Millennials get paid much less than previous generations

Millennials get paid much less than previous generationsMillennials get paid much less than previous generationsMillennials are now the largest generation in the American labor force, accounting for wellover halfof all workers in the US. And with three different generations now in the workplace, employers have to consider pay differences between people of all ages. Our new map reveals how the difference in pay among Millennials, Gen Xers and Baby Boomers differs dramatically based on geographic location.We gathered the data from theAmerican Community Survey (ACS)through the US Census Bureau, made available for researchers atIPUMS-USA. We stack ranked each generation from youngest to oldest, comparing median income levels for Millennials, Gen Xers and Baby Boomers in every state across the country. This approach lets you easily see which areas tend to produce high-earning jobs for different generations, and which states are comparatively worse off.Our map highlights a few different tr ends worth discussing in detail. First off, as you might expect, millennials make less money than their older counterparts in every single state, even California where they predominate in the high-paying tech sector. By and large Gen Xers also lag behind Baby Boomers, but not by nearly as much. For example, in Pennsylvania the median income for Millennials is $38K compared to $53K for Gen Xers and $54K for Baby Boomers. The one exception proving the rule on ur map is Washington DC, where Gen Xers pull in $15K more than Baby Boomers. After all, Washington DC isnt a state and instead should be seen as an urban area where middle-aged people are usually in positions of power.Taking a broader regional perspective also sheds light on the gap between Millennials and older workers. Compare how Millennials are compensated in the Deep South compared with the Northeast. Young people earn $30k in states like Alabama and Mississippi compared to $46K in Massachusetts or $38K in New Hampshire. Tha ts a substantial difference even after accounting for living expenses- remember, the amount of money you make early in a career usually determines wages later on. In other words, that $8,000 gap between New Hampshire and Alabama no doubt grows as workers age. But heres the rub salary growth usually stagnates by the time people turn 35. Thats why there is a such a steep climb between Millennials and Gen Xers, but comparably less of a climb to Baby Boomers, regardless of which state you look at.Want to put these salary figures in context and learn more about the true cost of living in different parts of the country? Check out our tool to see all of the different factors you need to consider.This article was originally posted on HowMuch.net.

Overcome the 2 main obstacles to reaching your goals

Overcome the 2 main obstacles to reaching your goalsOvercome the 2 main obstacles to reaching your goalsfruchtwein of us dont need new goals for the year. Really, we dont.But we do need tocontinueto progresstoward our current goals (and, hopefully even reach some). Additionally, we need to make some adjustments from the feedback we are receiving from real life.In working with highly successful leaders for over two decades and interviewing them about what they believe contributed to their success, two principles rose to the topPersevering in the face of difficulties, andResponding to the feedback they received from the marketplace.Most often, people dont reach their goals because they give up pursuing them. And, guess what? When you quit pursuing your goals, you dont reach them. It doesnt take an engineering degree to make that logical connection.But what is the difference between perseverance and stubbornness, or being hard-headed? Or the difference between being committed to a goal versus being crazy in the sense of pursuing a goal not based in reality?Largely, I think being able to distinguish the differences lies in wisdom and discernment which we all need desperately. But partly, at least, we can learn by listening to the feedback we receive from the marketplace particularly, what they want and what theydontwant.Those who successfully reach significant goals seem to havebothperseveranceandthe ability to make needed adjustments. They keep moving in the general direction they have plotted out, but they also watch for and listen to signs that indicate they need to make some changes.The principle of one degree is often cited in navigating long-term trips - being off of your course by just one degree, over a long period of time, leads you thousands of miles off of your destination. Similarly, sometimes our goals are actually off the mark. And reaching your current stated goals may not lead you to where you actually want to go. Listen for feedback like Youcou lddo that, but or Are you sure that is what you really want?Making just a few slight adjustments can have a huge impact on the result. Minor adjustments in the design of the product or process, in your costs and pricing, in your absatzwirtschaft message, or, in reaching the right target audience all can lead to successifyou are asking for and listening to feedback.So, give up looking for the magic bullet new goal that is going to turn everything around or make you successful (however you define success).Why is this two-step process so important (and successful)?First, because unless you were really off-base in creating your original goals, they probably arent that far off the mark, and you should continue to pursue them.But, also,life changes over timeandyou learn things along the way. The world is almost certainly different than when you started this journey, and you need to take those changes into account. And while you have been traveling on your path, you have observed and le arned (hopefully) helpful information and lessons along the way. You need to incorporate this new knowledge into your goals and how you will accomplish them.Reaching your true desired destinationRecommit yourself to your overall direction. Continue to invest time and energy toward your goals. But also, actively pursue obtaining the feedback that will help you bring your goals into crystal-clear focus and fine-tune the direction you should go.Thenyou will successfully reach the true, desired destination that you have been pursuing.This article first appeared on AppreciationAtWork.

