Chris Hart: Thinking of starting a new relationship? Maybe hoping that this time you’ll find “the one”? Well, there are plenty of good guys out there to choose from.

But there’s also a load of rogues. They look good from a distance, but they also have a dark side.

So to avoid getting hurt, you need to be sure you’re not dating one of them.

That means watching every new guy’s behaviour like a hawk. And if you see even the slightest hint of trouble, run!

The first things to look for are dishonesty and any sort of flaky behaviour. Lies about where he is, who he’s with, who his friends are, where he lives, where he works and so on. Expect 100 per cent honesty right from the start, and if you don’t get it, run!

THE CHASE

Dump him if he’s never on time, cancels dates at the last minute, gets strange phone calls or messages, mistreats you, or is in any way weird with the people around you.

Maybe he’s charming to you, but rude to the waiters? Behaviour like that’s an early sign of personality issues, anger and abuse.

Then there’s the guy who’s just out to use you. He only wants you for your body, doesn’t actually like women, and avoids emotional intimacy.

He’ll promise the world to get you naked  but will always leave you in the end. You’re with someone who’s pressuring you into sex? Gets aggressive or manipulative when you say no? Run!

Some guys just want a trophy to show their friends. They love parading you around, but won’t try to get to know you at all. All they want is for people to think they have a girlfriend, but you’ll never be treated like one.

Some guys love chasing a girl  all the way to the altar if need be. But that’s as far as it goes. Once he’s got you, he’ll start looking for his next conquest.

Beware of a guy who’s controlling. Who quickly starts telling you how to dress, where you can go and how you should spend your money.

He may even try to stop you working, or being with your friends and family.

To begin with, it feels wonderful. He’s so deeply in love with you and “protective…” But slowly, day by day, you’re losing your soul. Run while you still can!

MOTHER SUBSTITUTE

Especially avoid a guy who’s financially unstable, probably unemployed and definitely lacking in ambition, who only wants a woman to take care of him!

Instead of looking for a partner to share a life full of achievement, he’s looking for a mother substitute.

Who’ll finance, feed and clean for him. Your new guy’s career doesn’t seem up to much? Somehow you always seem to end up paying for dinner? And you’ve started lending him money?

Make sure you can spot these characters. And if one of them does come into your life, send him on his way again as fast as you can!

Talk about a wining tag team.

If you were not aware, Apple and IBM formed a landmark partnership in July to redefine the way work gets done. And they seem to be living to up to that promise.

One of the Apps released is IBM’s Incident Aware app for iOS is designed to turn an iPhone into a crime prevention aid for law enforcement officers. Incident Aware includes real-time access to maps and video-feeds of incidents, and the ability for officers to call for back-up or support.

According to IBM’s official site, law enforcement has a new way of gaining understanding of the situations they’re facing.

Incident Aware gives officers the ability to:

Tap into GPS data on iPhone to understand the location of those involved in the incident, and the location and availability of other officers so they can determine the most appropriate response to a situation.

Get contextually relevant information about crime history, victim status and risks of escalation that can help lower incident rates, delivered through a simple, yet powerful iOS user experience on iPhone.

If your people know they can be straight with you, then you’re probably a way better boss than you think you are. Besides, that sort of humility and self-awareness goes a long way toward motivating employees. A sense of humour doesn’t hurt, either.

Here are a few ways to inspire your people to do great work and create an environment where they actually like coming to work.

Big responsibility

Perhaps more than anything, people love to be challenged. They want to know that their achievements matter. If you give highly capable people a lot of responsibility they will work their tails off, make smart decisions and thrive. And they will want more.

An outrageous goal

Employees want to be a part of something great. They want to be part of something bigger than them. If you’re passionate about what you’re trying to achieve, let them in on it. Make them part of your crusade to do what’s never been done before.

Pure meritocracy

Let’s face it: mediocre people want to get paid and keep their jobs no matter what they do. You don’t need them in your company. If you want people who want to be rewarded for being the best, for doing great work – and you should – then give them a pure meritocracy.

Effective management

Exceptional employees want to work for an exceptional company. That means the company’s management team has to be effective and the company has to be successful. The best way to motivate your employees is to be great at your own job: managing the business

2015 is upon us. While you may be slowing down as the holiday season approaches, there are a few must-dos to tackle before the New Year.

Clean up accounting

You’ll want to tie up any loose ends. Make sure that all expenses are entered and that things are recorded and classified properly. You will need accurate financial statements to prepare tax returns and to assess your company’s performance.

Review performance

Review revenue. Break it down in whatever way is appropriate for your business. You might look at it by product line, by job, by client, by geography or by salesperson. Assess gross margin and profit in a similar way. Look at expenses by line item. There should be one person and only one person responsible for each line item.

Review external relationships

You likely have important relationships with vendors, partners and/or customers. The end of the year is an excellent time to review the relationships that are critical to your success. Is your company getting what it needs from the relationship? What changes can you make to improve the benefit that your company is getting or should you end the relationship?

Review employees

The year’s end is a traditional time for employee-performance evaluations. Although we feel strongly that employees should receive feedback much more frequently than annually, it is nevertheless appropriate to assess each person’s performance at the end of the year. You should be measuring their accomplishments against specific, quantifiable goals. However, if you did not set these, you can still make a qualitative assessment of performance.

