Now, large traditional companies are beginning to take notice as well, adapting a more modern approach to their office layout. They understand the benefits: happier employees, more productivity and overall increased output. Plus, a little extra revenue never hurt anyone. The infographic below by Rove Concepts highlights fifteen popular modern office furniture and layout trends. Use it as inspiration to help transform your office into a more productive and creative space....

For 2015, I want to my productivity skills in order to, you know, become a more successful person or whatever – and I’m sure you all desire the same. The problem, though, is that we’re persistently wasting our time on the stupidest things, oftentimes outweighing the short-term benefits (e.g. pleasure from watching Rory Gilmore crush Dean’s heart) over the long-term ones (e.g. increasing fluency in Mandarin). There are certain things that we do in our everyday lives – whether that’s at work or at home – that can negatively impact the way the rest of our day (or year) turns out....

While companies like Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Samsung are staking their claim on the virtual reality market, there is more than enough room for startups to make an impact. With more than enough room to innovate, the VR market is prime for small companies to change the way we look at the popular medium. Even with payoffs looking questionable, venture capital firms are banking on the VR-boom lasting for more than just a few months....

Having established the magazine after discovering a lack of information on the then-nascent and expanding black entrepreneur community in the American workforce, Black Enterprise founder Earl G. Graves, Sr.’s achievements in the media and publishing industry has led him to become one of history’s most notable black entrepreneurs. The Most Successful Black Entrepreneurs Throughout History In the spirit of Black History Month, we take a look at a few black entrepreneurs throughout history, focusing primarily on those figures who have rarely been covered – African-American entrepreneurs from the 18th century to early-20th century....

Called SocialWeddingSpeek, the platform was developed by three leading DC startups (WeddingWire, Speek and SocialRadar) and combines the features for which each is renowned into one online tool for couples seeking to tie the knot. Utilizing Speek’s visual conference-calling technology, couples no longer need to be in the same room as each other or as their guests in order to fulfill the rite of marriage – they simply need their computers or smartphones....

Today, however, that approach is no longer used; newer startups are taking various aspects into consideration to determine the best location for their businesses. We talked to a number of experts and founders and found the best tips to keep in mind when choosing the best location for your startup. Access to Human Resources Employees remain a startup’s most valuable asset in many situations. A strong team can make or break a startup in the early stages....

Tech.Co has been compensated by University of Phoenix for this article. All thoughts and opinions come from Tech.Co. If you’ve already got one programming language under your belt – or you’re deciding where to start – here are a few reasons to learn multiple languages: “It surprises me to no end how few programmers have detailed knowledge in multiple languages, and how much garbage code is out there,” adds Crystal Stranger, president of 1st Tax....

In general, angel and venture investors prefer allocating funds to later-stage companies so as to minimize risk factors. However, some positive trends have been noticed recently, for instance, when some big pharmaceutical establishments extended support to early-stage companies. As budding entrepreneurs, it’s quite natural to feel over-zealous in the beginning while giving that pitch to potential investors. Yet, there are certain traits in your presentation than can scare even the hardcore venture capitalists away....

“The purpose of money is to purchase the freedom to pursue that which was useful and interesting.” – Benjamin Franklin “If a man empties his purse into his head, no one can take it from him.” – Benjamin Franklin “Here sir, the people govern.” – Alexander Hamilton “Energy and persistence conquer all things.” – Benjamin Franklin “Those who stand for nothing fall for anything.” – Alexander Hamilton “A free people [claim] their rights as derived from the laws of nature, and not as the gift of their chief magistrate....

However, one big setback blogging for your small local business is that it’s time-consuming. You need to spend hours crafting the perfect content, and then promote it on several online channels (i.e. social media, email, aggregator sites). After that, there’s still no guarantee of how much online traffic your website will get, or how many of those readers will become paying customers. Another disadvantage is resources. Unless you’re a writer yourself, you need to hire someone to make the content for you....

From wearables to virtual reality (VR) gizmos, some startups are making fitness happen regardless of location. Further, by keeping users more engaged than ever, they are creating new habits and perspectives on nutrition and exercise. After all, various studies show that consumers can be overconfident about their future gym behavior and body goals. They pay to get in and then stop going after a few sessions. As early as 2003, the Guardian noted that gym dropout rates were reaching 80 percent in the first eight weeks of signing up....

Fractured Atlas is dedicated to supporting a new generation of artists and art organizations that are finding answers to some of the industry’s most persistent problems. In fact, they launched a program in 2014, The Arts Entrepreneurship Awards, in line with their dedication and today they unveiled the four winners of this year’s program. Specifically the Arts Entrepreneurship Awards aim to inspire risks and disruption in the arts field by honoring innovators from across the US....

Effective managers who create smart performance goals for their employees are fully dedicated to their employees’ success. These managers believe in their employees’ skills, characteristics, and talents, and most of all, trust their employees to bring those qualities to the table. In addition, an effective manager also realizes employees need goals that can be achieved through a balance of challenge and inspiration. Your employees want to be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel, so it’s important to provide them with smart performance goals to help them reach success....

So why then are investors and VCs changing the tide and starting businesses all around the world? Because the spirit of an entrepreneur cannot be stifled by financial security and cushy offices. Venture capitalists are seeing the thrill and the drive of young and old founders alike and are inspired to take the leap into entrepreneurship with enthusiasm and gusto. Plus, with their vast experience in funding, these investors are prime candidates for successful businesses....

The only problem with relying on these fundamentals is that everyone else is doing it. With countless other companies competing for the same audience, you need to be extra creative if you want your brand to get noticed. Fortunately, this list of five out-of-the-box ideas will help you promote your online startup in 2017. Broadcast Your Startup Live Official Facebook statistics show that live videos are viewed three times more than regular videos uploaded by users....

If you want to stay ahead of the pack when it comes to digital marketing, you need to make well-informed predictions. Check out these five predictions for the future of digital marketing that businesses should expect in the near future: These websites will be monitoring several factors about a visitor, like the previous web pages a visitor has been to, cookies, and time spent on such pages. All these factors will be used to make the visitor find the exact thing he/she is looking for....

Multiple marketing strategies can be employed in today’s world. One of the biggest currently is business to business marketing, which is commonly referred to as B2B marketing. This kind of marketing has ensured that businesses benefit from other business. Think of it this way: A business takes up the job of supplying certain products to another business directly. For instance, how you every stopped to wonder how a company like Price Waterhouse Coopers is able to provide brand new computers for each of its thousands of employees?...

Communication You may think that because you are the only person in your business that you don’t have to worry about communicaion. But you still have to maintain clear lines of communication with your customers. You need to keep them updated on the developing situation at all times. If you do have staff, a lack of communication can lead to a loss of productivity. You have to go out of your way to communicate and to make sure that everyone gets the full story....

Immun.io With a whooping 2.7 million seed in one round, Immunio seems to have a bright future ahead. This Canadia-based startup is all about securing your web space, be it business or personal. We are witnessing the biggest expansion of web-based apps and cloud computing ever, which will, according to Global Industry Analysts report, reach the value of 127$ Billion by 2017. Hence, it is clear why there are constant attacks on web-based systems, apps and storage....

“I hope you all work hard to make a lot of money, hire a lot of people, and pay a lot of taxes!” said Bloomberg, during his time on stage. TechStars’s previous NYC class is currently being featured on a reality show on Bloomberg TV. Here are 5 takeaways from the event: Education is still a hot industry, where the established players are the ones to beat.Food is still a hot industry, and startups are branching out from dish recommendations for diners....