Google wont confirm if AI assistant will identify itself as a robot

Google wont confirm if AI assistant will identify itself as a robotGoogle wont confirm if AI assistant will identify itself as a robotYesterday, Ladders reported on Googles new human-sounding AI chatbot which makes phone calls and carries a conversation with people and the possible ethicalquestions the service raises.Even though Google said the experience is meant to make the experience comfortable, the ethical question being raised is For whom is the comfort intended? Does it feel comfortable for customer service representatives to not know if they are communicating with a machine? Or, is that too intimate and invasive?This ethical tension could be partly resolved if Duplex was required to announce that a computer is on the phone calls, but Google has been vague and will not confirm if Duplex will be made to self-disclose up front.We understand and value the discussion around Google Duplex - as weve said from the beginning, transparency in the technology is important. We are desi gning this feature with disclosure built-in, and well make sure the ordnungsprinzip is appropriately identified. What we showed at I/O was an early technology demo, and we look forward to incorporating feedback as we develop this into a product, a spokesman said in a statement to Ladders.The new statement came a day afterFast Company askedGoogle whether or not Duplex would definitely identify itself as a bot, and got an interesting reply to the simple yes or no question a repeat of a line from a blog post Well be experimenting with the right approach over the coming months.

The Basic Facts of Part Time Job Resume

The Basic Facts of Part Time Job Resume Finding the Best Part Time Job Resume If a business takes an opening off its website and then calls you for an interview, you dont need to need to ask to observe the description of the job you simply applied to. You may have helped your company gather vital info in your part-time job, while its on the lookout for potential new customers or researching an upcoming article. To begin with, consider the work description to see whether it indicates the sort of skills the versorger is seeking. Simply walking away from the store indicates the manager which you werent serious in regards to the job, to start out with. Your job (while youre attempting to find a job) is to make sure to fit what theyre searching for. You would want to list in-depth details so you will have all the info you need to submit an application for nearly every job. There are lots of recruiters who have handled plenty of resumes. Most men and women look at writing a resume as just something youve got to do to have a job. If you are searching for a kind of job that may be discovered in many diverse industries, look at notlageing a particular industry in your job objective. In reality, if youd like to occupy in work in the health care field, you will need to use different action words than a man or woman who is aims at work in the sales sector. No matter your approach, your target is going to be to make a chronological collection of experience thats related to the jobs youre applying to. Sometimes you could be uncertain even about the industry you would like to work in, and surely you wont have plenty of expert experience to back your objectives. When youre asking for work, your very first purpose is to let employers know your abilities and talents align with the demands of their open position. For instance, it might state some of your previous accomplishments, and after that move on to the types of accomplishments you would like to achieve in the future (ideally, accomplishments you wish to achieve for the organization youre applying to work for). One of the hazards of a resume objective is that it is possible to focus too much on what you would like in your career, and not enough on how you are going to add value to the business. If you want to put in an application for a lifeguard position, your resume objective should mention all certifications you have gotten. Resume action verbs may have a constructive and memorable effect on the readers memory. Well-crafted resume objectives have the capacity to convince an employer a candidate is acquainted with a position, the business and the requirement for success in that area. The Basic Facts of Part Time Job Resume Actually, you ought to be aware that plenty of companies nowadays are using Applicant Tracking Systems to help them screen resumes and get the best candidates. If you wish to submit an application for a part-time position at a retail shop, utilize the next object ive examples as a guide to assist you create one that is right for you. Youre able to receive a list of places searching for people from a range of sources. You could adhere to the guidelines given in the job resume template here and produce your own resume. Looking at examples will be able to help you make a decision as to what type of content you should include, along with how to format your resume. The resume objective statement ought to take the format of a job-focused description of what youre able to result in the employer. Be certain that the objective is related to the work description that you should have carefully studied. In the majority of instances, a resume objective is simply a couple of sentences long.

Who Is Misleading Us About Resume Template 2019?

