In this 21-minute video lecture, Entrepreneurship and Virtue Ethics, I connect the success traits of entrepreneurs (e.g., initiative, guts, win-win trade, and so on) with moral virtues (e.g., integrity, courage, justice, and so on). My thesis is that what is practical in business and what is moral are tightly integrated — in contrast to the […]
Entrepreneurship and Virtue Ethics Read More »
In an NBER paper, “Culture, Institutions and the Wealth of Nations,” Yuriy Gorodnichenko and Gerard Roland compare the growth gains that individualist ethics generate compared to those of collectivist ethics. The first sentences of their abstract: “We construct an endogenous growth model that includes a cultural variable along the dimension of individualism-collectivism. The model predicts
Individualism and economic growth — Gorodnichenko and Roland Read More »
Entrepreneurial Software The latest issue of Kaizen [pdf] features my interview with Zoltan Cendes. We met in Naples, Florida, to discuss Mr. Cendes’s experience founding Ansoft, a $900 million software company that revolutionized engineering modeling. My favorite images from this issue show the uses of Ansoft’s software in improving the air and fluid dynamics for
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In this 20-minute “Unleash Your Inner Company” talk, entrepreneur John Chisholm (San Francisco) discusses: * the values that motivate entrepreneurs; * the mutually-reinforcing traits of passion and perseverance; * finding unique customers needs; * fitting those needs to one’s own uniqueness, strengths, and weakness; * how entrepreneurs are leaders; * his own entrepreneurial experiences; *
John Chisholm — “Unleash Your Inner Company” talk Read More »
Two data points and a question: 1. This graph showing the dramatic 80% reduction in the world poverty rate over the last 40 years: 2. This Gapminder survey showing that 95% of Americans asked believe that poverty rates have stayed the same or increased: The question: What explains the great discrepancy between reality and belief?
Poverty reduction and public awareness Read More »
For my “13 Arguments for Liberal Capitalism in 13 Minutes (more or less)”, here are direct links for each individual argument: 1. Liberal capitalism increases freedom. 2. People work harder in liberal capitalist systems. 3. People work smarter under liberal capitalism. 4. Liberalism increases individuality and creativity. 5. Liberal capitalism increases the average standard of
Links for “13 arguments for liberal capitalism in 13 minutes” Read More »
Entrepreneurial Logistics in Panama The latest issue of Kaizen [pdf] features my interview with Surse Pierpoint. We met in Panama City to discuss Mr. Pierpoint’s experience working in the Free Trade Zone, the Panama Canal’s history and major expansion project, and worldwide trends in transportation and logistics. My favorite image from this issue is below,
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Following up on “European country data on the minimum wage,” here are the data for eighteen Western European countries in table form. Or here is the Excel spreadsheet. Sources: “List of sovereign states in Europe by minimum wage,” Wikipedia. “List of countries by unemployment rate,” Wikipedia. Both viewed 9 December 2013. Related: My video-lecture on
Table: Unemployment and Minimum Wages in Europe, 2013 Read More »