How can you conduct business if you can't speak the same language? Skype Translator will enable the global exchange of information and help your business build international relationships. Skype is about to add a translation tool to their VoIP app that will allow face to face real time translation. I've been wondering how to break into the Chinese market and for 2 cents per minute, less than half that with a subscription, I see endless possibilities.
Microsoft is coming out with the desktop app by the end of this summer and has also removed the signup requirement. This is another big win for Microsoft. Add this app to your Surface Pro and your are truly ready for the world. Take a closer look at Skype Translator here.
Global transactions for small businesses are the next big thing. These are very exciting times for entrepreneurs.
The previous posts on business trends have gathered a little more interest, so in doing more research I found the following treasure trove on tech trends at Deloitte University Press. Deloitte's articles through and complete with graphs to supplement the projections. The growth forecasts coincide with other news on technology predictions and when you read over the article you'll see how well laid out this presentation is. My hat is off to Deloitte, Bill Briggs, Mariahna Moore and the cast of thousands that compiled this report.
The base concept is Globalization and thinking in terms of a global resources, supply chain management and emerging markets that are evolving with the technology. Right now we are at a tipping point with the growth of Asian and India's markets set to explode. Delivering services to these economies and the challenges that will ensue, can't even fathom the numbers the rewards will bring into the fold. We are just beyond the base of the curve where it's slope is about to go vertical. Artificial intelligence, robotics, wearables, battery tech, culture and class separation. This is by far the best report for all entrepreneurs to read or make a study of. A great series from Deloitte.
By now you have probably gotten an email from every company that you have ever visited on their COVID policy. No need to rehash washing your hands and social distancing here. The point that I want to stress is that we are all in this together, locally and globally, and it's going to take all of us to beat this thing.
I work for the government in my day job, maintaining transmitters along the coast of South Carolina. The government is just people. Some very hard working people that perform jobs that in the private sector usually pays much more for the same work. But, boil it all down, and it's just people helping people.
In times of crisis's past, like the hurricanes we've had, we didn't get extra pay or bonuses, just a good feeling at the end of the day that we made a difference. Getting through this is going to be difficult, but not something we can't do.
There are always two options you have in any situation. One is to do nothing. With COVID doing nothing is actually a good thing. Stay at home and you're not part of the problem. The second option is to try harder. I have to credit my father with that one. He was part of what they now call the greatest generation, but the greatest generation is really yet to come. We are all products of these generations, we are the hybrids. Let's try a little harder and figure this out. Figure out what you can do to help.
Sure it's scary, we see exactly how fragile our world is. And, the big brains say it's going to get worse before it gets better, but we will get through it and come out stronger. Helping others is really the name of the game.
Check on your neighbors, have empathy and employ compassion. We are all going through a lot. I want to be able to reflect back at the End of the Plague party and know I had a hand in making the world a better place. I may not invent a miracle vaccine, but I help keep emergency communications online over here, inspire hope and I lend a helping hand. I am very grateful for the medical, fast food, grocery workers and everyone involved in all these chains that keeping us moving forward.
Do your part and work harder. Patience, courtesy and humor go along way, act like you've been somewhere. Maybe this will spark a spiritual revolution when we finally realize that we are all the same, and that we are all connected.
I have been talking about flying cars being the wave of the future. What will follow is highrises with parking for personal drones. Looks like Miami will be the first US city with a highrise built for parking personal aircraft at the Paramount World Center. As our population increases along with technology, so will new emerging opportunities for all aspects of this new mode of transportation. The future certainly involves every aspect of flying vehicles, from battery technology, to new condos, supermarket parking and heavy on the construction industry to retool it all. This shift in transportation could be the global industry that boosts the the whole world's economy as every country accommodates it's growing population and employment issues. Theses are exciting times we are living in. Take a look at the video and article Bob Wiley wrote on the MiamiHerald.com.
If you haven't already discovered TED.com it's a must read website and I would put it at the top of the rotation of the sites you frequent. TED is a nonpartisan nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks. TED began in 1984 as a conference where Technology, Entertainment and Design converged, and today covers almost all topics from science to business to global issues, and in more than 110 languages. The foundation was established by publishing entrepreneur Chris Anderson and provides a platform for thinkers, visionaries and teachers, so that people around the globe can gain a better understanding of the biggest issues faced by the world creating a better future. TED's core goal is a belief that there is no greater force for changing the world than a powerful idea. Be a part of that mission or just learn from the world's best. I was introduced to TED by a business partner years ago and have benefited from the talks and key insights contributed from many of the unique presenters. Sites like TED.com are what make the internet great (cat videos aside) TED is the one site where your post graduate education is nourished and you gain from the experience of many great minds. Without further adieu, check out TED.com.
I graduated high school a year early on the condition set by my parents that I attend a junior college. So I enrolled for a couple of night classes at what was locally referred to as UCLA or University Closest to Lambert Avenue, better known as College of DuPage in Lombard Illinois. I signed up for a couple of classes. One class was Intro to Business and after a couple of days into the class I was really enjoying it. Our instructor was like no teacher I had in high school he had an unorthodox method of getting his points across and when he began the course he started by telling us that he wasn't going to teach us the way business was done by the book, he was going explain business in the real world and how to be successful in it. This got my attention and when he told us that he caught Mitsubishi's initial listing on the American stock exchange making millions and was only teaching there for 1 dollar a year, he had my full attention. At the age of 17 I didn't know what I wanted to do, I only knew what I didn't want to do, and that was working in a 9 to 5 grind for the rest of my life.
Without getting on a rant here, one of the main points he kept emphasizing was to spot trends in business and consumer behavior. I look for trends daily and one source I keep going back to is BusinessInsider.com. If there's any indication of what the future holds it will be a change in currency. Follow the money trail here, there are several start ups in the financial sector where investment is in internet financial vehicles, financial tools, cryto-coins, lending platforms and investment can be viewed more of a diversification of the current financial institutions. The finance industry knows which way the wind is blowing, they're closer to the ground floor of business in general, they know what the numbers are. Here's a link to some of the top Nordic startups.
The obvious investment is clicks and bricks, solid online business models. And, whatever you're doing, it will be online.