Who Is Misleading Us About Resume Template 2019? The resume summary will act as their sales pitch. If you are working to find some great aerospace engineer resume examples, take a couple of minutes and review the one weve written below. You must invest time into each application and guarantee that your resume is tailored to every employer and the job that youre applying to. The piece you truly need the hiring manager reading is your latest work experience (and be sure you tailored that info to fit the work description). Again, use our cover letter templates and dont forget to prevent easy mistakes at the very start of your letter, because you dont want employers to quit reading or eliminate interest till they reach your principal points. Meanwhile, here are our very best practices to follow when it has to do with formatting your resume. You ought to have five objective statements. If youre not certain how to phrase your skills, or in case you would like examples of objective s tatements, binnensee some job websites for ideas. The Rise of Resume Template 2019 Template designs are for individual use only and might not be resold or redistributed under any conditions. When you submit an application for work in person, you could possibly be requested to complete a paper application. The template is easily customised to your liking and includes all vital files for a fast set-up. The resume summary is simply a bridge to have the hiring manager in your experience. Resume objectives are from time to time regarded as the old schooltype of resume. Resume objectives can be somewhat controversial. For example, if the hiring manager would like you to focus on your skills specifically, you have to make sure you pick up a skills-friendly template. On the flip side, once the work applicant has strong experience, there is not any need to trust the academic training any longer and it doesnt need to get mentioned. After you determine the skills you need to concentra te on, do some research and see whether they line up with job requirements listed for the positions youre seeking. The challenge of being a true student searching for a job tends to be an absence of earlier job experience. The Ultimate Resume Template 2019 Trick Well, regardless of what stage youre in your career, youre likely to should understand how to make a resume for a job bewerbungsgesprch and we will demonstrate how Writing a resume is simple, but it does take some time and planning. When writing your statement, its important to contemplate where youre in your professional progression. Understanding how to tailor your resume will obviously provide you an advantage. Type of Resume Template 2019 Include your complete name, contact number, email and personal branding website if youve got one. Consider what sections and data youd love to include prior to starting. Again, despite the fact that the info might seem repetitive, go right ahead and attach the resume. You wil l need to have some simple info and a couple dates. Unless you happen to be a graphic designer looking for employment, theres no need to over think the plan of your one-pager. Take a look at our article on the way to use your job references strategically in case you need mora info. If youre seeking to customize professional, pre-formatted resumes, have a look at our totally free downloadable templates. The issue is, each job differs and what each hiring manager is searching for is different. Writing a resume isnt a simple endeavour, and as stated by the feedback from our present community, its really beneficial to check professional resume examples before starting to compose your own. Writing a strong application is a challenging procedure and we would like to make it simpler. Writing a resume for employment in the art industry can be difficult. For more ideas on the best way to strengthen your program, have a look at our education and teaching resumes. Transportation job s involve a lot of responsibility and your resume will want to reflect you can verstndigung im strafverfahren with that. Resumes give potential employers a means to learn about applicants quickly and readily, and theyre your very first step toward new job opportunities. On the flip side, functional resumes are normally used by fresh graduates or individuals who have less experience but want to grab the work vacancy. What follows is a wide selection of professional resume samples for jobs in numerous industries. Even in case youve never held an official job, its still true that you have life experience thats applicable to the work search. Your jobs could be varied, your experience and techniques vast, and it can be challenging getting it all on paper. Whether youre searching for your very first job or your next one, you want a resume that shows employers that youre a skilled professional. In truth, it might not have dates whatsoever, but you must be listed in order of relevanc e instead. If you want to bring a number to it, dont use your birth year. In the calendar year 2019, its expected that resumes are less troublesome to read. Notice how the example resumes are extremely specific when it has to do with technical skills. Unique kinds of work in the food service industry require resumes with a number of the exact same skills. With Spark Hire, you will have the tools to become more than simply a resume. Food service is just one of the most difficult industries to work in. Customer service is an essential element in many jobs and its vital that you concentrate on that in your resume.

