How To Be Smart (Part 2)

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Developing good habits is one sure way of maintaining a healthy life. It improves your emotional intelligence. It’s another phase in learning the art of being smart. Here are some suggested practical steps to continually take to cultivate and sustain good habits:

1.  Always ask questions. Asking questions and questioning everything around us constantly is what makes us smarter. There's nothing wrong with not knowing the whys or the hows! Everybody has something that they don't know. But by developing a healthy habit about asking politely when you don't know something, you'll find yourself getting smarter and smarter.

2.     Set goals once a week. Ask yourself during each goal-setting session, how many of last week's goals did I achieve? Why didn't I accomplish some of my goals and what can I do to give myself a greater chance of success?

- Constantly work hard to achieve each of your goals. Without goals, you would have nothing to hope for. Reward yourself after accomplishing your goal.

- Be organized. You don't need to be a total neat freak, but wasting time is not smart. Of course, there are many geniuses who are completely disorganized (think of the absent-minded professor) but if you're making an active effort to be smart, taking a conscious approach to how you spend your time is a big step in the right direction.

3.     Devote time to education. Educating yourself takes time, and if you want to get smarter it is going to require effort. Education doesn’t just mean attending school and coming out on top of the class. School is just one source of information. If you have straight A's, that doesn't mean that you are smart (though that could mean brilliance). There are many sources of information out there. For example: books, documentaries, and the almost boundless Internet. Exercising an open mind will make you more intelligent and constantly learning will help you achieve your dream of being smart. Don’t expect it to happen overnight. You need to spend a lot of time actively thinking and learning if you want to really be smart.

Source: Wikihow

The Use of the Internet in Modern-day Politics

Town halls, railroads and highways were the platform in the 19th century where political manifestos were delivered. Introduction of the electronic media started in the early 60s. Now, with the massive increase of internet users in the world, businesses are now conducted on the internet quickly and results generated with speed.

Politics which was resident in the print and electronic media in past years is now gaining an increased internet presence, especially with the advent of social media networks.

This can be seen from the run to the Presidency of US President Barrack Obama in 2007 and also in 2011. Many still argue that the then 46-year old Illinois Senator was a long-shot to the Presidency. With a tactical use of the internet, Obama and his team emphatically won the election and the re-election.

Other countries have also taken to the internet to promote and monitor their election campaigns and effects as can be seen in the recent elections of Japan and Iran and some others. 
Nigeria's President, Goodluck Jonathan, also used Facebook and other internet channels to promote his campaigns and canvass votes for the 2011 election. Stringent electoral internet-related laws are already being adjusted in several other countries to accommodate the changes in the present world.

If politics can be largely influenced by the internet, why can't any business then thrive with the efficient use of the internet?