Journal

Studies show it produces fewer good ideas than when people think on their own. Thankfully, there’s a better way to work in groups.

If you work in an office, your boss has probably forced you into a brainstorming session or two (or 12). Brainstorming, after all, is supposedly a killer way to come up with ideas, and businesses want to take advantage of all that collective creativity. But it turns out that brainstorming is actually a terrible technique—in fact, people generate fewer good ideas when they brainstorm together than when they work alone. Thankfully, there’s a better way: a technique called brainwriting (think brainstorming, but with a pen and paper and less chitchat). And in a new study, researchers tested out variations of this method to understand exactly how to help people come up with their best ideas.

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CEOs really and truly don’t earn their massive paychecks.

Whatever you think about the level of CEO pay (most Americans think they get too much), you might expect compensation levels to at least match corporate performance. But, according to new research, the exact opposite is true. The best-paid CEOs tend to run the worst-performing companies, and the worst-paid are at the top of the best-performing companies.

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Remote workers can earn fair salary hikes if they know how to leverage their circumstances.

Working from home has plenty of advantages, but visibility isn’t one of them. This can be problematic when leadership is considering who to promote. While it’s not impossible to move up within a company when you’re working remotely, it’s certainly more challenging, says Amanda Augustine, career advice expert for TopResume, a personal branding website for professionals.

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We all need vacations, but getting back to work when they’re over can be rough. We asked experts how to overcome the urge to stay idle.

Vacations are good for you. Several studies have touted numerous health benefits for the heart and the mind. For the latter, time off can improve cognitive function as well as build self-control and resilience. Bonus: What we experience while on vacation can affect our current state of happiness.

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Silicon Valley is home to some crazy apps, but “Uber for dog poop” isn’t one of them. It’s an art project, not a real business.

Last week news of a new “Uber for dog poop” app called Pooper spread across the web. The app’s website, complete with a professional-looking promo video, promises on-demand pickup of your furball’s excrement for a small monthly fee. All you would have to do, the website claimed, is snap a photo of Fido’s filthy business and someone in a Prius would come by and collect it for you.

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User numbers alone won’t tell you if Windows 10 is doing well. One year later, here are the real metrics of note.

Strictly in terms of usage, Windows 10 is Microsoft’s most successful operating system yet.

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A satirical article lays out some strategies for women in leadership positions to help assist them in protecting the fragile male ego.

Women in leadership positions are often instructed on how to act so they don’t appear too aggressive or bitchy. Instead of placing the blame on sexist workplace culture or misogynistic employees, these articles tell ladies exactly what they’re doing wrong and how to fix it.

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The Williamsburg location will test CEO Tim Cook’s vision of stores as “community centers.”

Exposed brick walls, polished concrete floors, pendant lamps, and a timber ceiling: Yup, we’re in Brooklyn.

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