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10 Gen Zers Who Are Innovating the World

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By Kayla Matthews

 

Generation Z sometimes gets a bad rap from older people, but just as with every generation, there are those who are bad seeds and those who strive to make the world a better place.

Gen Z makes up the largest population in the United States, even though it is only 25 percent of the population. There are many reasons why they’re transforming the workplace, but one reason is the large number of Gen Zers who are innovating the world. Here are 10 of the more interesting and innovative Gen Zers.

Jason Li

Jason Li is the founder of iReTron, an electronics company. While in high school he sold comic books, and then he took out a $2,000 loan from his dad and started his company in his bedroom. He is one of those college students also running a business, so when he graduates he will already have hit the ground running with a highly successful company.

Noa Mintz

Noa Mintz, the founder of Nannies by Noa, was only 12 years old when she started the baby-sitting business. While she did eventually hire a CEO to oversee day-to-day operations so she could finish her own education, her vision for a service that was much needed in the New York City area allowed her company to grow into a powerhouse.

Anna Zhang

Anna Zhang is a photographer and social media influencer. She is the editor-in-chief and founder of Pulse Spikes, a quarterly online and print magazine. She also is publishing a collection of essays written by other young influencers.

Akhilesh Khakhar

Akhilesh Khakhar wanted to help other students ace their college entrance exams, so the recent high school grad came up with an app called PrepUp to help them do just that. He’s teamed up with a company to create a complete SAT and ACT prep service that will utilize the app, an online platform and online tutors to prepare students for testing.

Alyssa Kapasi

Alyssa Kapasi noticed that some of her fellow students were going hungry, so she and some of her friends decided to do something about it. Through fundraising and finding sponsors, they were able to expand awareness and motivate school districts to provide free lunch and to donate to the nonprofit Food for Thought.

Matthew Whitaker

Matthew Whitaker is a young jazz musician who has already played in festivals and secured sponsorship deals from musical instrument manufacturers. Whitaker plays the piano, organ and drums, and he also composes and arranges music. Whitaker is blind, but states that he is blessed by God and wants to be a blessing to others.

Sasha Matthews

Sasha Matthews is one of the youngest entrepreneurs to make this list, and her talent is a bit unique. She is a cartoonist who uses her drawings to give a voice to free speech efforts. Her series is called “Everyday Superheroes.” She used the sale of her comics as a fundraiser for the ACLU.

Marley Dias

Marley Dias is a young author who was inspired when she realized there weren’t many stories about girls like her. She said all the books in school were about “white boys and their dogs,” so she launched a campaign called #1000BlackGirlBooks, where she collected and donated books that featured black girls as the main character. She also has her own book out now.

Ryan Felner

Ryan Felner started a business by combining aerial photography with his skills operating drones. He began taking photos in Westport, Connecticut, for those selling real estate, but ran into some issues with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for operating without a commercial license. Not one to be easily dissuaded, he worked with the FAA and took the training needed to get a commercial license.

Maddie Greenspan

It probably isn’t surprising that Maddie Greenspan was destined to become an inventor, since her father is in manufacturing and the family runs a business. Still, when she was frustrated trying to make something fun — slime — because she couldn’t find the ingredients, she decided to just go ahead and make her own.

 

How Can You Change the World?

These young innovators prove that to make an impact, you simply need a vision and the passion to see it through. These are just a few of the amazing under 20-somethings doing big things. It will be interesting to see what they accomplish in their 20s and 30s.

 

About the Author: Kayla Matthews writes about communication and workplace productivity on her blog, Productivity Theory. Her work has also appeared on Talent Culture, MakeUseOf, The Muse and Fast Company.

 

Have a Good Business Idea?

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abizideaThe business world changes every day and if you want your business idea to succeed tomorrow, then you should pay attention to what’s trending today.

That’s right, by keeping an eye on the current market and successful business ideas; you can make an informed decision based on changing consumer needs.

When it comes to learning from current business trends, here are just a few types of businesses that are expected to grow for years to come:

Accounting

Whether it’s for small businesses or individuals, everyone needs help running numbers. If you have a knack for the financial side of life, then starting an accounting business is definitely a promising career. Accounting is a growing business landscape that offers plenty of job opportunities. The field of accounting isn’t something you can just jump into. To become a certified accountant, licensing and training is required. However, if you do have experience, turning your accounting business idea into a reality is a relatively easy and affordable process. From handling company balance sheets to general tax accounting, there’s no end to the growth possibilities of accounting.

Computer and Smartphone Repair

The popularity of computers and smartphones is going to continue to increase exponentially as time goes on. With a little training and basic licensing, you can turn your computer and smartphone repair business idea into a full-fledged career. There are a growing number of repair businesses that specialize in on-site computer hardware and software repairs as well as smartphone screen repairs. In addition, there are also a number of mobile repair businesses that can take care of repairs quickly and on the spot. No matter which direction you take, the computer and smartphone repair industry is really taking off.

