Twitter
By many accounts, Twitter's initial public offering in November was a seamless effort far less volatile than Facebook's IPO in 2011. Twitter priced 70 million of its shares at $26 apiece and stock has since soared. The company also won big in January when it announced the acquisition of six-second video app Vine, which remains at the top of the iOS app download charts.Image: Andrew Burton/Getty Images
Google
The buzz around high-tech eyewear Google Glass -- a product not officially on the market yet -- kept the search giant on the tips of everyone's tongues in 2013. Google also nabbed 80% of market share for its Android mobile operating system and won the bidding war for Waze, a popular social traffic app. Facebook reportedly had its sights set on Waze, too.Image: Mashable
PlayStation and Xbox
We spent the year anticipating the arrival of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, which show us the future of what gaming can hold. Microsoft's next-generation video gaming system Xbox One ($499) shipped in November, eight years to the date that its predecessor Xbox 360 made its official debut. Meanwhile, PlayStation 4 ($399) landed in stores one week earlier. Both companies said it sold more than one million consoles in 24 hours.Image: Mashable
Apple
Apple product launches were more evolutionary than revolutionary this year, but the company is still in the business of selling millions of mobile devices and creating devices that bring out the masses. In addition to rolling out two new iPhones, the iPhone 5S and lower-cost 5C, Apple debuted the iPad Air, a thinner, sleeker model. In a surprising move, also made its Mavericks OS for Macs completely free.Image: Mashable
HootSuite
Social media management platform HootSuite received $165 million in funding in August, putting its valuation in the $1 billion-plus range. The service, which has about 7 million users worldwide, continues to gain traction with its "freemium" model, enticing people with a free version to eventually pay for more extensive services.Image: Hootsuite
Netflix
It was a huge year for Netflix and web-only content, which made history for taking home three Emmy Awards for its original series House of Cards. After bouncing back from a tough 2011 when CEO Reed Hastings tried to split the company into two entities, Netflix's subscription numbers and stock soared in 2013. The success of several of its web-only series, including Orange Is the New Black, have caused other web streaming services like Hulu and Amazon Prime to get into the original content game, too.Image: Jesse Grant/Getty Images
Nokia and Microsoft
Microsoft saved
struggling electronics manufacturer Nokia this year by snapping up most of its mobile division and licensing its large patent portfolio for about $7.2 billion. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2014. The companies first entered a partnership in 2011 when Nokia used the Windows Phone operating system as its primary smartphone strategy. The Windows Phone had a solid year, too; Instagram and Vine finally arrived on its platform. Its fast-growing market share hit No. 2 in Latin America and other parts of the world.Image: Odd Andersen/Getty Images
Tumblr
Yahoo acquired blogging platform Tumblr earlier this year for about $1.1 billion as part of a larger move to breathe new life into the once struggling company. Although Yahoo and Tumblr haven't reported user numbers or updates following the move, its clear there is one winner: David Karp, Tumblr's 27-year-old Tumblr CEO, who received a annual salary of $10 million and $41 million in stock if he stays with the company for four years. That's on top of the $250 million in cash and $29 million in stock he received out of the gate for selling the company.Image: Andrew Burton/Getty Images
Snapchat
Say what you will about Snapchat -- the picture and video messaging app that deletes content after just a few seconds often has promiscuous connotations -- but the company is booming. It reportedly turned down a $3 billion offer from Facebook and possibly a $4 billion one from Google. Snapchat processes about 400 million pictures each day and is a mainstay on the top app downloads charts.Image: Andrew Burton/Getty ImagesMashable
Friday 30 May 2014
Facebook Has Spent $22 Billion on Acquisitions. That's Equal to the GDP of Uganda.
Image: Marketo
Mashable
10 Inspirational Quotes From Literary Legend Maya Angelou
Throughout her storied career, Angelou also delivered the inaugural poem for Bill Clinton in 1993 (both grew up in rural Arkansas) and counted among her luminous friends and colleagues Dr. Martin Luther King and Oprah Winfrey.
In celebration of Angelou’s groundbreaking achievements in fields as varied as poetry, education and civil rights activism, here’s a look back at some of her most poignant remarks over the years:
2. “You shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back.”
3. “Nothing will work unless you do.”4. “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
5. “There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”
6. “I’ve learned that making a ‘living’ is not the same thing as making a ‘life.’”
7. “Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try and understand each other, we may even become friends.”
8. “Never make someone a priority when all you are to them is an option.”
