Loungewear Brands Perfect for Work-From-Home

With the Pandemic implementing an indefinite stay-at-home order for many, a lot of people are prioritizing comfort over style. The good thing is that with loungewear, you do not have to choose between the two. Recently, many loungewear companies are incorporating different styles into their products to coincide with recent trends. Let’s take a look at some loungewear companies that have put elegance into comfort for 2021. 

 

Offhours

 

This Brooklyn-based brand started in 2018, is bringing luxury into loungewear. A staple from the 1960s, the brand wanted to put its own spin on the housecoat. There are many chintzy-florals to choose from in this one-size-fits-all lightweight gender-neutral garment. The housecoat is neutral-quilted, kimono shaped, and has a t-shirt like fabric on the inside. The coat comes in multiple colors such as subtle-neutrals, sage-green, electric-blue, blush, and more. The fall will bring in two new colorways. 

 

Olivia von Halle

 

British designer Olivia von Halle’s brand, was inspired by a trip she once took to Shanghai. She asked a local tailor to make some luxurious printed silk pajamas for her that were not only great to sleep in, but also fit for evening parties and morning walks with her dog. Her pajamas were a hit, and multiple of her friends wanted to follow suit. Because of this, Olivia decided to launch her own label in 2011 when she arrived back in London. Today, her brand contains various loungewear and night-wear options that come in psychedelic wallpaper-like prints, tropical flower motifs, and acid-hued animal prints. One of the key features is the 19-momme silk that gives her clothing its luxurious feel. 

 

Entireworld

 

This brand is a stem off of the brand “Band of Outsiders” started by Los Angeles based designer Scott Sternberg. The line is a rendition of casual men’s and women’s clothing such as button-downs, underwear, socks, and classic cotton t-shirts. However, their most stand-out item is the monochromatic sweats that come in bright, fun colors such as sky blue, cherry red, key-lime green, and buttercup yellow. The matching sets are perfect for working from home, lounging around the house, and even going out to run some errands.

How You Can Be a Leader and Break Away From Mediocrity

What makes someone stand out as a leader? Is it their ability to excel under pressure? Do they possess the charm that is needed when you are one on one with clients? Those who find themselves in leadership positions tend to be anything but mediocre. They often have those specific attributes about them that help them to stand apart from their other colleagues. So if you are looking to get into a leadership position how do you make yourself stand out from being what others might consider mediocre

Have the Mentality of a Hero

For a leader to demonstrate excellence, they must think and act as their heroes. Successful leaders have a unique way of doing things. They all have a philosophy that governs them. While it is hard to keep off from all distractions, it is a brilliant way to achieve one’s dreams.

Leaders Should Avoid Being Money Minded

To break from mediocrity, a leader should not prioritize money. Arguably, numerous individuals earn high salaries at their tender ages, yet they are not happy with their lives. One should concentrate on finding and pursuing their passion. Doing what one loves provides a way for money to flow.

A Leader Should Shun Fear

Many business leaders suffer from a fear of failure. Some even lack the confidence to believe that they can register achievements. What they fail to understand is that failure presents a second chance to try once more. History has countless successful individuals that started with a series of disappointments. Accepting disappointments and learning from them provides a way to find leadership success.

A Leader Should Learn to Avoid Unhealthy Relationships.

A wise leader should choose friends that motivate them in actualizing their dreams. Any group of friends that do not add value contributes to making one less productive. Practically, a leader is a product of whatever company they keep.

Leaders Should Discourage Themselves From Being Content

While it is usual to get content, this mindset is one of the chief contributors to laxity, making one stagnate and fail to achieve more. Factors such as vacations, salaries, and an excellent working environment are among those that can make one content.

Breaking out of mediocrity is an excellent starting point for becoming successful. Every leader should aspire to achieve more and work towards attaining those dreams. They should embrace every opportunity that can make them better in their professions.

 

The Top Careers For Women in 2020

Women have made huge strides in breaking the glass ceiling that kept them in a permanent second-tier workplace for hundreds of years. Since the fight for gender equality began in earnest in the early 20th century, pioneering and brave women have muscled their way into leadership positions at the top of several industries.

 

Now, in 2020, women dominate several professions. These are some of them.

