Eyes on you.

Dota 2s public matchmaking environment isnt the most conducive to self-improvement. But Valve is looking to introduce some oversight in the form of Overwatch, a player review system taken from another popular Valve esport, CS:GO.

The aim is to get the community to self-regulate, relying on highly skilled and well-behaved players rather than an automated system.

The Overwatch system tasks trusted and experienced members of the community, named Investigators in CS:GO, to view the match replay of a specific player and determine if any suspicious activity was involved.

Unlike CS:GOs four different charges, Dota 2s Overwatch system is focusing on two: cheating and griefing. Using unauthorized scripts and hacks will fall under the former category, while intentional feeding or ability abuse will fall under the latter.

Overwatch tasks investigators to be confident that the observed behavior would be disruptive, anti-competitive, and/or anti-social beyond a reasonable doubt.

Several acts like smurfing and toxicity remain rampant problems, but the topics subjectiveness lends to skewed judgment. Should Dota 2 also follow CS:GOs systems, Investigators would be rewarded with experience after a certain amount of correct judgments and higher-level Investigators would obtain proportionally more weight behind their verdicts.

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CS:GO's Overwatch system is in the works for Dota 2 - Dot Esports

Twenty years ago, Facebook did not exist. Google had just failed to sell itself to Yahoo for $1 million. Netflix was a fledgling startup struggling to establish a working business model around selling and renting DVDs online. Today, Facebook and Google are among the top ten most valuable companies, and Netflix, now the most popular online streaming service with nearly 200 million users worldwide, is worth over $200 billion. Yahoo sold its assets to Verizon for a fraction of Googles value, and Blockbuster, the video-renting giant that refused to acquire Netflix in 2000, no longer exists.

The internets short but rich history shows that surprises can come from where you can least expect them.

The next big thing might come from Finland, where the public broadcaster Yle has been making impressive inroads in online streaming with its Areena service, which is known to 92 percent of the countrys population and used by 78 percent of them, making it more popular than Netflix. According to an annual brand survey by Taloustutkimus Research, YLE Areena is Finlands number-one internet brand.

Whats behind the success of Yle Areena? How does the company manage to flourish in an era where online streaming is dominated by the likes of Netflix, HBO, and Hulu? If the past is any indication, the companies that move and create new markets do so with good ideas, sound engineering, great product management, strong leadership, and the ability to reinvent and adapt to changes.

In this regard, Yle ticks all the boxes, and its success is supported by its timely and open-minded embracing of data and machine learning, which has allowed it to innovate and rebuild its platform in ways that were previously impossible.

Founded in 2007, Yle Areena was one of the first online video services in Europe. But while streaming giants are challenging local streaming services and broadcasters, Yle has continued to grow. One of the key factors that have contributed to its success is its remarkable ability to personalize the experience of its users. The company developed this capability with the help of an advisory company,Fourkind.

To maintain its relevance, the media must be capable of reinventing itself quickly and with determination. The pressure to renew itself was also an enormous opportunity for Yle , says Elina Huumo, Strategic Design Director at Fourkind. There are no other options than to understand customers deeply to create unique value for them faster and more effectively. In renewing itself, Yle has recognized that it needs to be more customer-centric and solve how to lead and create offerings in an intelligent way.

Among the changes Yle has brought to its platform is the implementation of artwork personalization, which uses a machine-learning algorithm to select the best cover image for each video content for each user. This affects not only the bottom line, but increases understanding on what imagery drives content performance for which types of customers.

Many platforms use machine learning algorithms that cluster users based on characteristics and behavior and recommend content that users from the same cluster have viewed. But these machine learning systems often suffer from noisy, biased data, and a bubble effect that reinforces users preferences instead of providing them with novel content. To overcome this obstacle, Fourkinds experts helped Yle implement a contextual bandit, a reinforcement learning algorithm that discovers customer preferences through controlled exploration and feedback. The addition of AI has resulted in a 2.3-percent growth in viewing minutes in Areena.

On the one hand, this is a simple solution because it affects a small part of the whole experience, says Jaakko Lempinen, Head of Customer Experience at Yle. But on the other hand, it tremendously changed how we see the possibilities of using machine learning to create more adaptive user interfaces. It also helped our editorial people to better understand the effects of their work because we started to get completely new data and insights on how different types of images lead to different choices, viewing preferences, etc.

