Attractive Women Boost Men’s Stress Levels.

Just five minutes alone with an attractive female raise the levels of a man’s cortisol, the body’s stress hormone, according to a study from the University of Valencia.

The effects are heightened in men who believe that the woman in question is “out of their league.”

Researchers tested students by asking each one to sit in a room and solve a Sudoku puzzle. Two strangers, one male and one female, were also in the room.

When the female stranger left the room and the two men remained sitting together, the volunteer’s stress levels did not rise. However, when the volunteer was left alone with the female stranger, his cortisol levels rose.

The researchers concluded: “In this study we considered that for most men the presence of an attractive woman may induce the perception that there is an opportunity for courtship.” I don’t know about that but I certainly don’t want to look like a dunce in front of any woman.

“While some men might avoid attractive women since they think they are ‘out of their league,’ the majority would respond with apprehension and a concurrent hormonal response.”

The study showed that male cortisol levels increased after exposure to a five-minute short social contact with a young, attractive woman.

Cortisol can have a positive effect in small doses, improving alertness and well-being. However, chronically elevated cortisol levels can worsen medical conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, hypertension and impotency.

Remember that old rock and roll song, If you want to be happy for the rest of your life get an ugly girl to be your wife? Well looks like now there could be scientific proof.

Been There. Done That.

Ronald Reagan once said about the criticism regarding his age as he ran for US President, “I want you to know that also I will not make age an issue of this campaign. I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponent’s youth and inexperience.”

As I worked in dozens of countries across the globe, I was struck by the enduring history and the respect those countries have for remembering what came before them.

This resonated because it wasn’t too long ago during the Internet bubble of the 1990s where Americans discarded the way business had been done for hundreds of years to leverage a “new economy” approach. Youth, energy and passion were in vogue and traditional experience was labeled as worthless.

Unfortunately, this “new way” also came along with expensive ergomic chairs and furniture, strange titles, and foosball tables that didn’t always make companies a profit.

During this period of time, investors paid for potential or what the companies could be. This “value” was reflected in the run up in stock prices that reached an all-time high in 2000 before the bubble eventually burst.

What a difference a decade makes. Now I think business values a bit of gray hair and experience, at least I would like to think so as I am both older and graying. In Eastern cultures, this never changed. Respecting elders has always been a way of life.

Jack Kraft, an entrepreneur and investor says, “the problem with experience is that it only comes with time and sometimes costly lessons.”

The other side of the argument is one that I hear often in creative circles, experience counts but it can also “blunt innovation. Tom Churchwell of Chicago-based ARCH Development Partners believes in balance, “The art of our game is to balance smart, younger, innovative minds with smart, older, battle-scarred veterans.”

The perfect combination can be a young entrepreneur with experienced board of advisors. Shaye Mandle, Vice President at Life Science Alley thinks that, “the best way to accelerate the impact that young talent can have on an organization is to partner them up with an elder mentor”.

Can young upstarts create a successful business or have a substantial impact on an existing one? You bet they can. There are countless examples.

Will they make rookie mistakes? Always.

Look at all the immensely talented individuals who failed during the bursting of the Internet bubble. Many were young, promising business leaders. Unfortunately, many of them failed to listen to their elders. But they are now “battle tested” and have valuable experience. They also have the opportunity to help the next wave of youth with potential because they’ve “been there, and done that”.

K-cups were killing my budget!

Keurig coffeemakers have certainly grown in popularity over the last few years. The ability to make a single cup of a particular flavor of coffee on demand has been a huge selling point for these appliances. As awesome as that sounds, the convenience of the Keurig comes with a price.

Keurig brewed coffee Is more expensive than traditional methods. If you buy a 24 count  K-Cup, generic, variety pack for $14.99, a single K-Cup will cost you $0.63.

Of course Keurig is far cheaper than Starbucks

While Keurig-brewed coffee costs more than traditionally brewed coffee, consumers can still save a significant amount of money over the long run by using a Keurig brewer rather than buying a daily drink at Starbucks.

You could save roughly $1.25 a day or $456 a year assuming you forgo a daily $1.75 twelve-ounce cup of coffee from Starbucks and instead make a cup of coffee from your Keurig.

We went a step further and compared store bought K-cups to the cost of brewing a cup of coffee using “reusable” K-Cups and our own favorite 12 ounce bag of ground coffee for $8.99.  The result?  We brewed 41 cups of coffee at approximately $0.22 per twelve-ounce cup.

Last time a cup of “Joe” was that cheap Woodrow Wilson was president.