 

Early Education

 

While underpaid for the value they produce, teachers are nonetheless a highly respected class of workers. While there are limitations in terms of salary (a conversation for another day), these positions make up for substantial government benefits and stability.

 

The good news is that teachers’ demand will continue to grow as school districts attempt to whittle down the student-to-teacher ratios in their classrooms and populations grow. For example, preschool teacher demand is expected to increase by as much as 7% in the next ten years – amounting to thousands of new positions throughout the US.

 

Speech-Language Pathologists

 

As the scientific understanding behind autism and other conditions affecting child development and adults is improved through research, the demand for specialists who know how to approach these special-needs cases has increased.

 

Careers available to certified speech-language pathologists with a master’s degree vary dramatically, from working in a classroom setting to helping the elderly with cognitive decline issues such as Alzheimer’s.

 

The demand for these speech-language pathologist professionals may climb by nearly 30% in the coming decade.

 

Chief Executive Officers

 

With CEOs at the helm, the top tier of business leadership has traditionally been dominated by males. However, that has started to change as corporations have realized the benefits of bringing a fresh perspective that a woman leader offers.

 

Despite the horrific consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, the exemplary leadership of women in positions of authority (in government) around the globe has done a great deal to sway public opinion in favor of female leadership – both political and economic.

 

The reshaping of the global economy currently underway, while presenting severe challenges, will also likely open the door further for women to break into new career paths previously off-limits.

Aspiring to Grow as a Leader

Growing as a leader calls for sacrifice. You have to give up old ways and be willing to learn new and better ways of doing things. It means admitting you do not know everything and willing to learn even from the people you lead. Leaders at every level should desire for opportunities for growth.

Are you a leader yearning for growth? Here are some valuable insights to guide you.

Listen to feedback. A leader should enable a conducive environment that encourages the sharing of feedback. As a leader, do not mistake feedback for criticism. Sincere feedback provides a leader with valuable information that leads to better decision making.

Cultivate a cocktail of skills. Leaders cannot be one-dimensional. Best leaders have multiple skills. Also, they are always upgrading their existing competencies. Comfort-zone is never their thing.

Find what motivates you. People are motivated by many things. It could be internal or external. As a leader, identify with what motivates you. Self-motivation provides the daily drive that keeps you going even when you face setbacks.

Learn from your past. People say experience is the best teacher. The mindset of good leadership is to view every experience as an opportunity to learn. To grow as a leader, you must take lessons from previous experiences and apply them in current situations.

Let the sky be the limit. To grow as a leader, do not settle for mediocrity. Stretch your limits. Hold yourself accountable to nothing short of excellence. Constantly exceed expectations.

Do not shy from asking questions. Seek clarity when things are not clear. Leaders are not all-knowing. Growth involves asking the right questions to make informed decisions.

Accept failure as part of leadership. Man is to error, and so are leaders. Growing as a leader entails holding yourself accountable for your failures. However, this does not mean failures should hold you back. Learn from them and respond appropriately.

Listen to those above you. To grow, embrace mentorship from people with more experience. They could be internal or external. The more you walk with those with experience, the more the leadership shoes will grow into you.

Growth as a leader is a personal challenge. It calls for a lot of self-motivation. However, the tips highlighted above can go a long way into helping you grow to become a great leader. Put them into practice. If you fail, dust yourself up and try again until you become what you aspire to be.

Does Your Astrological Sign Actually Mean That?

The year 2020 has meant that many things are coming and going out of trends. A big one that seems to have made a comeback are astrological signs. Now depending on whether you go off the old chart with the original twelve symbols or you have crossed over to now recognizing the 13th Sign, many can often wonder, how true does your astrological Sign fit to you and your personality? 

 

The Original Signs 

 

The original signs comprised of: 

 

Capricorn 

Aquarius 

Pisces 

Aries 

Taurus 

Gemini 

Cancer 

Leo 

Virgo 

Libra 

Scorpio 

Sagitarus 

 

All have their traits and personalities. The “newest” signs of Ophiucus (Oh-Fee-U-cus) and Cetus (See-tus) were never actually viewed as part of the astrological calendar due to the Babylonian followed a 12-month calendar and assigned the 12 constellations of zodiac signs. The constellation of Ophiucus is from December 6th to December 31st, while Cetus is from May 12th to June 6th. However, don’t go into a panic, thinking your zodiac is wholly messed up now. Many still follow the standard “old” zodiac chart. 