The Yle Areena team is still in the process of automating the entire content pipeline. They are also testing the use of machine learning to automatically extract suitable cover images from the raw content. The outcome would be that the contextual bandit algorithm could teach the image selection algorithm to always choose the best images from every film, Lempinen says.

This would create a self-improving loop where the image-selection algorithm constantly learns to pick better images through feedback from the algorithm that analyzes customer behavior and personalizes the experience. Finding more of these self-improving loops is an interesting area Yle will continue to work on.

One of the benefits of a well-designed AI recommendation system is finding areas where the company can outperform the bigger players in the streaming market. Yle might not have the resources of a company such as Netflix, but it has more than 30,000 hours of unique content, most of which is created by the company itself and its collaborators. And being able to connect users with the right content has been very important in maintaining its appeal to the Finnish population.

We produce and promote a lot of local Finnish content, and at the same time, our recommendation algorithms promote more diverse content for the users, Lempinen says. So we are not always looking for the quick fix for the recommendations but what kind of content would create more long-term relationships

While talk of AI adoption is abundant these days, the transition is anything but easy. Our technical infrastructure and our development culture support AI development very well, but the biggest challenges have come from the people who will work in the end with the systems, Lempinen says. And its not the peoples fault in any waycomplicated AI systems require an even better communication strategy and floor discussions where different parties discuss the functionalities of the system in a shared language. We also need good dashboarding to visualize the different aspects of decision making.

This is where Fourkinds specialties helped facilitate the transition. The companys experts engage with clients in different areas, not only providing guidance and leadership but also helping in the implementation of actual AI solutions.

Our team consists of an interdisciplinary collaboration among experts in strategic design, data science, and machine learning, says Jarno Kartela, Principal Machine Learning Partner at Fourkind. We all have a strong understanding of the value of emergent technology for media transformation and the ability to execute solutions at different levels, from strategic to operative, from data to design.

In the past two years, Fourkind has worked with Yle in applying different methodologies and testing different hypotheses and scenarios.

We have supported the efforts of building personalization to the core platform, focusing on both increasing the key targets of the service itself and increasing the understanding of what customers prefer and what content they enjoy, Kartela says.

And the effort has paid off. This year, Areena surpassed 1 billion video views, which means more than 190 views for every person in Finland.

I think the biggest benefit and what has helped us grow the most relates to how we understand the insights that machine learning systems can provide, whether its about descriptive, predictive or prescriptive analytics, Lempinen says.

While these are interesting examples of how Yle has managed to integrate artificial intelligence into its platform, it is not the finish line. Yle and Fourkind are working together to solidify a vision in which Yle can rapidly reinvent itself when needed. They will focus on further developing the customer-centric R&D and creative process.

The keys to success are excellent content and quality of personalized services, Huumo says. We have helped Yle to listen to and interact with the Finns so they can understand them deeply, create meaningful content and build a future-proof creative process and tools to build better content and personalized experience and world-class recommendations for everyone.

With Fourkind I think we have quite a good partnership where we combine business and service design methods with modern machine learning. This has been quite unique and has worked very well so far for us, Yles Lempinen says.

Yles success story provides a glimmer of hope for local companies that want to compete with internet giants at their own game.

This article is brought to you by Fourkind.

Excerpt from:
How this company leveraged AI to become the Netflix of Finland - The Next Web

Inspiration can be found all around us in life, but if theres a chance that it coincides with your weekend binge, all the better. If self-improvement is one of your goals for 2021, there is no dearth of inspiration to be found onscreenfrom the therapeutic gratification of before-and-after makeovers to real-life stories that impart hard-learned life lessons. If youve been on the hunt for some motivation to get you kickstarted for the new year, here are the movies and TV shows that will inspire you to be the best version of yourself.

Based on a memoir of the same name, the Will Smith-starrer sees a homeless salesman turn his life around with as little as $21 in his pocket. For those who love stories that champion the underdog, the 2006 biopic offers a feel-good watch with gems of wisdom that now serve as industry gospel, including the world is your oyster, it is up to you to find your pearls and the cavalry aint coming, you can only depend on yourself.

