What is free, plentiful, full of new ideas, and is accessible anyplace, anytime? Podcasts!

Not only are they proven to be super effective, the speakers are generally passionate about their topics which makes them even more interesting to listen to. 

Here is a short list of the podcasts I’ll be tuning into for inspiration in 2013:

• This American Life
• TechCrunch 
• npr TED Radio Hour
• Stuff You Should Know (howstuffworks.com) 

PS. Check out the new Podcast App for iPhone, it’s pretty cool!

Do NOT apply excessive heat to at home hair conditioning treatments that contain egg, olive oil, and mayonaise. That is unless, you’re going for that “scrambled egg in your hair” look. Then it’s totally cool. 

With all the possibilities the modern world of social media brings, many brands are finding the need to roll deep, in data that is. The rationale of this not only comes from the age old “having strength in numbers” or something like that, but the need to back up strategic moves and the allocation of marketing dollars.

Pretend you’re a brand with hundreds, if not thousands of social mentions everyday. Now imagine if you could make scientific correlations and understand how each and every one of those mentions translated into brand preference, awareness, and real world consumer actions. Being able to look at online conversation on both an aggregate and granular level, along with patterns and trends of the users generating that conversation is incredibly powerful. That’s where me and my posse come in.

If you asked me a year ago what I thought of data and analytics, I would’ve responded with a ugh, boring. But not anymore!  If you ask me now how I feel about pouring over data, facts and figures, I’d say enthralled! It’s a bit like solving a mystery actually. You notice something has happened to the data and need a reason why. Suddenly you find a correlation, are hot on the trail, and BAM your prime suspect is right in front of you!! Being a data head is actually quite fun, who knew!?

But anyways…

The moral of the story is that when it comes to making strategic moves and allocating marketing $$$’s, roll deep in data.

Cainotophobia  cai·no·to·pho·bi·a (kā-nō-tə-fō’bē-ə)
n.  An abnormal fear of newness.

Do you or your loved ones suffer from the same routine day after day, night after night? Is breaking into a feverish sweat at the thought of trying something new a daily occurrence? If so, you may be a victim of cainotophobia. 

For information on coping strategies, please click here.

With a rapidly growing middle class in the world’s biggest market, fast food giants like Yum! Brands and McDonald’s just can’t help but shove their fatty foods in the faces of the Chinese. The fast food kings of the West are now taking over the East, and at what expense? The health of a(nother) nation.

I hate to break it to you, but it’s not all smiles and happy meals in China these days. In fact, China has become a mirror to America’s fast food nightmare. Recent studies show that 30% of Chinese adults are now overweight and new cases of diabetes are being diagnosed at an alarming rate.

There is no mixing of business and pleasure here my friends. It’s western fast food business resulting in misery and bad health for the Chinese nation. I love America and I’m a big fan of globalization, but is it really necessary to spread unhealthy eating habits around the world? I think not!

♪Ba-da-da-da-da, I’m not loving it! ♫