 

Personalities

 

 Many firmly believe that their zodiac sign plays a huge role in what makes up their personalities. 

 

Sun Sign

 

Your sun sign dictates your personality.

 

Moon Sign 

 

It is believed that your moon sign plays a part in determining your emotions and how you handle things in everyday life. 

 

Ascendant Sign (rising Sign) 

 

Your ascendant sign helps to determine your social personality. This Sign was on the eastern horizon at the date and time that you were born. It also represents your outward style and appearance. 

 

All of these signs combined are supposed to create you as a whole, but do they? A lot of the time, horoscopes and zodiac profiles are made up of entirely vague paragraphs that you may or may not relate to. Whether you believe them or not is entirely up to you. However, this year alone, many have been flocking to see their astrology makeup and determine if that is true to their personalities. 

 

In an article written on The Guardian, writer Jessa Crispin explains how we are living through an astrological boom, where many books are coming out regarding the subject, the craze of celebrity astrologers, and the numerous astrology apps that have come out, and ever major fashion organization has taken to writing a regular horoscope column in their magazines. You can’t even go on social media without feeling attacked by dozens of astrology pages and memes. Whether astrology holds will continue to be a widely debated topic for as long as we still talk about it. 

 

The Rise of Cryptocurrencies: Top Three Alternatives to Bitcoin

Since the creation of Bitcoin, the concept of a digital currency (cryptocurrency) has taken root around the world. It is slowly being accepted not just by merchants, but by many countries in that they are creating regulations for it. Bitcoin is still the most popular cryptocurrency, but there are alternatives (or altcoins) that are gaining attention. In the crypto space, there are over 1,600 cryptocurrencies in use. There are many entrepreneurs that want to be part of this currency “revolution” by creating their own coins as well as minting them. It is important to note that cryptocurrencies are decentralized, meaning they are not controlled by a government (e.g. U.S. Dollar). Also, their value is volatile for a number of reasons, such as a small market, price is set by supply and demand, and the blockchain technology is new. Yet, it is an exciting time to invest in and use cryptocurrencies, and there is more variety in terms of coins. Let’s take a look at the top three alternatives to Bitcoin. 

 

  1. Ripple – It has a dual function of being a cryptocurrency (XRP) and a platform. The platform is an open-source protocol, which makes international transactions are faster and cheaper. In fact, the transaction fee is $0.00001. The reason for the incredibly low fee is to prevent DDos attacks. For convenience, people can make payments in any currency (e.g. Bitcoin). Ripple has RippleNet, a network of “institutional payment-providers” that enable payments to be made in real time. Also, Ripple uses a consensus ledger (RPCA), which does not utilize the blockchain technology. Verification is done through the nodes, meaning that if all of the nodes are in agreement then the transaction goes through. 
  2. Monero – It’s known as the “private” cryptocurrency. Transactions are untraceable through ring signatures and stealth addresses, which hide transaction details, such as amounts and payment destinations. They cannot be linked to a “real-world user” or to a previous transaction due to the Monero blockchain. Since it is private by default, units cannot be blacklisted by vendors or exchanges. However, Monero is the currency of choice for those on the dark web due to its untraceability. 
  3. Litecoin – Litecoin uses an open-source global payment network (decentralized) for faster transactions and can handle a higher transaction volume than Bitcoin on its blockchain. It uses mathematics to secure the network and gives users more control over their account. Litecoin offers the security of wallet encryption that allows users to view their account balance and transactions, but must provide a password to spend their coins. There is a sanity check before sending payments for added protection. Plus, miners receive a reward of 25 Litecoins per block. Its cap is 84 million, which is four times greater than Bitcoin’s cap. 

 

There many more altcoins, each with their own strengths. I am sure there will be more created on the horizon as cryptocurrency becomes more regulated and more merchants accept them. It will be interesting to see what is purchased with cryptocurrency as it becomes mainstreamed like fiat currencies.