9. “To grow up is to stop putting blame on parents.”
10. “You can only become truly accomplished at something you love. Don't make money your goal. Instead, pursue the things you love doing, and then do them so well that people can't take their eyes off you.”
Wednesday 28 May 2014
17 Maya Angelou Quotes That Will Inspire You To Be A Better Person
RIP Maya Angelou, you will forever live in our heart.
The legendary author has died at age 86.
Buzzfeed
Check out proven Excercises that will Boost your Self-Confidence
People actually live in denial by playing the game the majority play pretending to be all good, all confident and happy; when in actual fact, they are dying on the inside wondering why they are not able to express the best of themselves when it matters the most. Have you ever felt you could have handled a particular situation with more confidence and strength? What most young people don’t know is that when you are confident, you are not looking inward and thinking; no! Instead, you are looking outward and experiencing the world and your impact on the people around you. So the beginning of confidence is to turn your thoughts outward. Confidence is a feeling of absolute certainty that value resides with you. When you say that you are CONFIDENT about something, you are basically saying that you feel CERTAIN about it.
Confidence is a FEELING—a feeling from inside-out. The same goes for nervousness, uneasiness, apprehension, disquiet, fretfulness, anxiety, horror, fright, panic, trepidation, fear, or self-doubt—these are all FEELINGS or EMOTIONAL STATES. So, how do you grow in confidence? Simple! Experiences and practice. Experiences are crucial. Each experience of confidence you allow will serve you in your next experience. The more experiences you accumulate, the more confident you naturally become. As you allow more experiences, you begin to challenge your self-limits and become more confident in your ability to make anything happen. It’s science. The other way to gain more confidence is by changing your emotional state. Your emotional states are usually determined by your circumstances and controlled by three factors I call: PFT: PHYSIOLOGY, FOCUS and TALK. Physiology as in your body language; Focus as in your dominant thoughts in a moment; and Talk as in your positive or negative things you utter in any given situation. This is the magic: No matter where you find yourself, no matter how intimidating or dangerous the environment or circumstance is, make up your mind to always act the part! It’s easy. Just act the part. What part? Put your mind on PFT! For physiology, always stand straight no matter what is going on around you
To be confident, you could simply stand that way you’d stand if you were confident – head up, shoulders back, smiling, breathing fully, and centered. You could also begin focusing on it working out and begin remembering all the amazing times you were successful. For language, you could start saying to yourself, “I can do this!” and “I am amazing!”
As simple as that sounds, you will immediately begin to feel more confident in doing so. If you condition this daily, it will become automatic and a part of you.
Two Simple Exercises That Will Change Your Self-Esteem and Confidence
I want to finish off this blog post with two powerful exercises that will immediately change your self-esteem and confidence. I personally have used these throughout my life and use them whenever I need that extra boost. Give them a try.
Confidence Exercise
Here’s how it works: Take out your journal and a pen, and simply write down as many successes in your life as you can possibly think of. Spend at least 15 minutes doing this.
Now, you may be able to think of a few off the top of your head and get stuck like most people. This is because you’re only focusing on the big things. I don’t even know you and I can list at least 10 things that you’re successful at. For example, you woke up this morning. You brushed your teeth. You got dressed. You ate breakfast. And so forth. You successfully did these things, but you most likely didn’t give yourself credit for it! The purpose of this exercise is to fully acknowledge yourself and “polish up your memories” so that you begin to stack your successes in life, which will give you more confidence. Make sense? Now spend up to 15 minutes doing this, trust me, it’ll make a difference!
Self-Esteem Exercise
Here’s how it works: Simply go to the mirror and look deeply into your eyes. Focus on your eyes for a few long seconds, feeling your soul. This might feel uncomfortable or weird, or it may be exciting – stick with it. As you’re staring at yourself, you’re going to say:
“Olakunle, I thank you, I appreciate you, and I love you.”
You’re going to change your name obviously, but you’ll repeat that to yourself a few times. This is powerful – you’re giving your soul what it craves most. You’re acknowledging yourself and giving yourself that love that you’ve been craving your entire life – and your self-esteem will improve as a result.
I recommend doing these exercises everyday for at least a week and see the results. I personally continue to do these and thought I’d share them with you – they are game changers! Let me know how it goes for you.
OlakunleSoriyanBlog
7 Ways To Deal With Negative People
If you don’t like something, change it; if you can’t change it, change the way you think about it. – Mary EngelbreitSome people will have a rain cloud hanging over them, no matter what the weather is outside. Their negative attitude is toxic to your own moods, and you probably feel like there is little you can do about it.