Business Planning

If your business idea involves helping others develop their own business plans, then you’re on the right track. As the following article shows, starting a business plan service is 1 of 3 business careers that are actually fun and rewarding for both parties involved. The startup costs for a business planning service are minimal, but the career opportunities are huge. From preparing and formatting business plan layouts to creating financial outlooks, helping others plan their business will provide you with steady work for the foreseeable future. You can even offer add-on services like ongoing business consulting, which will provide you with a steady workflow as opposed to a freelance-style business approach.

Editing

Editorial services take a number of different shapes and forms nowadays. Whether it’s copyediting for online publications or proofreading company documents, businesses and individuals are always in need of quality editors. The best part is, being an editor means you’ll have a flexible career that you can take on in a full-time, part-time, or freelance capacity. Copyediting and proofreading are probably the two main editorial services that come to mind, but you can expand on your business idea to include other services too. Developmental editing, indexing, copywriting, blog writing and editing, ghost writing, and book doctoring are all much-needed services that fall under the editorial services umbrella.

If you want to know your business idea is a worthwhile venture for the future, then take a tip from the top trending businesses above.

Photo credit: Image courtesy of ddpavumba at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

About the Author: Adam Groff is a freelance writer and creator of content. He writes on a variety of topics including business planning and career outlooks.

Innovation. Ownership. Collaboration.

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By Sherrie Rohde

It seems that lately the words innovation, ownership and collaboration are cycling through my daily thought process and conversations at a rate that I can barely keep up with.

Innovation

Innovation is our starting place. With social media we’ve created an outlet for emphasizing every disaster, whether it’s a true world catastrophe or lapse in judgment. Instead of looking at the world with this emphasis of pain and failure, let’s look at it through the lens of “How can we make this a better place?” I’m not saying those problems aren’t real, but it’s time we step up and take ownership to be part of the solution.

Ownership

It’s a bit difficult to separate innovation and ownership, but taking innovation to action requires owning the problem and the idea with a commitment to work towards a solution.

The world would look drastically different if we spent more time identifying a problem to own, rather than fighting for more space, more time, or more money in our own little part of the world.
—Lara Galinsky, Harvard Business Review

When we have a sense of ownership, we take pride in that thing we have owned, whether it be an idea or a project or a community. I recently made the decision to identify what I’m passionate about and to learn to say no to projects that didn’t fall under that umbrella. Not only did it make life far less stressful, but it also made it easy to focus on those problems I did choose to own.

Collaboration

There comes a point where we realize that despite our aspiration for innovation and ownership of the problem, we can’t do it by ourselves. And why should we? When we connect with the right people, those whose goals are aligned with ours, our force is stronger and our reach is further.

Let’s work together to make a difference.

Identify a problem to innovate. Take ownership. Collaborate for impact.

Solve big problems.

Author’s Bio: Sherrie Rohde writes about community management at mycmgr.com. She is passionate about community innovation in the tech space with an emphasis on user experience and e-commerce. Sherrie loves learning and is energized by helping others succeed. Recently she’s collaborated with Jennifer Shaw to solve the big problem of tech education for rural women in America through bellaminds.com. You can connect with her on Twitter as @sherrierohde or Google+.

What Are Your Assumptions?

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By James Ellis

closeup_donkeyPeople don’t read the web, they scan. People don’t like to click. People don’t look past the first four Google search results. People only search Google with 2-3 word search terms. People don’t open their email on the weekends. People don’t spend money online. People don’t trust strangers online. No one cares what you had for breakfast. No one will want to look at a picture of your lunch. People buy most Christmas gifts online on the Monday after Thanksgiving. No one will download a movie to watch on their phone.

All of the above statements were once considered gospel at one time. Gospel. Carved into stone tablets. Given to marketers’ children to recite every morning.

But you should all see at least one statement that you know to be patently false (in fact, I’m pretty sure that they almost all are, depending on circumstances). But they linger on, because they are based on assumptions.

These are just examples of online/web/tech assumptions that linger in the minds of people close to us (especially clients and bosses). There are plenty of business, blogging and personal assumptions we make and live by that simply aren’t true anymore (assuming they ever were).

Assumptions are the blind spots in our vision. We see them without acknowledging them every day. We work around them instead of challenging them, when challenging them is how we create success. Think of Kodak and Poloroid, who assumed we’d always want printed pictures. Think of Ford (circa 2009) who assumed Americans only bought big cars. Think of the music industry, who assumed that we wouldn’t like to download our music whenever we wanted.