What Business Leaders Can Learn About Hiring From Zach Nelson - Spark Hire

What Business Leaders Can Learn About Hiring From Zach Nelson - Spark HireYou may have no idea who Zach Nelson is, and perhaps youve never heard of NetSuite either. However, there is much hiring managers can learn from the way he is dealing with his companys expansion. Since his company went public in 2007, it has nearly doubled in size. That seems like a dream to most business leaders, but it welchesnt experienced without any difficulty. As NetSuite- a company that specializes in customer-management and logistics software- started to grow, Nelson and his chief people officer Marty Raume realized they were having an issue with retaining employees. Its an issue many companies are having these days, especially as the job market begins to pick up.Rather than continue to hire and train the way they were used to, Nelson and Raume decided to make a few strong changes.For starters, Nelson, the CEO and Raume started working together to improve their hiring. Rather than have others doing the hiring for him, Nelson welches directly involved in the process. They broke down the numbers and realized that out of the 450 people they had hired at the time, 100 had left before completing their first year. On top of that, the same 10 people were pulling in the most sales. So what did they do that other companies can take note of?Create an Assessment of Successful EmployeesBefore moving on and hiring more people that probably wouldnt work out, Raume created an assessment that she sent out to the top producers in the company. With that information she could create a list of traits top candidates should possess before being offered a fleck. This is something any company having hiring issues can do- and it doesnt have to come at any cost. This is certainly something that Spark Hire has touched on countless times before when discussing the success of a hiring process. Before hiring, employers should fully understand the role and what is needed from the person that is expected to fill it. What skills are most valuable? What kind of personality or character should this person have? Must they be aggressive, independent, and driven? Or more of a team player that brings creativity to the table? Understanding what works best for this position is the first step in making a good hire.Raume took this assessment and started using it in the hiring and recruiting process. As a result, NetSuite only lost five salespeople within a year of their start date last year. The assessment was a success, and can be for your company as well.Get CEOs Involved in Some WayWhen a company is a startup, its much easier for the CEO or founder of the company to be heavily involved in most or all decisions of the company. As a company begins to grow though (which is the desired outcome of all startups) it becomes increasingly difficult for the CEO to have his hand in all of the cookie jars. Hiring, however, is one of the most important aspects of a company and one that Nelson took very serious ly. When the company decided to start making changes, he decided to review every job offer that was made to a candidate. He may not have been able to directly meet each person, but making aya he sees the resume of the candidate in question made a big difference.If you know who your employees are recruiting and signing on, then you have a general idea of who is working for your company. Plus, Nelson believes that when his employees know that he must approve or look at candidates before they are accepted, they work harder to find the best candidate. This may not work for every company, but having a CEO or a boss that is engaged with his or her employees is an important factor and paves the road for strong employee retention.TrainingLastly, making sure you have a sound training process is key in retaining employees. You can have the best hiring process in the world, but if employees walk into your company and are met with a shoddy or terrible training period it can negatively affect th eir entire employment. Companies need to be sure they are hands-on with their training and not presenting their new hires with a confusing or fuzzy layout of the position or company.Furthermore, making sure you instill your company values or company culture right from the start is important in fostering long-term employees. Ensure that your new hire(s) know what is expected of them from the start and that those goals are clear. Be sure they understand what is most important to your company and what kind of culture your company exhibits.Making sure you stay on top of things as your company grows is definitely important in its success. Take a note, or two, from Nelson and NetSuite and be sure your hiring process is the best it can be.IMAGE Courtesy of Flickr by Dita Margarita

