A mystery novel perfectly molded to the current economic downturn March 13, 2009
Posted by Eugene Aronsky in Authors, Stephen Kahn, Thriller, book reviews, books, depression, e-books, new books, reading, recession, search for books.Tags: Death Wave, fiction books, financial crisis novel, Stephen Kahn
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In an effort to escape from the ever present bad news that seems to be the cornerstone of our current civilization I have spent much time recently watching old movies, and reading good books.
The desire that I feel to escape to a “happier time” is understandable, after all, we are living in an unstable world, where no one knows what the next shoe that will drop will be. Oddly enough, instead of turning to fantasy or other such genres I find greater comfort in books that mimic reality, reading about the extremes of what could be possible, but thankfully what has not yet occurred.
One such book is “Death Wave” by Stephen Kahn. This book provides an excellent analysis into much of what is currently happening in our world – in terms of the financial crisis.
From the book cover:
“In the midst of a financial crisis one man must save the world with the aid of a maniacal serial killer, his dead hamster, and a homeless bum named “Troll”.
Stewart is a young man trying to keep it together during the worst financial crisis since the great depression. The corrupt politics and corporate scandals…”
If you want to read more about this book, or listen to free excerpts from the audio book, please go to http://www.kafilmworks.com/deathwave/contents
Some thoughts about college from a recent graduate: “The Ugly Truth, what “they” don’t tell you” March 3, 2009
Posted by Eugene Aronsky in Great Depression, Interns, Kyle Schiller, We Compare Books, business, colleges, depression, economy, education, recession.Tags: Bachelor’s degree, college, education, Internships, learning, study abroad, university education
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Remember as you were growing up your parents inundating you with the idea that to be successful you have to go to college? It was good advice on its own, but guess what? Everyone else’s parents were telling them the same thing.
The ugly truth is that a college education and a Bachelor’s degree is to our day what a high school degree was to kids fifty or sixty years ago. It’s so commonplace to have a B.A. or a B.S. that it doesn’t really set you apart from anyone else in the job market anymore. And it’s no revelation that the quality of collegiate education isn’t what it was back in the days when it meant something to go to college.
So what do you do to set yourself apart from the rest, especially with these challenging economic times and the highest unemployment rate in roughly forty years? As a recent graduate and one facing the grim prospects for the job market in the near future, there are a couple of things I would recommend to current and prospective college students.
First, internships. Though they may be required at certain schools and in certain programs, internships are an invaluable thing to have on one’s résumé regardless. Studying abroad is great if you have the opportunity, but it doesn’t impress as much as an internship. An internship shows employers that you are able to translate classroom learning to workplace skills. A (hopefully) successful internship demonstrates that you have real world experience and relieves worries that they’d have to train you from the start. You may learn how to use a specific software or system that is crucial in your industry, or you may gain management or administrative experience. If you’re lucky, some internships may even become actual job offers upon graduation. At the very least you will meet people and gain networking opportunities.
Speaking of which, the second thing to pursue is networking. This has become something of a hype word, but the hype doesn’t reduce its importance. Networking, or meeting people and making connections, is the most vital thing one can do as a student and as a professional. It has been said that around only 30% of job opportunities are advertised in classifieds or on job sites, while the other 70% are acquired through direct referrals. These statistics may not be completely accurate, but what is accurate is the fact that more people get jobs through contacts in the company or organization they are applying to than through cold applying and hoping for an interview. Networking is a skill that is developed and can’t be learned overnight. I know from experience how intimidating it can be to face a room full of established, successful people and find the courage to approach them. But if you can overcome your fear and master this skill it will become the most essential tool in your belt.
Lastly, learning a marketable skill will always distinguish you from the sea of applicants. Are you a business student? Learn a foreign language. Art? Learn web-based graphics. Whatever industry or sector your studies are taking you, if you take the time to learn the skills that are required and valued in your line of work you show employers that you bring to the table abilities and knowledge that you can use from day one.
Don’t neglect the classroom, but know that academic success won’t necessarily get you everywhere you wish to be. Augment classroom studies with real world experience, networking and a marketable skill and you will be sure to impress on interview day.
OK, so it’s a recession and you are a recent college grad, or you just got laid-off, or you lost your job b/c your sector was eliminated, or… what do you do now? February 22, 2009
Posted by Eugene Aronsky in Eugene Aronsky, Great Depression, We Compare Books, colleges, deflation, depression, economy, education, entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, founders, recession.Tags: blog, entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, job search, jobs, laid-off, youtube
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Lately, as the economy continues to decline I have seen more and more of this, my friends, and friends of friends, and pretty much everyone else I went to college with who managed to get a job post graduation are now facing layoffs. These are all people with a graduate education, but given that the economy is loosing half a million jobs a month, and last hired makes you the first to get laid off recent grads (within 2 years of graduation) are being hit hard. The bright side in all this is that having a college education still makes you far less likely to be unemployed (unless of course you are in the finance, or real estate industry). The reality is, and this is something that has surprised me, a number of my friends who have gotten laid off managed to find new jobs within a few weeks, and a few even got a raise! And what’s more, some sectors seem to be far less susceptible to the downturn we are having, and a few sectors such as parts of IT, online development, e-commerce are still expanding and are still hiring. So there is some cause to be optimistic!
