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How do you say yes when you have no idea how to deliver? My cofounders and I built Moment Factory by saying yes to projects most people thought were impossible. Long before the technology existed, we designed interactive concerts, illuminated night walks through forests, and towering LED installations in airports. Every project started with the same challenge: Finding the path to make the impossible possible. The unknown isnt unique to our industry. Every creative team faces itstartups launch apps no one knew they needed, architects design spaces no one had imagined, chefs invent dishes no one had tasted. At the beginning of every project, you dont know the outcome or what discoveries lie ahead. But uncertainty is where creativity begins. After 25 years and more than 600 creations, we developed a framework to help teams navigate uncertainty. We call it The Journey Into the Unknown, structured around four tools: The Map, The Crew, The Ship, and The Compass of Amazing. It builds a shared language, aligns teams, fosters trust, and keeps everyone moving forward together. Next time a project feels impossible, let this framework guide your journey into the unknown. THE MAP No explorer started with a complete map of undiscovered territory. At first, your map will be messy, incomplete, and full of gaps. The key is to start with the fragments of information you have and let them guide you in an initial direction: the context, the brief, the timeline, the budget, the objectives, the audiences, and your initial assumptions and ideas. Each small step uncovers something new. Every decision and experiment adds layers of detail, gradually revealing the direction and shape of the map. Progress is not linear, but each step should bring a clearer sense of the path ahead, and thats the Map in action: by trusting this process, we could zigzag through decisions and discover our breakthrough moment. THE CREW Your team is your Crew. Once you have your Map, you need to cast your Crew carefully. A strong team is a multidisciplinary mix of great talentschosen with intention and purpose. The right individuals, with the right expertise and the right mix, kept as lean as possible, supporting one another and sharing knowledge across disciplines, are what makes the work come alive. Picture the classic standoff: Creatives could spend years conceptualizing ideas and exploring every possibility, while production teams push for specificstimelines, budgets, roadmaps. The creative says, It needs to feel more magical. The producer responds, Whats that going to cost? This tension isnt a flawits the balance that keeps the Ship upright. You need both the dreamers and the builders, and when they align, when they understand each others reality, breakthrough work becomes possible. THE SHIP The Ship carries the Crew and the tools for the journey. Each project requires a different ship to carry your Crew and their tools from concept to execution. For some missions, a mothership with support vessels is essential; for others, a small, fast, agile craft is enough. The right ship will have the fuel, speed, and capacity suited to the journey, carrying just the right team to get the project across the finish line. THE COMPASS OF AMAZING The Compass of Amazing is your instinct. Everyone has a creative instinct shaped by past experiences. Its a guide, like one youd bring on a trip, helping you decide your next move. Every journey into the unknown is made of thousands of small decisionsand its success depends on the accumulation of good ones, never just one. Following your Compass often means making choices that arent obvious and trusting a hunch, even when it feels risky. Take John Lennon during the recording of Strawberry Fields Forever: He had two very different takesone with a Mellotron, the other with brass and strings. Rather than choosing one, he trusted his instinct that combining them could create something extraordinary. It was a technical challenge, but that intuition produced a groundbreaking result that changed how records were produced. Using your Compass is about recognizing intuitive moments just like Lennon did. When you pitch an idea and the whole room leans forward, thats your Compass pointing true north. If that feeling disappears, stop, feel, and realign to chart a new course from there. SAY YES TO THE UNKNOWN Every impossible project will be a rollercoaster of excitement, fear, doubt, and hope. Embrace it. These feelings arent obstacles; theyre part of the creative process. When a project lands in front of you, ask yourself: Does it feel exciting? and Does it align with my values? If the answer is yes, be courageous and boldly step forward. Your Map will gradually reveal itself, your Crew will rise to the challenge, your Ship will take shape, and your Compass of Amazing will guide your decisions. Fear will inevitably surface along the way. When it does, remember past moments of uncertainty and how they ultimately unfolded. The journey into the unknown is always a dance between chaos and order. A certain amount of chaos is essentialit sparks discovery and creativitybut too much becomes dysfunction and stifles imagination. The creative process flows from uncertainty to clarity, and it is in that delicate balance that ideas ignite, projects take shape, and something truly remarkable emerges. Sakchin Bessette is the cofounder and executive creative director of Moment Factory.
