is one of my favorite community sites for designers. Users can create an account and set up a basic profile page with biographical information and a link back to their site. While there is not an option to display your work here, it is a great place to network with a large, growing group of designers from around the world.

10. Guru

Guru is one of the leading sites for finding freelance work. In addition to bidding on jobs, freelancers can also set up a profile page with work samples and details about their services.

11. Elance

Elance is another leading site for bidding on jobs. Like Guru, you can set up a detailed profile page to help more people find you and to get the details of your services.

12. FreelanceDesigners

While it may not be as nice as some of the other sites on this list, or as fun to use,FreelanceDesigners is dedicated to helping freelancers get exposure and to helping clients find a designer. It’s quick and easy to set up a basic profile.

13. Facebook

Facebook is of course a general social networking site. Freelancers may or may not want to use these general types of networking sites, but they can provide some additional exposure and they can give you an opportunity to link to your site and get your work in front of others.

14. MySpace

The other leading option for general networking is MySpace. It offers basically the same opportunities and benefits as Facebook.

15. LinkedIn

LinkedIn is the largest social networking site for professionals. At LinkedIn you can create a profile of your professional credentials and get connected to others.

16. Xing

Xing is another networking site that targets professionals and businesses. You can set up a profile and network with others around the world.

17. Talkfreelance

Talkfreelance is a forum dedicated to freelancing. In addition to participating in the forums you can set up a basic profile page with a link back to your site or blog.