I left my first job in Bain’s Toronto office three years ago bright-eyed and ready for change. I’d followed the traditional path from undergraduate business school to consulting and felt ready to take a big risk. Sure, I liked my time in consulting, but I had dreams of that perfect job out there. The problem was that I had no idea what perfect really meant. So, I applied to wildly different jobs across the world – from nonprofit to tech, from San Francisco to Thailand.

Image: http://beacon.wharton.upenn.edu

Righteously vowing to leave the country is now an established custom in election-year America. This year, some of that repining has taken on a more serious tone than usual. Whatever your own political hopes, expectations, or sweat-drenched nightmares, it’s worth remembering that plenty of Americans live and work abroad already, for loads of reasons.

Here are two surprising facts. First, the average American estimates that over 25% of the U.S. federal budget goes to foreign aid. That is wildly off. It is actually only 1% of the federal budget, or $35 billion for all nonmilitary assistance. Second fact: just 1% of that 1% goes toward promoting entrepreneurship.

Why is that surprising? Because entrepreneurship reliably generates jobs, and joblessness — especially among young people or failing states – is probably one of the most significant root causes of the unrest and extremism vexing American foreign policy and threatening American security today.

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Companion diagnostics is gaining currency as novel drugs are being paired up with tests that determine which patients will have a higher chance of responding to that drug.

But 15 years after the human genome project has been completed, the progress of precision medicine appears to be woefully slow, at least according to Nicholas Dracopoli, vice president and head of Oncology Biomarkers at Janssen Research & Development, part of Johnson & Johnson. Others believe precision medicine and companion diagnostics have a chicken and egg problem.

Image: http://medcitynews.com

Companies have more data than ever at their disposal, but are they doing enough with it? Taking full advantage requires tackling legal, regulatory, and talent challenges.

To make data and analytics more than just buzzwords, companies need to think about whether they’re following best practices, hiring the best talent for their needs, and getting what they want from their data. In this episode of the McKinsey Podcast, McKinsey senior partners Nimal Manuel and Bill Wiseman talk with Cecilia Ma Zecha about how more companies can make the best use of the data they collect and what the potential is for advanced analytics to help both business-to-consumer and business-to-business companies.

Nearly a year ago, Malcolm Turnbull made innovation and technology an upbeat centrepiece of his jobs and growth agenda. The innovation space seemed to light up. But Mr Turnbull's ideas boom did not play well at last month's election.

Most voters may have smartphones and pay their bills over the internet. But many, including in the suburbs and regions, did not feel as excited as Mr Turnbull to be living in the age of disruption and hipster start-ups. They may even have felt threatened by the new economy and drawn to the isolationism of Trumpism and Brexit.

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Some 30% of U.S. venture capital investment in the first half was invested in unicorns — venture-backed startups valued at $1 billion or more, according to PitchBook Data. Venture capital unicorn investment is up 116% from $4.1 billion in the second quarter of last year, figures from the Seattle-based researcher show.

Image: http://www.pionline.com/

I had my doubts when China's Dlodlo (pronounced "dwaw dwaw") announced the V One, the world's thinnest and lightest VR headset back in April.

It sounded too good to be true. At a press event in New York on Monday, I got a chance to try the V One headset on and I have to say it's impressive. Magical, even.

Looking more like an odd pair of shades, the V One is an ultra-light headset when you compare it to the distinctively bulky shape that's become the norm for VR headsets like the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive and Samsung Gear VR. 

Image: TROY DREIER/MASHABLE 

The business world is changing, and that means we need to adapt. But we don’t just want to react to a changing world; we want to shape it and be out in front, leading the pack. Here are few competencies you’ll need to develop if you want to adapt, thrive, and distinguish yourself in this new world.

Image: http://knowstartup.com

Cuba Libre - a rum and cola with a dash of lime – is a drink that up until a trip to Havana with the family this month I rarely drank.