Streaming on Amazon Prime Video

The coming-of-age movie marks Ayan Mukerjis directorial debut with Ranbir Kapoor in the lead role, with whom he would go on to deliver another blockbuster, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani in 2013. Set against the urban locale of Mumbai, the movie follows the life of an over-privileged graduate who finds that he has to stand on his own feet after being disowned by his father. Help comes in the form of an aspiring writer from Kolkata, portrayed by Konkona Sen Sharma, who helps him find his footing in the real world. The nuanced tale offers a celebration of lifes many joys, both big and smallfrom Sids first successful omelette to his eventual calling as a photographer at a local publication.

Streaming on Netflix

If youve been looking for a reality show that will leave you with a more worthwhile takeaway than the human minds propensity for drama, youll want to queue up Shark Tank for your next weekend binge. Over the course of eleven seasons, the multiple Emmy Award-winning show has been credited with realising over a decade of dreams by allowing homegrown businesses the chance to make a pitch to top investors and secure life-changing investments. Beyond turning everyday people into overnight millionaires, the show offers invaluable discourse for those looking to chase their dreams and turn their passion into a paycheque.

Streaming on Amazon Prime Video

Based loosely on Chetan Bhagats Five Point Someone, the 2009 blockbuster is today known by the box office records it shattered upon its year-end release. Following the lives of three students in a cookie-cutter engineering college, the movie witnesses Aamir Khans Rancho turning the institution on its head with his non-conformist ideals. With side-splitting gags, comedic chases and a moral takeaway that will linger with you long after the end credits have rolled, the movie makes for a fun weekend watchregardless of how many times youve seen it already.

Streaming on Amazon Prime Video

The bromance continues with Zoya Akhtars directorial, featuring Hrithik Roshan, Farhan Akhtar and Abhay Deol in prominent roles. What starts out as a routine bachelor trip quickly evolves into a life-changing road trip for each of the three leads, who discover the courage to face personal dilemmas and blindspots, all while trying their hand at never-tried-before adventure sports. Set against the idyllic backdrop of the Spanish countryside, the movie serves as a treat for the sights as well as the soul.

Streaming on Amazon Prime Video

There is no age limit prescribed for learning and self-development, and Gauri Shindes 2012 directorial espouses the same through her signature lens of emotional coherence and nuance. Starring the legendary actor Sridevi as an archetypal housewife, the movie sees her grappling with her inability to speak English on a trip to New York. That she chooses to conquer her fish-out-of-water circumstances by attending English classes on the sly serves as a testament to her willpower, and her desire for self-improvement ultimately helps her reassert her value in the family.

Streaming on JioCinema

It would be easy to describe Queer Eye as a makeover show, but it would also be a restrictive interpretation of the Netflix phenomenon. Yes, there are makeovers involved, but the show delves beyond the ordinary to underscore sartorial advice with social commentary by the Fab Five, featuring grooming consultant Jonathan Van Ness, fashion designer Tan France, food and wine savant Antoni Porowski, interior designer Bobby Berk and cultural guru Karamo Brown.

Streaming on Netflix

Originally released on January 1 in 2019, Tidying Up With Marie Kondo continues to slot in neatly with the January mood for fresh starts and purging junk. Headlined by tidying expert Marie Kondo, the show, however, offers more than just home makeovers for before-and-after viewing pleasure. By enabling people to let go of the clutter in their lives, the Japanese expert sheds light on our empathy for the things that we surround ourselves with and eventually, helps clients usher in the transformative power of new beginnings.

Streaming on Netflix

Given the cult success of the mindfulness platform, it seems to have been only a matter of time before it made its way to our TV screens. Together with Netflix, Headspace is demystifying the practice of meditation and mindfulness through guided exercises and videos aimed at helping you feel healthier and happier. If youve been on the hunt for some solace in the unpredictable times we live in, ten days of the practice is claimed to increase happiness by 16 per cent.

Streaming on Netflix

9 apps to help you achieve your self-improvement goals in 2021

Why not making resolutions should be your first act of self-care in 2019

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9 shows and movies that will inspire you to be better, streaming on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and JioCinema - VOGUE India

Want to improve your business skills without touching a book? This deal is for you.

If you want to improve your career prospects, one of the best things you can do is expand your knowledge base and grow your skillset. It will help you stand out from the competition when applying for new jobs or possible promotions.

