What I learned this week, February 8, 2013

I’m afraid there are a couple of these I wouldn’t mind having. I will not tell you which ones.

California vs. Texas: Wild West Shootout

But behind the posturing lies a riveting drama. Two of our biggest and richest states, polar opposites on the political spectrum, are taking radically different approaches to attracting new jobs. Policymakers in Washington and beyond will be watching closely to see who comes out on top.

….

This is the Ali vs. Frazier of interstate rivalries. It promises to be the fight of the decade.

The Top Tools for Productivity

The number one tool is the Pomodoro Technique – which I’ve found to be very useful.

An Idea Pomodoro – timer, pen, composition book.

Hail Columbia!

The federal government’s relentless expansion has made Washington, D.C., America’s real Second City.

The Washington, D.C., region has long been considered recession-proof, thanks to the remorseless expansion of the federal government in good times and bad. Yet it’s only now—as D.C. positively booms while most of the country remains in economic doldrums—that the scale of Washington’s prosperity is becoming clear. Over the past decade, the D.C. area has made stunning economic and demographic progress. Meanwhile, America’s current and former Second Cities, population-wise—Los Angeles and Chicago—are battered and fading in significance. Though Washington still isn’t their match in terms of population, it’s gaining on them in terms of economic power and national importance.

In fact, we’re witnessing the start of Washington’s emergence as America’s new Second City. Whether that’s a good thing for America is another question.