Slack Time and Innovation

This study by Hong Luo and colleagues combines data about projects posted on Kickstarter with the timing of school breaks of top US colleges to find that slack time can lead to an increase in creative projects, particularly those that are relatively complex and high quality. Managers in corporations that emphasize innovation should consider providing their employees with coordinated slack time particularly to advance development of novel ideas.

Firm Selection and Corporate Cash Holdings

Over the last 30 years, firms have increased their cash holdings. This paper highlights the importance of an increasing share of R&D-intensive firms and more favorable IPO conditions. Both mechanisms help explain the increase in average cash-to-asset ratio for US public companies over three decades.

Peanut Butter and Banana Smoothie and a prAna Giveaway!

What are you craving this summer?

For me, summer means spending as much time outdoors as I can, taking a little break and relaxing a bit. What I crave is time: more time to spend with family and friends, going to the beach or park, outdoor festivals, food truck fairs, etc. I also crave cute summer dresses, vibrant summer produce, fresh berries and stone fruits (my fav!), baked goodies, and cool refreshing drinks like smoothies and infused water.

Speaking of smoothies, I am totally in love with this peanut butter breakfast smoothie that I created last week. It's packed with protein and fiber, has no added sugar, and is deliciously thick and creamy thanks to plain Greek yogurt (I used Stonyfield Farm's). It's got the perfect balance of sweetness and nuttiness, and it will absolutely keep you full until lunch - for less than 300 calories!

Who can resist that?

It's the perfect summer breakfast treat. (Recipe below!)

But first - giveaway time! So what exactly am I giving away? Honestly, I've never blogged about clothing before but when prAna and Stonyfield teamed up and offered to send me this beautiful sustainably made Quinn dress AND an additional dress to give away to one of my readers, I just couldn't say no!

I actually hadn't heard of prAna before they reached out to me, but what I found was that all of their clothing is beautiful, functional, comfortable, sustainably made, and Bluesign certified (which indicates the highest standard in the textile industry for environmental health, safety and chemical management). This Quinn dress is made of a stretchy, quick drying fabric that's super comfortable and can be dressed up or down.

And now, one lucky reader has the opportunity to win their very own Quinn dress from prAna!

To Enter: You can enter in one of six ways (each option below counts as a separate entry):

1. Subscribe to The Picky Eater via RSS or via email


2. Like The Picky Eater on Facebook


3. Sign up for my free, monthly newsletter (it has healthy recipes and tips – no annoying ads  plus you'll get a free healthy meal plan when you sign up!)


4. Follow me on Twitter (@pickyeaterblog)


5. Follow me on Pinterest


6. Follow me on Instagram

This giveaway will be open until 11:59pm PST on Friday, July 1st. I'll be announcing the winner in the comments of this post on Saturday, July 2nd.

You can also check out prAna.com for yourself! You can save 15% off your prAna order with this special code: SCS16ANSH. (Note: Not valid for Influencers, on Gift Certificates or valid with any other offers. Offer lasts until July 7, 2016) 

And in the meantime, be sure to make this smoothie BlogThis!Bagikan ke XBerbagi ke FacebookBagikan ke Pinterest

Hold Onto Your Complexity: Bringing Multiple Identities to Work

Hold Onto Your Complexity: Bringing Multiple Identities to Work

Skinny Sweet Potato Biscuits

The husband is a total sucker for biscuits. Buttery, flaky, melt-in-your-mouth biscuits. And don't get me wrong, I love them too, but what I don't love so much is the fact that traditional biscuits can run you over 200 calories and 10g fat, and have 0g fiber - so they don't keep you full for very long.

But then I found this recipe from the SkinnyMom cookbook and I was totally inspired. These sweet potato biscuits have tons of secret ingredients that lighten them up without losing any of those decadent soft layers you'd come to expect in regular biscuits.

One biscuit has only ~140 calories, almost 0g fat, 3.6g Fiber and 4g Protein – so it actually works to keep you satisfied in between meals, or as a side along with your favorite dish!

Print

Skinny Sweet Potato Biscuits

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Yield: 10 biscuits

Serving Size: 1 biscuit

Calories per serving: 141.2

Fat per serving: 0.6g

Nutritional Info Per Serving: 141.2 Calories, 0.6g Fat (0.1g Saturated), 139mg Sodium, 30.6g Carbs, 3.6g Fiber, 7.9g Sugar, 4g Protein

Ingredients

• 1 large sweet potato
  
• 2 cups white whole wheat flour
  
• 3 ½ tbsp light brown sugar
  
• 1 tbsp baking powder
  
• ½ tsp baking soda
  
• ½ tsp salt
  
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  
• 2 tbsp organic maple syrup
  
• 3 tbsp unsweetened applesauce
  
• ¾ cup low-fat buttermilk

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
   
2. Wash the sweet potato and then poke the potato several times with a fork. Place it in a microwave safe bowl and add 2 tsp of water to the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and cut a slit in the top. Microwave for 3 to 5 minutes, until soft and the skin is loose. Let cool.
   
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
   
4. In a separate bowl, stir together the syrup, applesauce, and buttermilk.
   
5. Once the sweet potato has cooled, peel and mash well with a fork. Transfer the mashed sweet potato to the wet ingredients and stir to combine.
   
6. Add the sweet potato mixture to the flour mixture and stir just until the dough comes together, being careful not to overmix.
   
7. Lightly flour a clean surface and using clean hands transfer the sweet potato dough to the surface. It is very important to keep the surface covered lightly in flour, as the dough will be sticky. Gently roll the dough out to a 10-inch-diameter about ½ inch thick and use a 2 ½-inch biscuit cutter or the rim of a juice glass to cut out biscuits. Gather the scraps and re-roll to cut out more biscuits. You should get 10 biscuits.
   
8. Transfer the biscuits to the prepared baking sheet. Bake until slightly browned on the edges, 24 to 28 minutes. Serve warm.

Notes

Adapted from The Skinny Suppers Cookbook

3.1

http://pickyeaterblog.com/skinny-sweet-potato-biscuits/

Recipe by: The Picky Eater, pickyeaterblog.com

Can Brand Trump Win a Presidency?

Brand Trump has been used to market hotel rooms, ties, and an airline airline. Can it be extended to win the presidency? Marketing Professor John A. Quelch wonders if the message (and the messenger) is already growing thin.

Fighting the Islamic State with Iraq's Golden Division: The Road to Fallujah

In 2014, Islamic State militants swept into Western Iraq's Anbar Province, overrunning Iraqi security forces, enslaving minorities, and causing thousands to flee for their lives.

The jihadist group captured Iraq's largest city, Mosul, and the cities of Ramadi and Fallujah, where hundreds of US troops died fighting the Islamic State's predecessor.

Now, two years later, the Iraqi security forces, with help from Iranian-supported Shiite militias and US military advisors and warplanes, are fighting to take back towns and cities in Anbar, one battle at a time.

But it's a difficult task: Anbar has been the crucible of Iraq's insurgency, and is the country's Sunni heartland - long marginalized by and hostile to the Shiite-led government in Baghdad.

VICE News embedded with Iraq's Golden Division Special Forces unit as they fought their way into the villages surrounding the city of Hit, where they encountered ambushes, sniper fire, and tried to sort suspected Islamic State operatives and sympathizers from innocent Iraqi civilians.

Watch "What It's Really Like to Fight for the Islamic State” - http://bit.ly/1UhTYU1

Read "Iraq Halts Assault Against Islamic State-Held Fallujah to 'Protect Civilians' Trapped Inside” - http://bit.ly/1TQvKq7

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