August 29, 2016
Today's Special
Remove hard water stains with white vinegar [Hack #065]
Have some hard water stains you need to remove? Using white vinegar is as simple as 1-2-3.
DID YOU KNOW….
POP GOES THE WEINER – NY POST
From the “How can he be that dumb category?”: Anthony Weiner, disgraced former congressman from New York, has been at it again. The NY Post obtained images and text messages between Weiner and an unidentified woman which are perfectly reminiscent of his first sexting scandal. You have to wonder how his wife, Chairperson of the Clinton campaign, Huma Abedin feels about this latest idiocy. One of the images includes him in his boxer briefs with their toddler son from July of 2015.
HANG FOR THE BUCK
For most folks, housing costs are the lion share of their monthly expenses. That number can vary wildly from city to city. Check out today’s infographic to see how much space you can buy for $1500/month in major cities across the US.
Here’s how to calculate your own…let’s use a 1200 sqft apartment where the rent is $2000/month. So, multiply the sqft by $1500 and divide that total by your monthly rent:
(AptSqFt x $1500) / Rent $)
In our example it’s 900 sqft. Now compare what you pay to what these other cities cost for the same amount. Amazing right?
I WON’T DO WHAT YOU TELL ME [Song]
Why it’s important to you: Is protest at work appropriate?
On Friday night, Colin Kaepernick made the choice to stay seated during the playing of the Star Spangle Banner. When questioned later the San Francisco 49ers quarterback said, “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color.” He then continued, "To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder." The Niners immediately asserted their support for his right to protest and that they would continue to honor the flag without adjustment.
There is a long history of athletes protesting while in the spotlight. Most famously at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, when Tommie Smith and John Carlos each lifted a black gloved hand and bowed their heads in protest for the oppression of Americans of color. For their reward, the International Olympic Committee banned them and they received a less than enthusiastic welcome home. When Abdul-Rauf of the Denver Nuggets refused to stand during the national anthem, the NBA suspended him until they reached a compromise. The question is, should athletes be injecting their politics into your entertainment? The answer isn’t simple, but it does incite great debate. What do you think? Should Kaepernick have separated his protest from his job? Would you tolerate similar behavior from someone on your staff? Let us know by replying this email and we will post the best responses.
CHANGE YOUR MIND ABOUT SOMETHING SIGNIFICANT EVERY DAY – MALCOLM GLADWELL
Why it’s important to you: Uncertainty is bad for business.
There are 168 hours in a week, but it only took about 125 for Donald Trump to totally confuse any casual observer of his immigration policy position. On Monday he showed some softening of his hardline position and talked about an eventual path to citizenship for people that are currently here. Legitimizing a significant portion of our workforce would have been great news in our industry. Unfortunately, the wind blew hard against his thrice changed position on immigration and he reasserted his hardline feelings on Saturday.
Now maybe it was Anne Coulter’s outrage or maybe he was trying to be a populist again; either way, it’s hard to know what he will do if elected President of the United States. The ongoing uncertainty this election season is the worst we have ever experienced and is unquestionably having an impact on consumer spending. With so many chains reporting slowed growth or even contraction, it becomes more obvious how impactful the uncertainty is on the market. The other fundamentals are right, low energy costs, much improved unemployment and low inflation. They should all be leading to a better economic result, especially for our industry. There is no way of being sure, but don’t be surprised when right after the election we see a better than average result for holiday spending and a big boost to the start of 2017. All we can say is, it can’t come soon enough.
HOW’D SHE FALL SOLO?
Why it’s important to you: You lead people, how would you have handled her behavior?
It’s been a rough month for Hope Solo, but hey, she’s accustomed to self-inflicted wounds. This time she is living the consequences of calling the Swedish Olympic soccer team “cowards” after losing to them in the quarterfinals in Rio. First she was suspended by the USWNT for six months, and then her contract was “not renewed.” Yesterday it was announced she is taking a personal leave from the Seattle Reign of the NWSL. Is this the end of a brilliant on field career? Who knows, but for now she is going home.
For us the allegory is very real. Great goalies are hard to find, but how much is too much unpredictable behavior? It’s fairly clear that Solo has been allowed to act out with limited or no consequences for quite a while now. It certainly feels like the USWNT came on strong only after this last straw. Had they been more aggressive in their discipline would she have gotten to this point? We’ll never know because they didn’t. However, you can at least learn from their mistakes. Never allow your best players to get away with bad or disruptive behavior. Apply discipline evenly and predictably. That way you won’t create your own Hope Solo.