The 100 must read social media blog posts from 2012.[resource / inspiration / trends]Simply Zesty is one of my go to sources when it comes to news from the digital world – and they’ve pulled together an epic list highlighting posts you’ll recognize and stuff you’ve probably also missed. Great to bookmark for winter reading or for future inspiration. Some previously undiscovered favorites include: If Hackers Didn’t Exist, Governments Would Have to Invent Them (from The Atlantic in early July); Careful, Twitter – Remember what happened to MySpace and Digg (GigaOm, June); Why Windows Just Can’t Win (Wired, October.) High-res

The 100 must read social media blog posts from 2012.
[resource / inspiration / trends]

Simply Zesty is one of my go to sources when it comes to news from the digital world – and they’ve pulled together an epic list highlighting posts you’ll recognize and stuff you’ve probably also missed. Great to bookmark for winter reading or for future inspiration. Some previously undiscovered favorites include: If Hackers Didn’t Exist, Governments Would Have to Invent Them (from The Atlantic in early July); Careful, Twitter – Remember what happened to MySpace and Digg (GigaOm, June); Why Windows Just Can’t Win (Wired, October.)

Mary Meeker’s 2012 Internet Trends.
[technology / culture / resource / inspiration / trends]

As someone who sent this around at work said: Mary Meeker is smarter than you. Or at least she spends more time doing research. Last week she released her 2012 trends deck, which is pretty fantastic if you look past the design. After covering the bases with stats on everything from tablets to mobile to smartphone, Mary then re-imagines certain industries or themes and the ways they’ve changed as a result of technology. While some of the “re-imagination’s are a bit more obvious, the good stuff comes after slide 59 when she explores the sharing economy.      

Twinter Wonderland: Make it snow & donate to #Sandy relief. [work life / holidays / creativity / inspiration]I know I’m biased, but between our never ending dance move (a little something from our holiday party, coming soon) & our holiday card, 360i is killing it this December. You’re going to want to check it out: We’ve transformed a conference room into a snow globe & are livestreaming the meetings taking place ‘round the campfire. By tweeting #TwinterWonderland, you can make it snow on whoever is in there & we’ll donate $5 towards Sandy relief for each hashtag mention as well. Make it snow on us & feel good about yourself - how does it get any better than that?!  High-res

Twinter Wonderland: Make it snow & donate to #Sandy relief. 
[work life / holidays / creativity / inspiration]

I know I’m biased, but between our never ending dance move (a little something from our holiday party, coming soon) & our holiday card, 360i is killing it this December. You’re going to want to check it out: We’ve transformed a conference room into a snow globe & are livestreaming the meetings taking place ‘round the campfire. By tweeting #TwinterWonderland, you can make it snow on whoever is in there & we’ll donate $5 towards Sandy relief for each hashtag mention as well. Make it snow on us & feel good about yourself - how does it get any better than that?! 

Why it’s better to hire the least qualified person for the job. [work life / culture / inspiration]A recent study from a few European academics showed that people who are under-qualified for jobs “feel indebted to the hiring manager” for choosing them… whereas the most qualified candidate can feel like they deserved the job and therefore approach it with a more relaxed attitude. The study found that while only 30% of principals choose the less qualified person, those that are under-qualified put in 50% more effort than the people who are more qualified. Maybe recent grads aren’t so bad after all ;)    High-res

Why it’s better to hire the least qualified person for the job. 
[work life / culture / inspiration]

A recent study from a few European academics showed that people who are under-qualified for jobs “feel indebted to the hiring manager” for choosing them… whereas the most qualified candidate can feel like they deserved the job and therefore approach it with a more relaxed attitude. The study found that while only 30% of principals choose the less qualified person, those that are under-qualified put in 50% more effort than the people who are more qualified. Maybe recent grads aren’t so bad after all ;)   

The insourcing boom.     [culture / inspiration / work life]It seems that design & production is starting to come back stateside. I’ve been spotting more and more Kickstarters that are touting products made completely in the US, but they often have a premium price tag attached. (Exhibit one: The soma water filter. A carafe that looks slightly better than Brita but is also nearly triple the cost.) But in this article from The Atlantic, Charles Fishman points out that making something in the US comes with a lot of advantages - and can lead to producing not just better products, but cheaper products. High-res

The insourcing boom.     
[culture / inspiration / work life]

It seems that design & production is starting to come back stateside. I’ve been spotting more and more Kickstarters that are touting products made completely in the US, but they often have a premium price tag attached. (Exhibit one: The soma water filter. A carafe that looks slightly better than Brita but is also nearly triple the cost.) But in this article from The Atlantic, Charles Fishman points out that making something in the US comes with a lot of advantages - and can lead to producing not just better products, but cheaper products.

