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BizTech
It’s all fun and games, or at least it soon will be! The lines delineating work and play have become increasingly blurry, and they are poised to become infinitely more so.
Growing up with two brothers, I never understood the full allure of video games. I would fall asleep at night and hear computer-rendered gunfire and other sound effects coming through my wall for hours on end. If I tried to discuss this “waste of time,” they always assured me that lots of fighter pilots use video games to train and there was lots of benefit. Being that neither of them ever wanted to be a fighter pilot, this so called “benefit” was lost to me. But here I am a few years later, having to admit that there may have been a glimmer of truth behind this reasoning.
Many businesses are starting to adopt an up-and-coming trend called “gamification.” This is the process of applying game-like mechanics to non-game environments in order to attract and engage …
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inc Spot
A strong leader inspires people to take action, says Esther Newman. “I can have a view but if I don’t have passion, why should you follow?” Sometimes people think of leaders as only those we elect into public office, she says, but leaders operate in every arena within a community. PTA members, firefighters, police officers and local activists all influence their neighborhoods and communities.
For the past 23 years, Newman has worked to connect these leaders across Montgomery County. She heads the non-profit Leadership Montgomery, located in Rockville, which she founded. The organization hosts interactive classes that allow people who live and work in different environments to meet and learn from each other.
Most people tend to associate with others who share similar backgrounds, Newman says. People are often isolated from those with different viewpoints and experiences, particularly in professional settings.
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Sector Watch
As it once did for operators of party-line telephones, office switchboards and rail-station telegraphs, advancing technology continues to make certain professions obsolete. Intermediaries are no longer needed to connect phone calls or send messages around the world. Cell phones and computers have put that power at the fingertips of any user.
Despite the proliferation of discount-travel websites, user-driven review boards and cost-cutting package vacations that can be booked online, travel agencies persist. Travel professionals remain the intermediaries that connect clients to their destinations. While the marketplace gets noisier and more crowded with cheap fares, destination ideas and bundled itineraries, agents say that smart travelers know when to cut the clutter with a single call to a travel professional.
Although it is easy to click on any of the hundreds of travel sites on the Internet and begin a vacation search, sorting through pricing options and the sheer …
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