But there's a problemexpanding knowledge has traditionally involved doing a lot of reading. And if you've got pressures at work, a family at home, and other hobbies that you do in your free time, you might not have time for that. After all, reading and digesting entire courses is a slow process, even for people who can read quickly.

So, what's the solution? Well, we recommend checking out some of the best companies that specialize in audio-based courses. It means you will be able to learn on-the-go, such as while your commuting or traveling.

One such example isKnowable, and today, we can offer you a discount on aKnowable subscription. Want to know more? Keep reading.

Knowable offers a selection of exclusive audio courses, each of which is taught by an expert in the subject's field. You can binge through the courses like you would with a podcast, so you can fly through new material in no time.

In total, more than 200 experts teach courses on the platform. They includeAlexis Ohanian (the co-founder of Reddit), Scott Kelly (a NASA astronaut), and Chris Lyons (an investment guru at Wall Street firm, Andreessen Horowitz).

The courses themselves cover a wide variety of business-themed topics, including entrepreneurship, career growth, sales and marketing, leadership, personal finance, productivity, creativity, and self-improvement. Course vary in length between one hour and eight hours, and each is split into individual lessons.

Each course also comes with PDF workbooks, curated resources, and other tools included to help you reinforce the new knowledge that you are learning.

If you like the idea of learning via audio rather than reading endless books, you should definitely consider picking up this deal.

It costs just $60, which is a 75 percent discount on the regular price of $249. For the price, you will lifetime access to the platform, access to the new courses that are added every week, and the ability to access the courses on desktop, Android, and iOS.

You must be a new user to be eligible for the discount.

Interested in accessing free college-level courses? Here are some of the best sites to take free online courses.

Dan joined MakeUseOf in 2014 and has been Partnerships Director since July 2020. Reach out to him for inquires about sponsored content, affiliate agreements, promotions, and any other forms of partnership. You can also find him roaming the show floor at CES in Las Vegas every year, say hi if you're going. Prior to his writing career, he was a Financial Consultant.

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Too Busy to Read? Use These Educational Audio Courses Instead - MakeUseOf

Prior to the 2020 season, there might not have been a more controversial and hated player on the Denver Broncos' roster than left tackle Garett Bolles. A former first-round pick that was inching closer and closer to 'bust' status due to his nasty habit of drawing boneheaded penalties, Bolles was a hot topic in Broncos Country over the course of this past summer.

For good reason, too.

Bolles inconsistencies on the blindside had fans and pundits alike pining for his eventual replacement to be drafted following the fourth season of his career, citing his 45 total penalties over his first three seasons as a pro, including 10 total accepted holding flags in 2019.

Many fans feared for Drew Locks safety playing behind Bolles, fretting that it was only a matter of time before the young quarterback would get injured.

It seemed as if the Broncos were in lock-step with the general consensus across the fanbase. After all, the Broncos telegraphed their intentions by not exercising Bolles' fifth-year option this past spring.

The message was simple; either improve your play in the final year of your contract or find work elsewhere.

Despite the outside noise and being slapped in the face by the organization that made him the 20th overall selection of the 2017 draft, Bolles showed mental fortitude, dedicating himself to becoming a great player in order to silence his critics.

Bolles is now playing football at an unforeseen level compared to what he had shown in the past. With a drastic improvement in his technique and consistency, he has quietly grown into the best player on the Broncos' offensive line.

"I truly believe a man goes through a rough patch in their life for a reason, Bolles said on Tuesday. [Its] to make them better, and it speaks highly of how a man comes out of that.

I truly believe I came out of it on a high noteI learned from my mistakes.

Going back to the 2017 draft, Bolles was widely considered to be one of the top tackle prospects in the class. A raw but highly athletic specimen out of Utah with a mean streak, he was dubbed as a two-to-three-year project for whichever team drafted him.

It was going to take a while for Bolles to get up to speed in the NFL as he refined his technique, but once the investment came to fruition, the dividends are now being paid in spades.

The problem was, Bolles didnt develop his technique properly as he struggled to adapt his game to a different offensive line coach in each of his first three seasons in the league. With a learning disability serving to complicate and hinder his development, which was mistakenly identified as a lack of work ethic by outsiders, he was unable to adapt to the NFL game as a whole.