Lacquerous: “Netflix for Nails” polish-sharing service.     [tools / beauty / creativity / inspiration]For all those gents out there, nail polish isn’t exactly cheap. And it’s one of those things where we usually go through phases, but rarely use the entire bottle. Instead of spending ~$14 bottle, Lacquerous lets ladies subscribe for $18/month for three different colors that can be returned and swapped for new colors at any point in time. If you’re looking for a gift for a lady in your life, this is a good one. High-res

Lacquerous: “Netflix for Nails” polish-sharing service.     
[tools / beauty / creativity / inspiration]

For all those gents out there, nail polish isn’t exactly cheap. And it’s one of those things where we usually go through phases, but rarely use the entire bottle. Instead of spending ~$14 bottle, Lacquerous lets ladies subscribe for $18/month for three different colors that can be returned and swapped for new colors at any point in time. If you’re looking for a gift for a lady in your life, this is a good one.

When the nerds go marching in.     [technology / inspiration / creativity]The tech team behind Obama’s campaign is incredible - and inspiring. As The Atlantic points out: They created the most sophisticated email fundraising program ever. They put Obama on Reddit. They built an analytical tool, which helped them buy TV more effectively. (On average, Obama’s campaign’s cost per ad was $594 and Romney’s was $666. Multiply that by ~550,000 ads and the difference is over $39MM.) And they seem like legit dudes ;) High-res

When the nerds go marching in.     
[technology / inspiration / creativity]

The tech team behind Obama’s campaign is incredible - and inspiring. As The Atlantic points out: They created the most sophisticated email fundraising program ever. They put Obama on Reddit. They built an analytical tool, which helped them buy TV more effectively. (On average, Obama’s campaign’s cost per ad was $594 and Romney’s was $666. Multiply that by ~550,000 ads and the difference is over $39MM.) And they seem like legit dudes ;)

Source The Atlantic

An app that turns any surface into a keyboard… No projectors required!     
[tools / technology / mobile / creativity / inspiration]

Florian Krautli, a Cognitive Computing student at the University of London, has developed an app which transforms any surface into a keyboard. My first thought was that it must use technology like XBox’s Kinect to turn a surface into something interactive, but it actually uses vibrations from you typing on the surface. You’ve gotta see it to believe it. Very cool stuff.

“Weird Al” Yankovic on how to make a great parody.      
[culture / creativity / inspiration]

Who doesn’t love a good parody? I mean, honestly. You have to be a fun hater. But parodies aren’t just for songs - and it feels like a lot of the funny stuff online is a remix of content that wasn’t necessarily meant to be funny. In this Fast Company article, Weird Al gives his tips on how to write a parody that cuts through the clutter.

Sapient Nitro’s Insights Report - Redefining Experience: Transforming global business through connected thinking.      [marketing / technology / inspiration / culture]I’m a little late on this one, but some good stuff buried in here - from digital luxury 101 to the rise of the global consumer. It’s dense so take save it and come back to it when you need inspiration.  High-res

Sapient Nitro’s Insights Report - Redefining Experience: Transforming global business through connected thinking.      
[marketing / technology / inspiration / culture]

I’m a little late on this one, but some good stuff buried in here - from digital luxury 101 to the rise of the global consumer. It’s dense so take save it and come back to it when you need inspiration. 

Inside Starbucks’ $35MM mission to make brand evangelists of its front-line workers. [marketing / culture / work life / inspiration]I used to work at Starbucks in college as a barista. It was one of the best parts of my college experience. (I’m lookin’ at you, Rach!) And when I left school and started working in advertising in NYC, I couldn’t stop comparing these massive brands to Starbucks, thinking how much they could learn. This article shows how Starbucks values continuing education, collaboration and passion. And how that helps their company.   High-res

Inside Starbucks’ $35MM mission to make brand evangelists of its front-line workers. 
[marketing / culture / work life / inspiration]

I used to work at Starbucks in college as a barista. It was one of the best parts of my college experience. (I’m lookin’ at you, Rach!) And when I left school and started working in advertising in NYC, I couldn’t stop comparing these massive brands to Starbucks, thinking how much they could learn. This article shows how Starbucks values continuing education, collaboration and passion. And how that helps their company.  

Source Fast Company