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E-Commerce
One year after Donald Trump retook the White House and set into motion a dramatic expansion of executive power, the Republican president figures prominently in state and local elections being held Tuesday.The results of those contests the first general election of Trump’s second term will be heralded by the victors as either a major repudiation or resounding stamp of approval of his second-term agenda. That’s especially true in high-profile races for Virginia and New Jersey governor, New York City mayor and a California proposition to redraw its congressional district boundaries.More than half of the states will hold contests on Tuesday. Here’s a look at some of the major statewide and local races on the ballot: Governors: New Jersey and Virginia In New Jersey, Democrat Mikie Sherrill and Republican Jack Ciattarelli are the nominees to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy. Sherrill is a four-term U.S. representative and former Navy helicopter pilot. Ciattarelli is a former state Assemblyman backed by Trump. In 2021, Ciattarelli came within about 3 percentage points of toppling Murphy.In Virginia, Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears and Democratic former U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger look to replace term-limited Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin. While Spanberger has made some efforts to focus on topics other than Trump in stump speeches, the president remained a major topic of conversation throughout the campaign, from comments Earle-Sears made about him in 2022 to some of his more polarizing policies, such as the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill tax and spending cut measure and the widespread dismissal of federal workers, many of whom live in northern Virginia.Trump was scheduled to participate in telephone rallies for the candidates on Monday night.As the only gubernatorial races held in the year following a presidential election, the contests have long served as the first major test of voter sentiment toward the party holding the White House. In every race for governor since 1973, one or both states have elected a governor from a party different than that of the sitting president. New York City Mayor The race to lead the nation’s largest city features Democratic state legislator Zohran Mamdani, independent candidate and former Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa.Mamdani’s comfortable victory over Cuomo in the June primary generated excitement from the party’s more progressive wing and apprehension among the party establishment. Party leaders like Gov. Kathy Hochul and U.S. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries eventually endorsed the self-described democratic socialist months after he won the nomination.The winner will replace outgoing Mayor Eric Adams, who initially sought renomination as a Democrat. After losing the primary Adams opted to run as an independent, but dropped out of the race in September and eventually endorsed Cuomo. In February, the Trump Justice Department asked a court to drop corruption charges against Adams because the case impeded Trump’s “immigration objectives.” Trump later said he’d like to see both Adams and Sliwa drop out of the race in an effort to defeat Mamdani. California Proposition 50 California voters will decide a statewide ballot measure that would enact a new congressional map that could flip as many as five Republican-held U.S. House seats to Democratic control.Proposition 50, championed by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, is in response to a new Texas map that state Republicans enacted in August as part of Trump’s efforts to keep the U.S. House under Republican control in the 2026 midterms. The Texas plan, which could help Republicans flip five Democratic-held U.S. House seats, has sparked an escalating gerrymandering arms race among states to pass new maps outside of the regular once-a-decade schedule. Pennsylvania Supreme Court Control of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court will be at stake when voters cast Yes or No votes on whether to retain three justices from the high court’s 5-2 Democratic majority.Partisan control of the court could have major implications for the 2028 presidential race, since justices might be asked to rule on election disputes, as they did in 2020. Spending on Tuesday’s contests is on track to exceed $15 million as Republicans have campaigned to end the majority and Democrats have responded.If all three justices are ousted, a deadlock in the confirmation process to replace them could result in a court tied at 2-2. An election to fill any vacant seats for full 10-year terms would be held in 2027. Other notable contests VIRGINIA ATTORNEY GENERAL: Republican incumbent Jason Miyares seeks a second term against Democrat Jay Jones. Much of the fall campaign has focused on text messages suggesting violence against political rivals that Jones sent in 2022.TEXAS-18: Sixteen candidates hope to fill a vacant congressional seat previously held by the late Democratic U.S. Rep. Sylvester Turner.STATE LEGISLATURES: Control of the Minnesota Senate and Virginia House of Delegates is at stake, while New Jersey Democrats defend their 52-28 General Assembly majority.BALLOT MEASURES: Maine voters will decide statewide questions on voting and a “red flag” law aimed at preventing gun violence. Texas’ 17 ballot measures include constitutional amendments on parental rights and limiting voting to U.S. citizens. Colorado and Washington also have statewide measures on the ballot.MAYORS: Detroit, Pittsburgh, Jersey City and Buffalo will elect new mayors, while incumbents in Atlanta, Minneapolis and Cincinnati seek another term. Follow the AP’s coverage of the 2025 election at https://apnews.com/projects/election-results-2025/. Robert Yoon, Associated Press
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E-Commerce
In addition to voting in the highly anticipated mayoral race this November, New Yorkers will make another consequential decision this election day. They’ll also decide whether the city will begin holding elections only on even-numbered calendar years. While it may sound irrelevant, it’s an important yay or nay. The measure, as written in Ballot Proposal 6, would mean that off-year primary and general elections would begin taking place in the same year as the presidential elections. If New Yorkers voted for the proposal, it would be in line with what New York state has already been moving toward. Earlier this month, the Court of Appeals unanimously voted to uphold a law that moved many town and county elections to even-numbered years. Now, those in NYC will have to decide whether to follow suit. Why does this matter for New Yorkers? Proponents of the proposal say that it will increase voter turnout, given it streamlines elections. In New York, historically, odd-year elections bring about extraordinarily low turnout, which seems to be getting worse. In the last mayoral election, which took place in an odd-year (2021), only 23% made it to the polls. Even this year, with a high-profile mayoral election and turnout trending upward, some predictions say that only between 30 to 40% of New Yorkers will vote. And, according to a 2022 Citizens United report, the six largest U.S. cities that hold local elections in odd-numbered years see turnout between 10% to 38% for mayoral races. Meanwhile, the six largest cities that have their elections in even-numbered years see numbers between 50% and 75%. And 60% of New Yorkers voted in the presidential election. In addition to the potential for higher voter turnout, streamlining elections could also mean improving elections, as election officials can use the off-years for other essential tasks and save money. According to a 2024 report from the citys Independent Budget Office, “if the City held on-cycle local elections, there would be fiscal year savings of approximately $42 million every other year.” The flipside While most New Yorkers are in favor of the proposal, some worry that shifting elections to even-numbered years could mean that during presidential election years, local issues don’t get as much attention. Likewise, ballots will have to cover more ground, meaning they could become much longer, and thus more confusing for voters. It could also mean that some voters only vote for the most consequential or high-profile races, a trend which has shown up in certain localities that have already begun to streamline elections. Still, according to Citizens United, “the evidence from the cities that consolidated elections and from New York City does not suggest that ballot drop-off is a significant issue.”