Businesses fail every day because their assumptions were wrong. Businesses thrive every day because they took a chance on challenging assumptions. Think of Starbucks, who didn’t listen to the assumptions that people wouldn’t pay $5 for a cup of coffee. Think of Apple, who didn’t listen to the assumption that people didn’t want to check their email every second of the day. Think of Rick Bayless who didm’t listen to the assumption that Mexican food is cheap food.

What are the assumptions you live with every day? Are you challenging them? If you don’t, what happens when someone else does?

Author’s Bio: James Ellis is a digital strategist, mad scientist, lover, fighter, drummer and blogger living in Chicago. You can reach out to him or just argue with his premise at saltlab.com.

Photo credit: Dieter van Baarle, Flickr CC.

3 Ways to Recharge Your Business Creativity

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by
Stephen Key

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Why Letting Your Inner Child Out Can Benefit Your Business

How many times have you watched your son or daughter’s imagination shine as they play with their friends or by themselves? Children are incredible dreamers and creators who have no inhibitions about letting creativity dictate their actions. To me, entrepreneurship is synonymous with creativity. People often talk about business and art as if the two couldn’t be more separate, but both celebrate the value of looking at the world a little differently than everyone else. The best entrepreneurs see possibility and opportunity where others have failed to, because they’re able to spot unique and powerful ideas that will resonate with consumers. Developing and celebrating your creative energy can benefit your business in countless ways.

I’ve spent the past twenty years bringing my product ideas to life. Thinking creatively has helped me invent and innovate, but even more importantly, I’d argue, it has helped me problem solve. Business owners are constantly surprised by new and different conflicts to overcome. You’ll never be able to predict them all. The more comfortable you become with quickly brainstorming solutions, the better your business will be. There’s never just one answer. And that’s why being able to think outside the box when your business is faced with a seemingly impenetrable roadblock is important. Somewhere along the way most of lose the ability to dream and imagine as easily as we did as children; being able rekindle these skills will help your business.

3 Ways to Recharge Your Business Creativity

I don’t believe that certain individuals are inherently more creative than others. The belief that ‘you’re just not creative’ is an excuse. We’re all creative! As children, we’re all able to dream and imagine with abandon. But like any other skill, creativity requires practice, commitment, and inspiration. I’ve found that playing games helps recharge my creativity.

The first one is, ‘What If?’ When I try to imagine new product ideas or encounter a problem in my daily life, I allow myself to ask any question I want to. What if we lived in a world that __? What if I were able to __? There are no right or wrong questions (nor answers!). I remember my own three children asking me question after question when they were little. Questions lead to answers, answers lead to more questions, and creative juices flow during the process!

The second game I play I call, ‘Mix and Match’. I combine several ideas together, even if they don’t seem to make immediate sense. Someone really hit the nail on the head when they matched a camera and phone, after all…. Some of the best ideas actually combine existing concepts or products in interesting ways. Think about all the times you’ve watched your son or daughter play with their toys in unique ways. They are no strangers to mixing and matching to make things new and exciting.


The third creative game I use is called ‘Solve It’. What do you wish was made better? What would you do to change it? Some products and services have been around for so long, we no longer even think about what it would be like if they were different. Don’t take any assumptions for granted, and stop subconsciously assuming what is and isn’t possible.


And finally, don’t forget to get inspired. Seek out friends, family, and peers who, like loved and empowered children, believe that anything’s possible and embrace the alternative. Some people are more receptive to new ideas than others. At the least, find someone whose first word isn’t always ‘no’.

Break out of your normal mold and schedule. How can you imagine something different and unique if you always do and see the exact same things? Change your route to work. Try a new restaurant instead of your neighborhood favorite. I know your schedule is hectic, but make time to read a new book or magazine, or watch an interesting film. Exposing yourself to new ideas and ways of thinking will jumpstart your own creativity.

Above all, allow your creative inner child to emerge to help bring your business to new heights.

What do you do to inspire your creativity?

Author’s Bio:
Stephen Key writes about licensing and small business at www.inventornotes.com. He is also author of One Simple Idea and One Simple Idea for Startups and Entrepreneurs. You can find Stephen on Twitter as @inventright ()

Thank you, Steven. Love your thoughts on inspiring creativity!

–Me “Liz” Strauss

Brats: The Highly-Adapted, New Model Human!

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Not Just Kids at Heart

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Have you bumped into full-grown adults lately who seem to have missed the maturity train? Maybe you’ve been one. I know I have. I’m not talking about kids at heart. I mean kids in most all behaviors including these.

  • short attention spans
  • unexplainable sense of fashion
  • heightened need for fast action, novelty, and sensation
  • lack of respect for tradition
  • unpredictability, and lack of balance in priorities
  • a tendency to overreact

When I was a kid, we had a name for when we acted too much that way.

I found out his week — we’re no longer brats!

Now at least one scientist, B.G. Charlton, is saying that immature behavior is the best thing going for the human race.
[Read more…]