While Bolles' play in the running game was among the best in the league over those first three seasons, his pass protection was incredibly inconsistent, leading to several penalty flags to fly.

So why did Bolles struggle so much?

I think in the past I just used my athletic ability to get the job done, Bolles explained on Tuesday. But I think the more I've been in the league, the more I watch film and I watch myself, the more I really dial in on the technical side of things.

What's next for the Broncos? Don't miss out on any news and analysis! Take a second and sign up for our FREE newsletter and get breaking Broncos news delivered to your inbox daily!

One of the biggest aspects of self-improvement comes from self-scouting. Identifying the flaws within, learning to adapt to and overcome those flaws, and translating those flaws into improvement. As Bolles put it, he realized that he had to learn from those mistakes and grow as a player.

Sometimes, that realization can come at the expense of the ego. Acknowledging that he wouldnt change his mentality as being a dog out there, Bolles understood that he needed to improve his technique, and cited multiple flaws in his game.

What I did need to change is how I saw things, Bolles admitted. How I placed my hands and how I moved my feet, how I keep my shoulders and my numbers square for two kick slides or how I take two kick slides, pause, and get on my guy. Those were the things I had to learn, and it took time.

Through all of the criticism, both warranted and unwelcomed, Bolles knew that he had to do something different with his preparation for the upcoming season. Looking towards his idols legendary tackles Jonathan Ogden, Joe Thomas, and Joe Staley Bolles began to understand that improved technique, along with his incredible athleticism, could help him achieve his goals to become a top-flight left tackle in the league.

Those guys were technicians for a reason," Bolles said. "They were 10-time Pro Bowlers, first-time [Pro Football Hall of Fame] ballot players because of what they did on the field with their technique.

Seeing the deficiencies in his technique and understanding why that was the reason for the massive onslaught of criticism levied on his head, Bolles found a new way to improve himself as a player during the offseason, all while dealing with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Without being able to access the Broncos' training facilities or film room, he got creative.

As Bolles and his wife were in the kitchen preparing their dinner, Bolles would practice his footwork without wearing shoes, feeling the floor against his feet and getting a better understanding of his balance and weight placement against a solid surface. A technique multiple offensive linemen, including ex-Broncos' All-Pro Louis Vasquez, have admitted to utilizing over the years.

But it didnt stop there.

I had my wife line up and she would run after me and I would take sets, Bolles said. Id put my hands on hernot hard of coursebut just enough so I can get into a repetition of continuing to do the same thing over and over again. Id run, Id hit the bag, Id get a pole and Id fit it like I was fitting a run game. Id do whatever I can to find myselfI was training in California to of course not break COVID rulesbut be by myself and go to the park and set up a tree or put cones on the ground and set, something like that. I always found something to do to continue to get my body in shape and get my mind where it needs to be mentally and physically and really dial in what I needed to do.

That creative mindset, alongside having back-to-back seasons with venerated O-line coach Mike Munchak, has turned a once-maligned career on its head. The focus on the little things, such as changing his diet, changing his sleep schedule, and not going through the motions, has transformed Bolles into a quality left tackle.

Bolles has only allowed nine total QB pressures on the season and has yet to surrender a sack through the teams 10 games. While he has had a few penalties as well, the yellow laundry has not fallen with anywhere close to the rapidity of the previous three years as his play drastically improved.

We're talking about a quanum-leap type of improvement as illustrated by his current ranking as the No. 1 offensive tackle in the league per Pro Football Focus' grading system.

Bolles' performance has completely changed the narrative surrounding his future with the Broncos, and he's now poised to receive a long-term contract extension following the season.

Bolles' focus remains on the present and becoming the best player he can be with his ultimate goal of becoming the best offensive tackle in the league. He knows that if he takes care of his business on the field, everything else will fall into place.

I mean, that would be nice, but its not up to me," Bolles said of garnering an extension from the Broncos. "Thats why I hired an agent. He talks to Mr. Elway. When they want to do it, theyll do it. Thats just how I look at it. I just want to be consistent. I have to go out there and play at a high level every single week. Fix my mistakes throughout the weeks but go out there and shine.

Follow Lance on Twitter @SandersonMHH and @MileHighHuddle.