How To Avoid Social Media Mistakes That Will Get You Fired

How To Avoid Social Media Mistakes That Will Get You FiredHow To Avoid Social Media Mistakes That Will Get You FiredIts an interesting conundrum. As an employee or a job seeker, youre encouraged to be active on social media. After all, according to the 2015 Jobvite Recruiter Nation survey, 92 percent of recruiters said they are turning more and more to social media to recruit talent. But, your social media presence can also get your fired or keep you from ever getting the job in the first place.The trick, then, is to balance the opportunities social media provides while being mindful of the potential pitfalls.Here are four people who werent so mindful, and what you can learn from their mistakes1. Man asks drug dealer to deliver him weed at work on Twitter.Really? This happened? Yes.Quickly after a Canadian man tweeted asking for a drug dealer in the area to deliver him weed at work, the local versicherungsscheins Twitter account responded and, despite the tweeters claims that it wel ches a joke, the organization he worked at later confirmed he was relieved of his duties.The lesson Beyond the obvious dont post about illegal activities, you never know whos listening.Here, it was the police, but in everyday situations it could be your boss, your clients, or other people who may see questionable content you share and create problems for you at work. You may block people like your boss, manager, etc., but you cant ever really be aya who sees the things you share.Avoid posting things that are too controversial or could impact your status at work, even if its from a personal account, to make sure your social media activity doesnt hurt you down the road.2. Tennessee man posts death wish for local office on Facebook, resigns under pressure.Larry Hughes got a speeding ticket on the way to work one morning and instead of banging his hands on the steering wheel like most people, he took to Facebook. Hughes wrote a scathing post that wished death on the officer. Although he quickly took it down, the post had already gone viral.The result? Hughes received hate messages on Facebook from all over the country, and his employers got dozens of messages asking for him to be fired. Soon after, Hughes resigned to avoid causing the company any more problems.The lesson When something happens that makes you want to vent on social media, take a minute to think about the ramifications it could have on your personal and professional life before you hit the keyboard.If you cant stop yourself, type out your post in a text editor or email draft then read it over before posting it. More often than not, youll realize how harmful it can be and hit delete.3. Hydro One employee fired for live TV comments that went viral.Shawn Simoes thought he was being funny when he supported his friends vulgar interruption of a live newscast by arguing that it was f hilarious and not disrespectful, because it happens everywhere. Video of the reporter challenging Simoes and his friends, wh ich happened outside of a Toronto FC soccer match, went viral.Once newspapers made a connection between Simoes and Hydro One, his employer saw the video and quickly released a statement saying it was terminating Simoes based on a violation of its code of conduct.The lesson In our social media-connected world, you always represent your employer. Whether you post inflammatory things online or say them in public, theres a possibility that your employer will see them and take action.Yes, Simoes interrupted a live TV broadcast, so his face was everywhere within minutes. But the saatkorn thing can happen to you if someone around you is recording your actions. Just because youre not online doesnt mean you cant end up there, and if you do, your employer may not like how youre representing them.4. Facebook Twitter posts cost CFO his job.Gene Morphis was the CFO of fashion retailer Francescas Holdings Corp., until he started tweeting sensitive information about his company.Morphis had a very active social media presence and a blog that he used to talk about just about everything. The problems started when he posted things like Board meeting. Good numbers=Happy Board and Roadshow completed. Sold $275 million of secondary shares. Earned my pay this week on Facebook and Twitter.Company officials reviewed his social media accounts and found out that, on top of venting about the rigors of his job, he frequently shared information that violated the companys confidentiality policies. As a result, Morphis was terminated for cause.The lesson Whether youre the CFO, an entry-level employee, or something in between, sharing information about what youre working on or how you feel about your job could get you fired.If you cant avoid talking about work online, take the time to get to know your organizations social media policies so you know whats OK to talk about and what can get you in trouble.If you are going to talk about work online, its always good practice to keep things positi ve. Instead of venting your frustrations with your boss to your followers, talk about the good things youre doing or the role your company is playing in your community.Will employers like what they see when they look at your social media activity? Could what youre currently sharing get you in trouble?Lior Tal is the co-founder and CEO of RepnUp, a platform that helps you instantly analyze and clean up yoursocial media profiles and easily manage your personal online reputation. Connect with Lior and the RepnUp team on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Ode to the Disk Array

Ode to the Disk ArrayOde to the Disk ArrayWhen interviewing for a position at a high-tech firm, knowledge of these technologies will definitely be to your advantage. The persistent storage of the worlds information is a hot field. There are many uses for CD-ROMs, tape drives, solid state drives, USB flash drives, and other types of peripheral storage devices. You can study their features and functions, and you can learn about the customer situations in which they are likely be used.From my biased point of view, I view these storage devices as secondary when compared with the widespread deployment of hard disk drives. They can be found in the majority of desktop computers and laptop devices. They are packaged in rectangular canisters that contain platters that spin, arms that seek, and heads that read and write magnetic bits of information.You may get a job at a high-tech corporation that builds hard drives, such as Seagate or Western Digital. These companies are always searching for innovative ways to reduce costs, increase capacity, and reduce power consumption.Perhaps the most significant high-tech neuheit in the last two decades, however, is the introduction and evolution of the disk array, which is essentially a cabinet full of disk drives (the previous Wikipedia link depicts two disk arrays manufactured by my company, EMC). Every large, Fortune 500 company will buy their hard drive technology from a disk array vendor or vendors (as opposed to buying individual disk drives). Even small-to-medium size businesses prefer to purchase disk arrays.Familiarize yourself with disk array features and functions. They are a critical aspect of a corporate data center. In future posts I plan on elaborating more specifically about their many capabilities. In this post, however, I want to take a high-level look at their usefulness. Here are some of the more important features of a disk arrayThey are usually scalable. A small business can buy a disk array that contains as f ew as five hard drives, and they can add dozens more as their business grows.They centralize the management of user storage. Instead of storing customer data on personal hard drives, business will store the information on a central disk array. A system administrator can centrally allocate and dedicate storage to specific users.They centralize administrative tasks such as backups. Backup software can focus on backing up the entire disk array, as opposed to backing up individual hard drives.They can handle more besucherzahlen than individual hard drives. A disk array will often aggregate multiple hard drives together and make them appear as one, large disk drive. This virtual disk can actually handle simultaneous requests in parallel.They can be shared among many servers. An individual disk drive is typically dedicated to one server. A disk array can carve up disk capacity and dole it out to multiple servers.They protect data better than individual hard drives. Should a hard drive fai l inside of a disk array, the disk array will typically have a variety of recovery algorithms that allows the user to ride through a hard drive failure transparently.The disk array business is a multi-billion dollar enterprise. As the worlds footprint for information data continues to grow, the corporations that engineer and build disk arrays will continue to thrive and hire. If you interview with a disk array vendor (or if you interview at a company that purchases equipment from a disk array vendor), ask them about their disk array technology choices.In future posts, I will provide a set of questions that makes it clear that you have a working knowledge of disk array technology.Stevehttp//stevetodd.typepad.comTwitter SteveToddEMC Intrapreneur