Effective Resources to Help Strengthen your Family’s Finances

Growing up in my community, we didn’t talk about finances. The husband went to work and brought home the paycheck. The wife took care of the household and was given an allowance for household necessities. Talking about money and saving for the future weren’t spoken about and bringing them up resulted in an argument. Times have changed and speaking about finances is encouraged in families, even with young children. High schools teach Economics (or Student Finances) to help students understand the basics of running a business as well as accounting (e.g. budgeting). There are numerous books on finances, especially those to help families be smart with their money. The books below offer great tips and plans to get families started (or continue) on a bright financial path. 

 

  1. Rich Kid Smart Kid: Giving Your Child a Financial Head Start — This book is from the author who wrote Rich Dad Poor Dad, Robert Kiyosaki. He continues to educate people about finances (e.g. financial literacy) and now focuses on teaching parents how to give their children a financial head start. It provides the practical guidance needed to teach children to be financially responsible. The foundation of the book is education – learning about personal and financial success in today’s world. Kiyosaki points out that we are now in the Information Age, which is drastically different from the Industrial Age. Children have different obstacles than their parents and must learn to navigate them, and it starts with smart money management. 
  2. Family Budget Book: Gaining Control of Your Personal Finances — This is geared for families to help them gain control of their finances. This book offers “real world” advice and worksheets to help you apply what you have learned and to make it a habit. You’ll learn to address unexpected costs and to plan for future goals (e.g. a vacation). Also, you’ll uncover where your money goes when creating a budget — one that’s easy to manage and stick to! 
  3. The Opposite of Spoiled: Raising Kids Who Are Grounded, Generous, and Smart About MoneyI choose this book not only for its title but also for the great advice it gives parents on talking to their children about money. The author shares his experiences with finances and those of families of various backgrounds to illustrate the importance of money management. Parents should talk to their kids about money, even answering the difficult questions about its nuances. This book will help parents to raise grounded kids who are financially smart. 

A Condensed History of Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency

Cryptocurrency is different from other kinds of legal tender in that cryptocurrency like Bitcoin isn’t regulated by any kind of federal reserve. Instead, cryptocurrency is a type of digital currency that is generated by encryption techniques, which are used to regulate the generation of new units of the cryptocurrency in question.

 

Encryption ensures that funds are accurately transferred without the need for interference from a central bank. The fact that cryptocurrency is decentralized is also seen as a tremendous asset to enthusiasts from around the world.

 

Bitcoin: The First Cryptocurrency

 

The supposed founder of Bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto, is a man shrouded in mystery. What is known about the creation of Bitcoin is that the first cryptocurrency came into being in late 2008 with the publication of a landmark paper by Satoshi entitled, “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-peer Electronic Cash System.”

 

In that paper, Satoshi outlined the ways in which Bitcoin would utilize the blockchain, a record keeping system for cryptocurrency transactions, in order to keep the nascent currency up and running. The first block of the blockchain wasn’t “mined” until early 2009 when Satoshi himself mined the aptly named Genesis Block.

 

A Year After Bitcoin, Rivals Appear

 

If you had purchased $1,000 of Bitcoin around the time that the Genesis Block was mined, you would have about $45,000,000 today.

 

Though that’s an impressive number, Bitcoin spurred a number of rivals that may have hampered its own success. Rivals to Bitcoin, sometimes known as altcoin, cropped up almost immediately after Bitcoin’s creation in 2008.

 

A few years after Bitcoin, rivals were purportedly offering altcoins with greater levels of anonymity, a key concern for those trafficking in altcoin, and faster transaction speeds. The Litecoin and Namecoin were early cryptocurrency rivals to Bitcoin.

 

Bitcoin Crashes Before Recovering

 

Bitcoin is today valued at around $9,500 per coin. It wasn’t always this rosy a picture. In 2013, Bitcoin had real problems. The price of Bitcoin dropped well below $1,000 for the first time, and eventually the price of Bitcoin would reach its all-time nadir of around $300 per coin.

 

Later in 2013, the value of Bitcoin would once again rise above $1,000. Four years later, Bitcoin would surpass the $10,000 mark for the first time. 

 

Bitcoin is the first cryptocurrency, which opened the door to other cryptocurrencies. As the world begins to accept cryptocurrency as a legal form of payment, it will be interesting to see how it will be regulated.