So the question you might ask is, what is there to do for the rest of us? What can one do if they just graduated from college and have no experience, or what can a person who just lost a job in an industry facing a severe downturn do? The answer is simple! Well OK, not simple, and not easy, but few things worth doing in life really are…
This is probably the best time in many years to start a business, to be an entrepreneur, to follow your dreams, to build or create something new. Some of the bluest of the blue chip companies we know today were founded during the Great depression, (Boeing being one). Others, such as Coca-Cola took advantage of the depression to codify their brand in the minds of Americans. What is more, the current recession seems to have significant other advantages for those of us looking to start a business, one being that the barrier to entry, to many businesses has disappeared. Years ago, if I wanted to start a newspaper I would need significant resources, today I can start a blog for free. If I wanted to produce documentaries, I had to have a studio; today I can do it with a digital camera and youtube. If I wanted to teach anything I had to have some type of resources to get started- today I can use my webcam to create lectures on any subject, from philosophy, and teaching Chinese, to quantum physics, and I can promote these lectures through video sharing sites and my blog, once there is a following for my lectures I can institute a small fee for the more advanced lectures (while continuing to provide the beginners lectures for free). I can open up a store, or sell widgets online for very little, if any start up cost, and given that we are all looking for ways to save money more and more of us are turning to the internet to purchase our widgets. The possibilities are really endless, restricted only by your interests, and your creativity.
The point I am trying to make is that there is more than one way to look at this recession, one way is to look at it as years lost, another is to look at it as an opportunity to make a name for yourself, or to grow a business, and this way when we come out of this recession you will be in a stronger position.
This is great advice for students and those with few responsibilities, and I understand that for many of us we need to have money to pay for the kids’ new clothes, and for the mortgage. So to those of us out there with responsibilities, my advice is this, continue networking, continue looking for a job, sending resumes… but instead of doing that for 8 hours a day, do it for 6 hours and spend the other 2 hours on some of the other ideas that you might have.
Buying (affording) textbooks during a recession October 9, 2008
Posted by Eugene Aronsky in economy, recession.add a comment
There are perhaps very few positive things about a recession, people lose jobs, and life is more difficult in general. The one positive thing is that during a recession the “used” market tends to expand as people are looking to save money. This is especially a truism when it comes to textbooks. Although I am sure that the prices of new textbooks will continue to increase (though perhaps not as much), there will be, and already is, an increase in the amount of quality used books/textbooks on the market. As people look for ways to cut back and save money, they also look for things that they can sell to make a little extra money, and books are a quick and easy thing to sell. This trend of increased used books creates downward pressure on the overall prices of books, causing average prices of used books to drop significantly, which is, again, fantastic for those shopping for that used textbooks.
My single word of advice, relevant in the current market more than ever, is to shop around, and compare prices. Bargain shopping does not make you cheap, it makes you smart; going to your college bookstore and paying full price, when you can get the same book online cheaper makes you stupid. It pains me to say this as I can recall times when I purchased my textbooks in the school bookstore. But those were different times, and at the time I wasn’t very savvy. Do not make the same mistakes I did! Buy online or buy local, but buy at the lowest possible price.
Books and recession October 9, 2008
Posted by Eugene Aronsky in economy, recession.add a comment
Well, it’s not official yet, but the US economy (and probably the world economy at large) is headed for a recession. It is said that during a recession discretionary spending declines and I agree with this, but for me books have never fallen into the category of discretionary spending. Reading, and owning books is an important part of life, especially if you are a student, and I’d like to take this time to share with you some thoughts on why a recession might be the best moment to get the best deals on books.
My website was created primarily to help college students save money on textbooks, but the site allows users to compare any book, as long as you are able to provide something from this list: keyword, author, or an ISBN. And although it is always important to shop around, compare prices, and look for the best deal, this is especially important with the economy we have today because you are bound to find much, much better deals. As people look for extra cash they often try to sell whatever they can, books, cd’s, etc. This tends to depress the costs of these items as there are more of them to go around, and those who are more eager to sell will offer a lower price, thus the equation is simple, “more books on the market + desire to sell=cheaper prices, and great deals”. Also, since our service will always be free for end-users, you never have to pay a cent in order to get the best price on books, in three mouse clicks.