Henry David Thoreau and why nothing is as it seems

Henry David Thoreau and why elendhing is as it seemsHenry David Thoreau and why nothing is as it seemsIn 1845, Henry David Thoreau made a famous pilgrimage to Walden Pond in Massachusetts to live in a tiny cabin that he built in the woods. He went to the woods, as he wrote, to live deliberately to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. He would live on his own means- no electricity and no running water- and like a Spartan, he would suck out all the marrow of life and reduce it to its lowest terms.He recorded his experiences in a book calledWalden, which is assigned in high schools and quoted inHollywood moviesto illustrate the virtues of self-reliance and humankinds connection with nature.I have a confession I hateWalden. Ive been envious of Thoreau- and not in a good way- ever since I read about his pilgrimage to nature. The story reminds me of my own inadequacies.You see, Im a city boy, raised in the urban sprawl of Istanbul- home to 15 million people. I have the soft hands of a typist. I dont own power tools. My work injuries consist of paper cuts (theycanbe nasty). If you put me in a cabin in Walden Pond- cut off electricity, running water, and wi-fi access- I wouldnt survive. So I envy people like Thoreau who can deliberately expose themselves to rough conditions and survive- nay, thrive.A few weeks ago, when I was reading Amanda Palmers excellent bookThe Art of Asking, I discovered a few more details about Thoreaus wild experiment with self reliance.It turns out that the cabin Thoreau built was less than two miles from his house- not in some remote woodland, as the story might imply. Almost every day, he took trips back to civilization, which was walking distance in nearby Concord, Massachusetts. He ate dinner at his buddy Ralph Waldo Emersons houseall the time. My favorite part Every weekend, Thoreaus mother and sister brought him a basket of f reshly baked goods, includingdonuts.The historian Richard Zacks sums it up well Let it be known that Nature Boy went home on weekends to raid the family cookie jar.I dont tell this story to poke fun at Thoreau (okay, maybe a little bit). I tell it because it highlights a far more important lesson The people we put on a pedestal often cant live up to their own legend.Long before social media, people were creating positive curated portrayals of their lives. If Thoreau lived in the age of Instagram, he may have been shooting selfies in front of his self-made cabin, while neglecting to snap photos of himself devouring baked goods freshly delivered to his doorstep.Much of what you see on the Internet isfake. You can purchase 5,000 Instagram followers for$40or get 5,000 YouTube views for$15. There are click farms, which are businesses where hundreds of computers and smartphones play the same content over and over to drive up fake engagement (heresa videoof one at work). People are even po sting fake sponsored content on social media, pretending to be brand ambassadors even though theyre not getting paid. Why? In the influencer world, its street cred,saidBrian Phanthao, himself a self-proclaimed influencer. The more sponsors you have, the more credibility you have.Gloss reflects more than it reveals. Nothing is as it seems.The next time youre tempted to put someone on a pedestal because of the story they tell to the world, just picture Henry David Thoreau- not sucking on the marrow of life- but feasting on his mom-made donuts.Ozan Varol is a rocket scientist turned law professor and bestselling author.Click hereto download a free copy of his e-book, The Contrarian Handbook 8 Principles for Innovating Your Thinking. Along with your free e-book, youll get the Weekly Contrarian - a newsletter that challenges conventional wisdom and changes the way we look at the world (plus access to exclusive content for subscribers only).Thisarticlefirst appeared onOzanVarol.com.