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The demise of Lehman Brothers can only be understood within the context of the current financial crisis, the biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression. The roots of this crisis have to be found in bad regulation, lack of transparency, and market complacency brought about by several years of positive returns. I will start by explaining these three roots and then I will discuss how Lehman contributed to its own demise and what the consequences of its filing for bankruptcy are.

What you can learn from this ebook

One of the greatest myths in this world is that we’re entitled to live a great life. That somehow, somewhere—someone—is required to fill our lives with continual happiness, enticing career options, empowering family time and blissful personal relationships simply because we exist on this planet. We expect these things—and when they don’t show up, for many of us at least, it’s someone else’s fault.

But perhaps the greatest truth in this world—and the one lesson we hope this program will help you learn over and over again—is that there’s only one person responsible for the life you enjoy here.

That person is YOU.

If you want to be successful, you have to take 100% responsibility for everything you experience in your life. From the level of your achievements to the results you produce, to the quality of your relationships to the state of your health and physical fitness— even responsibility for your feelings, your income, your debts… everything!

This is not easy.

In fact, most of us have been conditioned to blame something outside of ourselves for the parts of our life we don’t like. We blame our parents, our bosses, our teachers, our friends, our co-workers, our clients, our spouse, the weather, the economy, our astrological chart, our lack of good golf clubs—anyone or anything we can pin the blame on. We never want to look at where the real problem is—ourself.

There is a wonderful story that is told about a man who is out walking one night and comes upon a man down on his knees looking for something under a street lamp. The passerby inquires as to what the other man is looking for. He answers that he is looking for his lost key. The man offers to help and gets down on his knees and searches for the key. After an hour of fruitless searching, he says to the man, “We’ve looked everywhere for it and we have not found it. Are you sure that you lost it here?” The other man replies, “No, I lost it in my house, but there is more light out here under the a streetlamp.”

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Gone are the days when we had to step outside to purchase our groceries, book flights and vacations, rent or purchase cars, or just transfer money between bank accounts. Today, we can simply grab our checkbooks, debit cards or credit cards, sit down at a computer in the comfort and safety of our home, and complete these transactions with passwords and PIN numbers. Thanks to advances in technology, the types of transactions we can now complete online are virtually endless.

Unfortunately, the increase in online transactions has been accompanied by an increase in online identity theft. Fraudulent access to personal information over the Internet is increasingly prevalent and sophisticated. Two forms of identity theft are at the forefront of this Internet piracy: PHISHING and PHARMING.

What you can learn from this ebook

Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in America. When a dishonest person has your Social Security number, the thief can use it to get other personal information about you. Most of the time identity thieves use your number and your good credit to apply for more credit in your name. Then, they use the credit cards and do not pay the bills. You do not find out that someone is using your number until you are turned down for credit, or you begin to get calls from unknown creditors demanding payment for items you never bought.

Someone illegally using your Social Security number and assuming your identity can cause a lot of problems. Your Social Security number and our records are confidential. We do not give your number to anyone, except when authorized by law. You should be careful about sharing your number with anyone who asks for it (even when you are provided with a benefit or service).

What you can learn from this ebook

You’ve probably been receiving privacy notices from banks and other financial companies. These notices
explain:

• What personal financial information the company collects

• Whether the company intends to share your personal financial information with other companies

• What you can do, if the company intends to share your personal financial information, to limit some of that sharing

• How the company protects your personal financial information.

Financial companies share information for many reasons: to offer you more services, to introduce new products, and to profit from the information they have about you. If you like to know about other products and services, you may want your financial company to share your personal financial information; in this case, you don’t need to respond to the privacy notice. If you prefer to limit the promotions you receive or do not want marketers and others to have your personal financial information, you must take some important steps.

First, it is important to read these privacy notices. They explain how the company handles and shares your personal financial information. Keep in mind that not all privacy notices are the same. This guide tells you about the other steps you can take to help protect the privacy of your personal financial information.

What you can learn from this ebook

You’ve probably heard about it in the news.

It may even have happened to someone you know.

The FBI calls identity theft one of the fastest growing crimes in the United States and estimates that 500,000 to 700,000 Americans become identity theft victims each year.

Identity theft is a federal crime. It occurs when one person’s identification (which can include name, social security number, or any account number) is used or transferred by another person for unlawful activities.

This booklet is designed to help you understand what identity theft is, how it happens, how to protect yourself, and what steps to take if your identity is stolen.

The consequences of identity theft can be staggering. Victims spend extensive time closing bad accounts, opening new ones, and fixing credit records. There can be high out-of-pocket expenses related to clearing your name. You could be denied loans and jobs — and, though unlikely, you could even be mistakenly arrested as a result of crimes committed in your name.

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In the course of a busy day, you may write a check at the grocery store, charge tickets to a ball game, rent a car, mail your tax returns, change service providers for your cell phone, or apply for a credit card. In each transaction, you reveal bits of personal information, like your bank and credit card account numbers; your income; your Social Security number (SSN); or your name, address, and phone numbers a goldmine of information for an identity thief. Once a thief has that information, it can be used without your knowledge to commit fraud or theft.

Identity theft is a serious crime. People whose identities have been stolen can spend time and money cleaning up the mess the thieves have made of their good name and credit record. They may lose out on job opportunities, and loans for education, housing, or cars. They may even get arrested for crimes they didn’t commit.

Can you prevent an identity theft? As with any crime, you cannot completely control whether you will become a victim. But according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency, you can minimize your risk by managing your personal information cautiously.

What you can learn from this ebook

There are different types of life insurance and choosing a policy is an important decision. You should begin by evaluating the ongoing and future financial needs of those who depend on you. Then become familiar with the various policies available and how they work. You’ll be in a better position to make a selection best suited to your financial needs and those of your family.