But that couldn’t be farther from the truth.
If you want to effectively deal with negative people and be a champion of positivity, then your best route is to take definite action through some of the steps below.
1. Limit the time you spend with them.
First, let’s get this out of the way. You can be more positive than a cartoon sponge, but even your enthusiasm has a chance of being afflicted by the constant negativity of a friend.In fact, negativity has been proven to damage your health physically, making you vulnerable to high levels of stress and even cardiac disease. There’s no reason to get hurt because of someone else’s bad mood.
Though this may be a little tricky depending on your situation, working to spend slightly less time around negative people will keep your own spirits from slipping as well.
2. Speak up for yourself.
Don’t just absorb the comments that you are being bombarded with, especially if they are about you. It’s wise to be quick to listen and slow to speak, but being too quiet can give the person the impression that you are accepting what’s being said.3. Don’t pretend that their behavior is “OK.”
This is an easy trap to fall into. Point out to the person that their constant negativity isn’t a good thing. We don’t want to do this because it’s far easier to let someone sit in their woes, and we’d rather just stay out of it.But if you want the best for this person, avoid giving the false impression that their negativity is normal.
4. Don’t make their problems your problems.
Though I consider empathy a gift, it can be a dangerous thing. When we hear the complaints of a friend or family member, we typically start to take on their burdens with them.This is a bad habit to get into, especially if this is a person who is almost exclusively negative. These types of people are prone to embellishing and altering a story in order to gain sympathy.
Why else would they be sharing this with you?
5. Change the subject.
When you suspect that a conversation is starting to take a turn for the negative, be a champion of positivity by changing the subject. Of course, you have to do this without ignoring what the other person said.Acknowledge their comment, but move the conversation forward before the euphoric pleasure gained from complaining takes hold of either of you.
6. Talk about solutions, not problems.
Sometimes, changing the subject isn’t an option if you want to deal with negative people, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still be positive.I know that when someone begins dumping complaints on me, I have a hard time knowing exactly what to say. The key is to measure your responses as solution-based.
You can do this by asking questions like, “Well, how could this be resolved?” or, “How do you think they feel about it?”
Use discernment to find an appropriate response that will help your friend manage their perspectives.
7. Leave them behind.
Sadly, there are times when we have to move on without these friends, especially if you have exhausted your best efforts toward building a positive relationship.If this person is a family member, you can still have a functioning relationship with them, of course, but you may still have to limit the influence they have over your wellbeing.
That being said, what are some steps you’ve taken to deal with negative people? Let us know in the comments.
Tuesday 27 May 2014
15 Things Truly Happy People Don’t Care For
Happiness is a state of mind. Truly happy people maintain a positive
mindset even in full view of the negatives in life. These people are
optimists with strong ethics and high integrity. They are kind, loving,
caring and compassionate to everyone indiscriminately. Looking at them,
you will realize how confident, content and at ease they are with whom
they are. What keeps them positive and brimming with a sunny disposition
is that there are certain things that truly happy people just don’t
care for.
1. They don’t care for amassing material possessions.
Sure, owning luxury cars, mansions and a load of cash in the bank is nice. But, these things don’t guarantee happiness and success. Truly happy people are more interested in using their resources to add value in people’s lives and living a decent, modest life. If the money keeps coming, they are happy. If they money doesn’t come, they are still happy and content.2. They don’t care for getting anything in return.
Everybody enjoys an unexpected complement or reward. However, while others crave praise and rewards, truly happy people serve and help others without expecting anything in return. For truly happy people, the reward is knowing that they have added value and enriched the life of someone.3. They don’t care for conforming to society’s expectations.
People are constantly under pressure to meet society’s expectations, which is often stressful and overwhelming. Who you associate with, work for and even marry is often dictated by quiet societal expectations. Truly happy people don’t care for conforming to society’s expectations and standards. They simply look within themselves and do what feels right in their heart. By listening to their gut and following their heart, they are able to create deep satisfaction and happiness.4. They don’t care for people’s prejudices.
Some people harbor prejudicial notions about cultural, social and religious “outroups” they don’t belong. Truly happy people don’t care for any of that. They treat everyone equally without discriminating based on incorrect attitudes or stereotypes like sex, race, religion, age, sexual orientations and socioeconomic status. Truly happy people judge you for who you are and what you are capable of—not where you are from or the color of your skin.5. They don’t care for others’ approval or validation.
