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We know that people with ADHD often approach work differently than might a neurotypical person. And while ADHD can manifest in traits like impulsivity and being easily distracted, the condition is also associated with many desirable qualitiesincluding, it seems, incredible creativity. Thats the upshot of new research recently presented at the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP) Congress in Amsterdam. Researchers conducted a pair of studies involving 750 participants, finding that those with ADHD may experience more frequent episodes of mind-wandering, and that that, in turn, could lead to greater creative thinking abilities. “Previous research pointed to mind-wandering as a possible factor linking ADHD and creativity, but until now no study has directly examined this connection,” one of the investigators, Han Fang, said in a statement. “We found that people with more ADHD traits, such as lack of attention, hyperactivity, or impulsivity scored higher on creative achievements in both studies,” Fang said. There are two different kinds of mind-wanderingspontaneous and deliberate. Those who deliberately allowed their minds to wander showcased greater creativity, Fang said. “This suggests that mind-wandering may be an underlying factor connecting ADHD and creativity,” he added. The many sides of ADHD The findings add to other evidence pointing to some of the more beneficial seeming traits of ADHD, including that certain ADHD traits like impulsivity or a tendency to hyperfocus can lead to greater creativity. For example, a 2021 study found that people with a common form of ADHD known as combined type ADHD were more creative than people with other forms of the condition. What those findings suggested was that higher degrees of ADHD symptoms were associated with greater creativity. Experts say the latest findings have the potential to help transform ADHD treatment, but more research is needed to confirm the results. “For treatment, ADHD-tailored mindfulness-based interventions that seek to decrease spontaneous mind-wandering or transform it into more deliberate forms may reduce functional impairments and enhance treatment outcomes,” Fang said.
Category:
E-Commerce
After a number of big announcements this week, its hip to be Square. Square announced several upgrades and features to its platform this week, including an expansion of tools for restaurant owners and operators, new intelligence capabilities under its Square AI suite, and the unveiling of Square Bitcoin, allowing platform users to conduct transactions in Bitcoin. As a cherry on top, Cash App, a sister company to Square under its parent firm, Block, also announced Neighborhoods, a feature that connects customers with local businesses, creating local networks in which customers can place orders and accumulate rewards points to spend with nearby businesses, and helps those businesses create followings and marketing channels all within Cash App itself. Squares announcements, made by company leaders at an event in New York City on Wednesday, made one thing fairly clear: Square has its sights set on being much more than a two-dimensional point-of-sale vendor. It wants to provide small businesses with an entire suite of technology and tools that can help those small businesses compete with much larger companies with vast resources, especially in the food and beverage space. Squares focus on food and beverage Lindsey Irvine, Squares chief marketing officer, tells Fast Company that Squares focus on the food and beverage industry, particularly as it relates to these recent announcements, is founded in the fact that restaurantsbe they diners, coffee shops, or full-service sit-down steakhousesare the lifeblood of many communities. One thing we looked at from the data standpoint, and a unique differentiator for Square, is that were the only solution that operates in every type of business in a given neighborhood, she says. And if you dig in, restaurants have the most vibrancy. That is, restaurants tend to see more foot traffic and conduct more transactions than most other types of businesses. So, theres a lot of data to be analyzed, and a lot of potential problems for business owners to solve. Accordingly, We want to plant a flag and build a platform for restaurants. Restaurants, Irvine says, are also fairly complicated to run, so creating a platform with restaurants in mind could be adopted by other business types with relative ease, which also made it an easy place for Square to start when developing its new tools and features. While Square is rolling out several new tools, Irvine says she thinks that its Order Guide, a tool that leverages AI to help restaurant owners dig into their revenue and costs and look for alternative suppliers, among other things, is likely the most exciting. I think, on a practical level, the Order Guide and the potential cost savings are big, she says. This is what restaurant owners talk about every day: increasing prices. The only option they have to find savings is to go through their list, vendor by vendor. There was no solution, she adds. But weve done that for them. At the event on Wednesday, restaurant owners on-handwhich included Henry Laporte, the co-owner of the three-month-old French Dip restaurant Salt Hanks, and Jake Dell, the fifth-generation owner of Katzs Deli, a 137-year-old New York City institutionshared their enthusiasm about the new tools, including the Order Guide. That could be big for us, Laporte said on stage during a panel discussion about the new tools. The price of beef has gone up 25% over the past month, he