The American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) has prepared this guide to help you understand the types of life insurance available and what questions to ask when you’re buying life insurance.

What you can learn from this ebook

You’ve worked hard for your money, and made every attempt to be a conscientious saver. So it’s only natural that you want some control over what happens to your assets in the event of your death. At the very least, you probably want to minimize or avoid potential hassles and headaches for your loved ones.

Estate planning deals with what happens to your assets after you die. Even if you are a person of modest means, you have an estate and several strategies to choose from to make sure that your assets are distributed as you wish and in a timely way. The right strategies depend on your individual circumstances. That is, what is best for your neighbor might not make the most sense for you.

What you can learn from this ebook

Going through portfolio’s of respected investors is another way of generating ideas. Davy Bui of The Enlightened American does a fine job of tracking and displaying hedge fund holdings of respected investors in an easy to read format. There are 41 positions in the portfolio of Warren Buffett and Berkshire so I’ll be breaking it up over numerous posts.

What you can learn from this ebook

We’ve spent a lot of time cruising the websites of brokerage companies and we sympathize with you wholeheartedly. Many of the websites just don’t flow in a logical manner. Some are short and sweet, packed with great information about the company’s products and services. Others spend many pages saying virtually nothing that will help an investor make a decision about which broker is right for him. And one discovery we did make-from the number of pages we had to search to summarize the cost of doing business with them was that the majority of brokerage sites really want you to work hard to ferret out their commissions and fees!

In this report, we have selected 20 firms that offer an array of products for investors at any experience level, several of whom offer both Web-based and software-based trading.

What you can learn from this ebook

In an effort to describe, understand, and quantify the growth of greenwashing, TerraChoice Environmental Marketing Inc. conducted a survey of six category-leading big box stores. Through these surveys, we identified 1,018 consumer products bearing 1,753 environmental claims. Of the 1,018 products examined, all but one made claims that are demonstrably false or that risk misleading intended audiences.

Based on the survey results, we identified six patterns in the greenwashing, which we now recognize as the “Six Sins of GreenwashingTM”.

Of the 1,018 products reviewed, all but one committed at least one of the Six Sins of Greenwashing.

These findings suggest that greenwashing is pervasive, the consequences of which are significant:

• Well-intentioned consumers may be misled into purchases that do not deliver on their environmental promise. This means both that the individual consumer has been misled and that the potential environmental benefit of his or her purchase has been squandered.

• Competitive pressure from illegitimate environmental claims takes market share away from products that offer more legitimate benefits, thus slowing the penetration of real environmental innovation in the marketplace.

• Greenwashing may create cynicism and doubt about all environmental claims. Consumers – particularly those who care most about real environmental progress – may give up on marketers and manufacturers, and give up on the hope that their spending might be put to good use. This would eliminate a significant market-based, financial incentive for green product innovation and leave committed environmental advocates with government regulations as the most likely alternative.

What you can learn from this ebook

Background

Growing a social network without an existing user base can be difficult. This document looks at how significant growth was achieved by existing social networks. including Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, YouTube, Flixster, RockYou, Slide and Plaxo. The document discusses how these tactics can be implemented to the benefit of new social networks.

Is this paper for me?

This document is aimed at marketers with an interest in digital media and online communities.

The paper is also useful for technologists who want to understand the implications of online applications on their business.

What you can learn from this ebook

In May, Peter Sorgenfrei and Warren Sukernek conducted a survey on Twitter regarding users’ perception of brands on Twitter. This was a follow-up to the original Twitter Brand perception survey performed in November. This time we surveyed 208 people with 6 questions regarding interacting with brands. The survey and results are below. A couple of key insights:

1) Not surprisingly, most users (97%) agree that brands should engage their customers on Twitter. This is 8 percentage points higher than the fall survey. Clearly Twitter users want to engage with their brands. We are accustomed to communicating with companies on Twitter.

2) The majority also have a better impression of brands that use Twitter for customer service (88%). This is 7 percentage points higher than the original survey.

3) Proper usage of Twitter however, is paramount as 90% of users would frown upon poor or inappropriate brand use of Twitter. This is equivalent to the results found in the original survey.

4) The power of a relationship is extremely strong on Twitter. 80% of respondents would recommend a company based on their presence on Twitter, a huge 20 percentage point increase from the prior survey and 84% of Twitter users will reward those brands they have key relationships by being more willing to
purchase from them. This was a 5 percentage point increase from the original survey.

5) Influencers: More than 80% of respondents have 100+ followers and almost 35% of respondents have posted more than 1000 Tweets since they signed up for the service.

Download the survey to see the direct numbers and graphs from this survey.

What you can learn from this ebook

This is clearly a challenge for the small business for a number of reasons.

First, start-ups and small businesses have limited capital to spend on marketing campaigns. The capital they do have must be split between product development, personnel, operations, sales, and marketing. In addition, the battle for consumers’ attention from the growing number of companies and brands has driven up marketing costs. Managers must find ways to make the most of the marketing funds available, often relying on inexpensive and even free marketing vehicles.

Second, traditional marketing techniques have become less effective. Television, newspaper, and magazine advertising have simply become noise. Consumers are bombarded with so much advertising that they often tune it out, change the channel, or fast forward past it. In addition, consumers have become more and more skeptical of and insensitive to traditional broadcast advertising.

Third, these traditional techniques may not reach the target market. More people are heading to blogs for their news, satellite for radio, MP3s for music, and the Internet for entertainment. These media are, for the most part, beyond the reach of traditional marketing.

This paper investigates a number of alternative marketing techniques appropriate for entrepreneurs and owner-managers engaged in business-to-consumer ventures.

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