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Thursday, February 19, 2015

The Writer's Life 2/19 - Business

We’ve all been stunned by the talents of child prodigies. There is a profile of a teenager with remarkable business acumen in today’s NY Post. When she was in the sixth grade Noa Mintz, now 16, got to thinking about the deficiencies of the nannies and baby sitters she observed. Soon she started her own company. She now has 190 clients served by 25 full time nannies and 50 sitters, who average 15 hours of work per week. It’s estimated that her company earned $375,000 last year. She was so swamped with emails she had to hire a CEO in order to have time to keep up with the rest of her life. I’ve always believed that everyone has a gift. The trick is finding it and making it work. Apparently, this girl understands the art of business. I wouldn’t be surprised if she were employing millions one day. Hopefully, she will steer clear of politicians.

I had a pleasant surprise in my mailbox -- a check for $40 from a settlement against Verizon. It had nothing to do with its stock. It was based on business practices. Whenever I’ve receive a notice that a company whose stock I own is being sued, I’m reluctant to join the suit, as I’ve never felt misled or deceived into buying. I attribute my losses to my own faulty decisions, to my lack of thorough research. I don’t recall if I’ve ever joined one of those. If I did, my share of the settlement was small potatoes. I was glad, however, to see Verizon called to account. On three occasions they added features I did not request to my account, hoping, I guess, I wouldn’t notice. The matters were resolved to my satisfaction, but left me soured. I immediately tear up any offers I receive from them, although a recent one tempted me for a moment. I’d like to dump Cablevision too, but right now it is the lesser of all the evils available in my area.

With the temperature set to flirt with an all-time low, the heat in our building is down. The problem wasn't the pipes. Electricians have been called. Last summer the boilers in all three buildings were replaced and the entire system modernized. The heat and hot water are now controlled separately. It's so cold in my apartment I'm wearing four layers and keeping my hood up. I may not be taking a shower this evening. Fortunately, the temperature is forecast to rise beginning tomorrow afternoon. There may be snow Saturday but rain Sunday and the temperature in the 40's. Let it be so.
Vic's 5th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/okxkwh5Vic's 4th novel: tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx
Vic's Short Story Collection: http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tiny.cc/0iHLb Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kx3d3uf
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/rP7o9
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic's Horror Screenplay: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3f
Vic's Web Site: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/

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