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E-Commerce
Flight delays continued at U.S. airports Sunday amid air traffic controller shortages as the government shutdown entered its second month, with Newark airport in New Jersey experiencing delays of two to three hours.New York City’s Emergency Management office said on X that Newark delays often ripple out to the region’s other airports.Travelers flying to, from or through New York “should expect schedule changes, gate holds, and missed connections. Anyone flying today should check flight status before heading to the airport and expect longer waits,” the social media post added.George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Dallas Fort Worth International Airport and Chicago O’Hare were also seeing dozens of delays and one or two cancellations, along with major airports in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Denver and Miami, according to FlightAware.As of Sunday evening, FlightAware said there were 4,295 delays and 557 cancelations of flights within, into or out of the U.S., not all related to controller shortages. In July, before the shutdown, about 69% of flights were on time and 2.5% were canceled.U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has been warning that travelers will start to see more flight disruptions the longer controllers go without a paycheck.“We work overtime to make sure the system is safe. And we will slow traffic down, you’ll see delays, we’ll have flights canceled to make sure the system is safe,” Duffy said Sunday on CBS’S “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan.”He also said he does not plan to fire air traffic controllers who don’t show up for work.“Again when they’re making decisions to feed their families, I’m not going to fire air traffic controllers,” Duffy said. “They need support, they need money, they need a paycheck. They don’t need to be fired.”Earlier in October, Duffy had warned air traffic controllers who had called in sick instead of working without a paycheck during the shutdown risked being fired. Even a small number of controllers not showing up for work is causing problems because the FAA has a critical shortage of them.The Federal Aviation Administration said Friday on X that nearly 13,000 air traffic controllers have been working without pay for weeks.Staffing shortages can occur both in regional control centers that manage multiple airports and in individual airport towers, but they don’t always lead to flight disruptions. According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, flight data showed strong on-time performance at most major U.S. airports for the month of October despite isolated staffing problems throughout the month.Before the shutdown, the FAA was already dealing with a long-standing shortage of about 3,000 air traffic controllers. Barbara Ortutay, Associated Press
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E-Commerce
President Donald Trump’s administration faces deadlines on Monday to tell two federal judges whether it will comply with court orders that it continue to fund SNAP, the nation’s biggest food aid program, using contingency funds during the government shutdown.The U.S. Department of Agriculture planned to freeze payments to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program starting Nov. 1 because it said it could no longer keep funding it due to the shutdown. The program serves about 1 in 8 Americans and is a major piece of the nation’s social safety net and it costs about $8 billion per month nationally.The situation leaves millions with uncertainty about how they will feed themselves. Benefits will be delayed in November regardless of the outcome of the court cases because many beneficiaries have their cards recharged early in the month and the process of loading cards can take a week or more in many states.Democratic state attorneys general or governors from 25 states, as well as the District of Columbia, challenged the plan to pause the program, contending that the administration has a legal obligation to keep it running in their jurisdictions. Cities and nonprofits also filed a lawsuit.On Friday, judges in Rhode Island and Massachusetts ruled separately that the administration must continue to pay for SNAP. They both gave the administration leeway on whether to fund the program partially or in full for November.The USDA has a $5 billion contingency fund for the program, but the Trump administration reversed an earlier agency plan to use that money to keep SNAP running. Democratic officials argue that the administration could also use a separate fund of about $23 billion.U.S. District Judge John J. McConnell in Providence, Rhode Island, said SNAP must be funded using at least contingency funds, and he asked for an update on progress by Monday.He said all previous work requirement waivers must continue to be honored. During the shutdown, the USDA has terminated existing waivers that exempted work requirements for older adults, veterans and others.In Boston, U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani ruled the suspension was unlawful and said USDA has to pay for SNAP. Talwani ordered the federal government to advise by Monday whether they will use emergency reserve funds to provide reduced SNAP benefits for November or fully fund the program using both contingency funds and additional available funds.Advocates and beneficiaries say halting the food aid would force people to choose between buying groceries and paying other bills. The majority of states have announced more or expedited funding for food banks or novel ways to load at least some benefits onto the SNAP debit cards.To qualify for SNAP in 2025, a family of four’s net income after certain expenses can’t exceed the federal poverty line, which is about $32,000 per year. Last year, SNAP assisted nearly 42 million people, about two-thirds of whom were families with children. Associated Press
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E-Commerce
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