added, saying that it would be big if tools like Order Guide could help him look for alternative suppliers. Squaring up to whats ahead Looking ahead, Irvine says that Square plans to hold more events like the one in New Yorkwhich was the second Releases event the company has ever held. She envisions there being two per year, one on each U.S. coast, and perhaps even international events. The goal, she says, is to make Squares presence felt nationwide, especially on a neighborhood level, where some of Squares competitors may feel more distant. When her team is on the ground, speaking with business owners, theres a wild amount of pent-up demand for some of the features that Square is rolling out, Irvine says. People trust us, our POS is their lifeblood, and at the end of the day, were finding ways to help them grow. Were showing up authentically. While that doesnt necessarily mean that every mom-and-pop sandwich shop is going to dive headfirst into the Bitcoin ecosystemand Square Bitcoin is designed for, and only for, Bitcoin transactions, not other types of cryptocurrencyhaving the option to accept it is not something they can get through other broad platforms. To finish off the event, Square CEO Jack Dorsey, as a part of a fireside chat with Randy Garutti, the former CEO of Shake Shack and current board member for Block, said that Block itself is, in a way, coming full-circle back to its roots as it renews its focus on helping small businesses generate on-the-ground insights and beef up their point-of-sale platforms. Squares announcements, he says, help position Square and Block as a go-to business partner for whats to come. We want to be a company thats 10 steps ahead of a customer’s expectation and desire, Dorsey said. I think were now, finally, getting back to that, which is how we started the company. But Dorsey reiterates that even Squares early plans and goals underwent big revisions as he and others learned more about what its customer actually needed, rather than what they wanted to create for them. That, again, has resulted in some of the new feature and tool rollouts. There was no grand vision early on, Dorsey said. You have to feel it. You have to discover. Theres no true invention, he added. Being able to adapt, Dorsey said, is whats given Square the ability to come as far as it has. Those are the things that really break the company’s potential open. Theyre unexpected, he said. Those unexpected things are what gives you lasting power.
Category:
E-Commerce
Connecting with Gen Z is crucial for brands, especially as teens and twenty-somethings gain spending power and influence. But doing so can be a bit of an art. Thats why a new crop of companies are offering translation services for brands that want to speak Gen Z’s language and, as they say, get “locked in.” While many Gen Z translation businesses are still in their infancy, The Wall Street Journal reported that it already represents a multimillion-dollar industry. Some analysts estimate that Gen Zs spending power is set to grow to $12.6 trillion by 2030, up from $9.8 trillion in 2024, according to the Journal. At the same time, Gen Z is far more digitally native than their predecessors, meaning they are far more used to getting information, shopping, and managing their lives online. They also seem extremely driven to make choices according to their values. According to a Lightspeed Commerce report, released earlier this year, 96% of Gen Z says they shop according to their values. Gen Z translators for brands Marketing agency NightyEightnamed after 1998, the first birth year for members of this generational groupstrategizes around the lives of real Gen Zers. The company uses insights from its Gen Z community, which it calls the “Koi Pond,” to figure out the best ways for brands to appeal to the generation. According to the company, NightyEight isn’t “just targeting Gen Z,” but “building the future of marketing with them.” According to Edelman, a company that formed in 2022 and has similar aims to NightyEight, brands need to think more strategically than ever to connect with Gen Z, because for this group, trends evolve very, very quickly. In a recent report titled “The Great Divide,” Edelman noted that “Gen Z is coming of age in a world that feels like it is simultaneously breaking apart and speeding up. Our society is a high-pressure environment, riddled with fear and uncertainty,” something that Gen Z is “hyperaware” of. “As a result, Zers have high hopes for brands. They are open to stronger two-way relationships, but they will also impose higher penalties when expectations are not met,” Edelman wrote. Values drive Gen Z choices Those insights are essential for brands that may not understand what Gen Z values, but should, analysts said. A hallmark of Gen Z is coming to age in a hyper-connected world. In this world, every follow, like, repost, and even purchase is a direct reflection of a persons identity and values, Lightspeed CEO Dax Dasilva previously told Fast Company. Through this connected world, there is a never-ending exposure to global issues, where activism, accountability, and cancel culture move at the speed of light. Perhaps fortunately for the brands that need most help relating to Gen Z, the generation seems extremely willing to speak up about what’s important to them. According to Celine Chai, one of the Gen Z founders of NightyEight, the generation is overtly interested in offering their insights. People write paragraphs, Chai told the Journal, referring to surveys of Gen Z. I dont think people try as hard in school.
Category:
E-Commerce
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