Review yourself

Finally, you’ll want to take a step back and assess your own performance. How did you do vs. your goals? What would you need to do to take your personal performance to the next level? Is there a book that you have been meaning to read? Do you want to attend a training course? Should you hire an executive coach? Reaching out for help when you need it is not a sign of weakness. It’s a sign of intelligence and self-awareness.

[Original:entrepreneur]

Al Jazeera international television has aired a damning expose on Kenya’s police killer squads. According to the Al Jazeera expose, the elite killer squads consist of officers from the General Service Unit (GSU) and the National Intelligence Service (NIS). The Al Jazeera expose further says that those targeted are usually terrorism suspects and other criminal suspects who are executed instead of being taken to court.

You can watch the Al Jazeera expose here if you haven’t:

Nine students will travel to china for training on Chinese culture, language and innovative ICT technologies and interaction with top IT specialists at the Huawei University.

This is as a result of a partnership by the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology and with Huawei Technologies.

It’s an internship program called “Huawei Seeds for the Future”. Following completion of the program, the students will be awarded certificates in addition to professional mentorship acquired in China.

The program aims to further technical knowledge transfer through interactions with Huawei staff, laboratory visits for hands-on experience and to witness live demonstrations of the latest ICT technologies globally.

“Kenya is already a leader in ICT on the continent and we want to ensure that we maintain this leadership and also grow the momentum internationally. This programme is a reflection of not only our focus on developing local skills but on the government’s commitment in working with the private sector,” ICT Authority Acting CEO Victor Kyalo said.

“Huawei is committed to developing ICT talent in Africa and beyond by collaborating with local governments, higher education institutions and other organisations for students to study and experience future technologies at the firm’s headquarters in China, CEO Huawei Technologies Kenya, Dean Yu says.

Chris Hart: We all know about the bad guys who in the end always break girls’ hearts. But there are bad girls, too, who always break their boyfriends’ hearts.

You will recognise her on sight! Instantly arousing and loads of fun, she knows exactly how to strut her stuff.

The highest heels, shortest skirts, deepest necklines, barest midriffs and the sexiest lingerie – or none at all. She parties all night, loves sex and will happily fulfil any fantasy you can imagine any time you like.

But she is totally untrustworthy and will never be loyal. Every man wants her – and she knows it. She lost her virginity way too soon, laughs and flirts with your friends, and will be with anyone who catches her eye.

Selfish, expensive and extravagant, she thinks the world owes her a living, and she will never settle down.

She is not at all the sort of girl you want to introduce to your family.

Charming, loyal and polite. But good girls can also be boring and predictable. So no lust or lacy underwear. And even the most faithful girl can bring a mountain of problems.

AWFUL IN BED

Watch for the signs that she will be awful in bed. Self-conscious, never saying what she wants, endlessly giggling or really quiet, over-analysing everything, afraid to try anything new and never making up her mind.

Watch out for nit-pickers: nothing you do is ever right. And divas, who think the world revolves around them. Holier-than-thou girls.

Girls who are really looking for a father figure, not a real-life boyfriend. Or who are always looking for a fight. Or full of bitterness about previous relationships. Or controlling. Or compulsive weepers. Or liars. Or who call off dates, constantly change their plans and never show up. If she is flaky now, she always will be.

Be wary of someone who is always travelling, hard to please, and endlessly craving something new. Or a girl who is a fanatic about fitness, who picks at her food, or makes you her property: “Who are you meeting for lunch?” “What’s this number?” “Why did you look at her?” Or a girl who just cannot get enough of you.

Endless calls, and if you fail to answer, text messages whining about you not picking up the phone.

Who to marry

Instead, marry the girl who eats well, spends more on food than clothes, plays video games and likes being naked around the house.

She will be lots of fun – and loyal. Now then, all you need to do is train her to be a wildcat between the sheets.

There is no way a bad girl is ever going to be good. You have to start with someone who is faithful and fun then teach her to be sexually uninhibited.

Help her discover her natural sensuality. Show her how great sex creates a powerful bond between you.

And forget the bad girls. They are exciting to watch, but scary to touch. A sexy wife, on the other hand, is worth much more than her weight in gold.

The sales business is tough; there is simply no employee loyalty. People tend to always be looking for the “next big thing.”

So how do you get keep your sales staff motivated and hungry to succeed?

Mark Schiro, CEO of sales company Stream Energy shares a few pointers on how to do just that.

Provide clear direction

Without the vision and steps to get there, you won’t be able to keep your sales force motivated. On the contrary, the best leaders have a clear vision of where they want to take their organization, and are therefore able to mobilize troops to accomplish seemingly impossible goals.

Be likable

Positioning yourself as a “likeable” and respected CEO is imperative to maintaining a loyal and motivated direct sales force. With employees, you can force people to follow you even if you’re not respected. In direct selling, your sales force is a “volunteer army,” so they get to decide who they work for, how long they work and where they work. If people don’t like and respect you, they won’t stay with you.

Be transparent and communicate

Ensuring the messages being communicated are the same across the board.

Something that speaks to this is the phrase “one voice, one vision.” When messages become mixed and diluted, trust between the sales force and company leadership become strained. Monthly video updates allow company leaders to implement the “one voice, one vision” strategy, assuring the sales force by communicating the same message over and over that the company is staying on the path they were told it is going down.

It’s all about the product and the opportunity

You need to provide your sales force with the best opportunity possible and a product they are proud of. It’s crucial the field believes in the product they are selling, since in today’s market there are so many copycats out there. Essentially, if you don’t have a real value proposition, you won’t be successful.

[Original:entrepreneur]