I thought about its name even less. Free Cuba. A cocktail that makes a political statement.

Cuba Libres, Mojitos or other rum based drinks are what you drink when you are in Cuba. Rum is one of the things Cuba is famous for, the others being revolution, vintage cars, cigars and Ernest Hemingway.

A lot of people think there are too many accelerators and incubators. And I happen to agree.

It’s pretty much a given that, along with some level of financing, you’ll receive desk space. But what value are you getting in exchange for handing over that equity stake? Here are seven things you should look out for in choosing whether to join an incubator or accelerator.

If you can’t wait for your next meal, these foods are adept at muffling your hunger

Some experts say the whole concept of “healthy snacking” is an oxymoron. The human body, they argue, wasn’t built to accommodate the average American’s habit of cramming in snacks between meals. “Even three meals (a day) might be too much,” says Dr. Valter Longo, director of the University of Southern California’s Longevity Institute.

As a startup investor in this age of the entrepreneur, I see many more startups, but innovation is still hard to find. The most common proposals I hear are for yet another social networking site (over 200 active), or another dating site (over 2500 in the US alone). Startups which display real innovation, such as alternative energy sources and new medical treatments, are still rare.

Private space firm SpaceX launched another Falcon 9 rocket on Sunday, delivering a commercial satellite to geostationary transfer orbit. But, as usual, it was the company’s Earth-based endeavours that attracted more attention…

The company managed to successfully land the rocket’s first stage on a drone barge, marking the fourth successful landing at sea. However, the landing was even tougher than normal due to the orbit needed, resulting in the first stage being subjected to “extreme velocities and re-entry heating”, SpaceX wrote.

What do all the most successful people tend to have in common? It’s a question that is seen as holding the answer to getting ahead in your professional life. If it works for them, it’ll work for me! Of course experience counts, and in certain, increasingly complex industries, relevant hard skills often hold the key. But one thing that truly sets apart the best people is the transferable skills they have that benefit them across everything they do. In a dynamic, constantly changing world, your core skills that allow you to adapt may be more important than ever.

If you’re developing an innovation strategy initiative inside your company, is your primary focus on bringing executives together in a creative way to imagine new ideas?

That’s the focus some companies get enamored with based on innovation training that puts creativity front and center as the key to jump starting innovation.

Image: http://brainzooming.com

From our experience, that’s far from the first step.

The Rockefeller Foundation has given out grants before, so this time it’s looking to mentor startups through Unreasonable Institute as they tackle entrenched urban problems.

AUGUST 12, 2016

Ten startups fighting urban poverty or otherwise assisting vulnerable communities will receive $100,000 each and participate in a nine-month development phase, as part of the Future Cities Accelerator announced Friday at the Millennial Tech & Change Summit in San Francisco.

According to Time, I have 15 seconds to capture your attention before you decide to click away.

In fact, a staggering 55% of you will spend less than 15 seconds on this page–or any web page, for that matter–before you continue browsing elsewhere.

With 15 seconds being the average attention span of of a modern internet consumer, perhaps the greatest challenge facing entrepreneurs and business owners today is creating a website that stands out.

THE HOUSE AND SENATE: Beacon Hill Roll Call records local senators' and representatives' votes on roll calls from July sessions.

$1 BILLION ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PACKAGE (H 4569): The House (157-0) and Senate (38-1) approved, and Gov. Charlie Baker signed into law a bill allowing the state to borrow money over five years as part of an economic-development package aimed at boosting the economy, creating jobs, workforce development and infrastructure investment. 

I love reading non-fiction as a way to challenge myself to understand topics that stretch my understanding of the world around me. I love history and biographies and even novels that are “faction.”

This Summer I read “The Third Chimpanze” by Jared Diamond and since he’s my favorite history writer I of course loved it. If you haven’t read Diamond, though, I’d recommend starting with “Guns, Germs & Steel” & then “Collapse” but all three are worth reading.