Happy people don’t really care what you think about them because they know their own self-worth. They listen and factor in what others have to say, but don’t seek anyone’s validation. They know that if you live for people’s approval, you will die from their rejection. Truly happy people simply do what needs to be done and never let naysayers discourage them.6. They don’t care for being right all the time.
Truly happy people don’t mind being wrong sometimes. After all, no one knows everything and has all the answers in life. It is by accepting you are wrong that you open doors to learn what is right. Truly happy people listen and apply sound ideas that are sometimes contrary to their own. This facilitates learning, allows for good co-existence and boosts happiness.7. They don’t care for un-conducive environments.
Truly happy people don’t care for environments that are not conducive for positive engagement or time out. They know such environments are stressful, reduce happiness levels and can even be harmful, including noisy, dirty and polluted surroundings. Instead, truly happy people value and protect environments that make positive actions and choices easy and enjoyable, such as peaceful places like parks.8. They don’t care for social comparisons.
Truly happy people don’t compare themselves to others. They may seek to learn what others are doing better so they can replicate similar success, but they are always keen to focus on their own progress and praise others on theirs. This makes them happier and protects them from jealousy, resentment and an unhealthy sense of superiority over others.9. They don’t care for meddling in peoples’ business.
Truly happy people don’t meddle in other people’s business. Sure, they will come to your aid if you ask for it and try to intervene when you are clearly headed in the wrong direction, but they primarily focus on getting their own house in order before attempting to help others. This ensures they are focused and helps avoid conflicts with people who want to be left alone.10. They don’t care for gossip.
Truly happy people don’t care for gossip and rumor mongering. They are content with their own lives and have no desire to concern themselves with what is going on in someone else’s life. The only people who care for gossip are shallow people whose personal lives are not fulfilling enough.11. They don’t care for toxic relationships.
Toxic relationships not only entail obvious vices like physical abuse and name-calling, but also subtle things like constant complaints and mood swings that drag you down. Truly happy people don’t care for all types of toxic relationships because these relationships only bring toxic results. Truly happy people surround themselves with optimistic people who want more out of life and are able to build healthy relationships that bring joy.12. They don’t care for holding grudges.
All of us have been hurt by the actions or words of another at some point. While holding a grudge and resentment against these offenders is easy, truly happy people know this is not the best option. They know holding a grudge is a surefire way to poison your thoughts and quite possibly your actions. Truly happy people forgive and move forward. This means rising above the issue and freeing yourself from resentment. As Confucius said, “To be wronged is nothing, unless you continue to remember it.”13. They don’t care for lies.
You might say everyone is guilty of telling a lie at one point or another. That may be so, but some people tend to tell lies more readily than others. Truly happy people don’t care for this latter group of people and their lies. Lives fall apart fast when they are held together by lies and deception. Truly happy people understand this fact and know it is better to offer no explanation than bend the truth or give false account.14. They don’t care for complaining.
Complaints are the fruits of an un-contented life. Truly happy people don’t care for complaining because they are content with their own lives. They don’t care for constant whiners either because these people are a vexation to the spirit. Truly happy people are simply grateful for what they have and hopeful for what will come even when things are not going their way.15. They don’t care for revenge.
Finally, if you truly want to lead a happy life, you cannot afford to actively seek revenge against another person. Truly happy people leave revenge up to fate. They make peace with the issue and instead actively seek ways to put that negative energy into more positive, productive use.Remember…
Life is not always smooth sailing. Sometimes things won’t go your way. That is just how life works. But, happiness is always an option even when you think it’s not. Choose to be happy from today!Monday 26 May 2014
29 Incredibly Useful Websites You Wish You Knew Earlier
There are so many wonderful websites around, and it is difficult to
know each and every one of them. The below list provides some of those
websites that I find particularly helpful, even though they are not as
famous or as prevalent as some of the big names out there.
.
1. BugMeNot
Are you bugged constantly to sign up for websites, even though you do not wish to share your email? If yes, then BugMeNot is for you. Instead of creating new logins, BugMeNot has shared logins across thousands of websites which can be used..2. Get Notify
This nifty little website tracks whether the emails sent by you were opened and read by the receiver. Moreover, it also provides the recipient’s IP Address, location, browser details, and more.3. Zero Dollar Movies
If you are on a constant lookout of free full length movies, then Zero Dollar movies provides a collection of over 15,000 movies in multiple languages that are available to watch for free on Youtube. It indexes only full length movies and no trailers, or partial uploads. In addition, it has a clean interface, contributing to a good movie watching experience.4. Livestream
Livestream allows you to watch and broadcast events live to viewers on any platform. For the next time when you want to share your company’s annual CEO speech live to employees who are on remote locations, Livestream serves as a perfect platform.5. scr.im
scr.im converts your email address into a short custom URLs, that can be shared on public websites. This prevents your email id from getting picked up by spam robots, and email harvesters who are on a constant lookout from your email id.6. TinEye
TinEye is a Reverse Image search tool which is as accurate as Google’s Reverse Image search tool. As opposed to Google, TinEye provides a set of APIs that can be used for personal and commercial purposes, which makes it very useful for developers.7. Fax Zero
Fax Zero allows you to send faxes to US and Canada for free. Additionally, it enables you to send faxes to countries outside North America at a fixed pay per use cost.8. Snopes
Do you believe that fingernails and hair continue to grow after death? Why don’t you check out if this is true, along with thousands of other urban folklore out there, at Snopes?9. Stickk
Is it difficult for you to stick to goals ? If yes, then let Stickk help you reach your goals. It makes use of commitment contracts to empower you to better your lifestyle.10. Boxoh
Boxoh can track the status of any shipment package on Google Maps.11. PicMonkey
PicMonkey is an online Image editor, that allows you to touch up your images. Also, you can apply different effects, fonts, and designs to your images. It is a perfect tool to create pins for Pinterest and awesome looking Facebook covers.12. Trello
Trello is a great online tool for organizing just about anything using Kanban style cards. It provides a highly visual way for Online Collaboration, and is a simple free tool for Task and Project Management.13. Short Reckonings
Short Reckonings is an online tool to keep track of shared expenses. It is deceptively simple, easy to use, and allows you to enter expenses with the fewest possible clicks. A clean, ad-free interface adds to the charm of this simple website.14. Memrise
Do you fancy learning new things in small byte sized packages? If yes, then Memrise is for you. The additive nature of gaming combined with memory improvement makes this an excellent resource.15. Instructables
Instructables provides instructions to help you build just about anything you can imagine. It provides a platform for people to explore, document, and share their creations.16. join.me
In today’s world, where collaboration across multiple stakeholders is key, join.me provides an online platform to share desktop screens. Record audio for meetings conducted with participants not in the same room. In addition, it is a simple tool to share your screen with just about anybody on the web.17. Sync.in
Sync.in allows multiple people to edit documents and notes in real time. It is a great tool for online collaboration.18. Privnote
Do you wish to share notes and information that self destructs immediately after it is read ? Privnote does exactly that.19. ScribbleMaps
Have you ever wanted to place your personal markers, shapes, and scribbles on Google Maps? Even though Google Maps does not allow that, ScribbleMaps does, and it does a great job at it.20. TripIt
TripIt is a painless way to organize all the details of your vacation or business trip. Forget your flight time? Can’t find the e-mail with your hotel’s address? That won’t happen with TripIt, which keeps your itinerary in one place.21. Skyscanner
Skyscanner is a leading global travel search site, providing instant online comparisons for millions of flights on over a thousand airlines, as well as car hire and hotels.22. Hostel Bookers
Hostel Bookers is one of the best search engines to search for cheap hostels and hotels while backpacking or traveling around the globe.23. Fitday
Fitday allows you to track you diet and weight loss through its journal. The personal dietician and free articles on nutrition and weight loss on their site are a great bonus.24. Endomondo
Endomondo is a mobile app that allows you to track your workouts. The website allows detailed analysis of your training, that makes it a valuable tool to understand and plan your workouts.25. My Fitness Pal
If counting calories is your main goal, then My Fitness Pal is the best web and mobile application out there. The service has a massive database of meals and exercises to make it easy to accurately count calories.26. Fuelly
Fuelly tracks the gas mileage for your cars and helps you to analyze, share, and compare your vehicles fuel consumption.27. 3-Minute Journal
3 Minute Journal is different than most other Journals out there. This application allows you to track your moods, achievements, failures, and moments of gratitude. In addition, it does great analysis over these parameters.28. 750 Words
750 Words is based on the idea of “Morning Pages”; that advises aspiring creatives to start each morning with three pages of stream-of-consciousness writing to clear away the mental clutter, leaving you with a clearer mind to face the day.29. Kiva
Kiva is a micro finance website, that attempts to leverage the Internet and a worldwide distribution of micro-finance institutions. It alleviates poverty by connecting lenders to people in need.
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