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Garett Bolles Opens Up on the Epiphany That Led to him Becoming NFL's Top-Graded Left Tackle - Sports Illustrated

One of the great journeys in life is to continually better yourself. Self-help is a billion-dollar industry and motivational speakers and authors make a living selling you advice on how to fix your life.

At the end of the day, though, most of their advice will not really improve your life if you're not psychologically ready to embrace change. For that reason, a lot of people spend way too much money over-complicating their costly self-help rituals.

Here are 3 easy ideas for how to think practically about self-improvement:

Virtually no one is completely healthy. Everyone's got something, whether it's bad knees, a congenital heart arrhythmia, or something simple like a minor allergy. While great strides have been made in destigmatizing medical conditions, especially in matters of mental health, many people still forgo discussing problems with their doctors because they are sheepish about disclosing personal details.

One of the most obvious and common examples of this is erectile dysfunction, which affects some 18 million American males. More and more men and their partners are acknowledging this condition and trying to do something about it. In the past, you could spend exorbitant amounts of money trying out pills, pumps, and even surgery to combat ED. These days, a safe and simple ED device can realign your blood flow and physiology without the side effects reported in other treatments.

Another example would be smoking. Smoking cigarettes is widely known to cause cancer, heart disease, emphysema, and a variety of other grisly health conditions. Many smokers are embarrassed by their habits and hide it as best they can instead of confronting their addiction head-on and seeking help. There is a new generation of smoking cessation aids that are more effective and less expensive.

The longer you kick the can down the road on treating your medical problems, the worse - and more expensive - they will become. Embrace the journey.

In previous decades, pretty much everyone had a checkbook. They used checks for groceries and other larger purchases. Nowadays, with debit cards, Apple pay, Paypal, Venmo, Cash App, and the rise of online commerce, checkbooks are not nearly as common. People have checking accounts, yes, but much fewer people - especially younger people - actually carry around a checkbook and they are much more likely to use a card or make an online payment.

However, that doesn't mean that the principle of "balancing your checkbook" can't still be applied. The basic premise is keeping track of all your outgoing payments so that you always know your bank balance and can plan accordingly. The concept holds up even in this new post-check world.

New online bank account portals and even third-party apps allow you to easily organize your finances in a new digital incarnation of "balancing the checkbook." These tools are usually free.

The COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected the finances of millions of Americans, causing millions of job losses, defaults, and evictions. If you're living off your credit card right now, you should know that you are not alone. Many families are dependent on loans, cash advances, and credit right now to pay rent/mortgage, put food on the table, and keep the heat on during the winter.

However, if you have enough money, either in savings or as an on-going salary, you're much better off not driving up a credit card debt. It can really come back to haunt you later in life.

Once you reach a certain point with a large credit card debt, your monthly payments are no longer even chipping away at the balance - you're literally just paying off the interest that has accumulated. This is a morbid cycle to get into and one you should avoid at all costs.

Do you have any simple, frugal methods for self-improvement? Share them with us.

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A Guide to Substantially Improving Your Life in 3 Frugal Ways - University Herald

There are things that fans love about Dan, and still, there are many reasons why he's not a fan favorite.

Luciferis an epic story with characters that have evolved from Season 1. While many fans love characters like Ella, Maze, and Lucifer, characters like Dan get less of the love. When the show started, Lucifer nicknamed Dan "Dan the Douche", and he seemed to fit the nickname. He wasn't showing up for Trixie (his daughter with Chloe), and he constantly doubted Chloe.

RELATED: 16 Shows to Watch If You Like Lucifer

However, over time, Dan's character has grown, showing more nuances and interesting traits. There are things that fans love about Dan, and still, there are many reasons why he's not a fan favorite.

Initially, Dan didn't show up for likable and sweet Trixie as much as Chloe did. This changes, and he becomes a good father for Trixie. She is the key part of his family. Although he and Chloe are no longer together, he has retained a good relationship with her. He still sees her as family. Due to this, he is extremely protective of Chloe.

While he may act without knowing the full story, he often does so out of pure motivation to protect his family.

In the first season, Dan often second-guesses and doubts Chloe. In earlier cases, he encourages her to not make them complicated, to go for the easy answer. At this point, Chloe isn't as certain of her natural detective gift, and his opinion matters and causes her to doubt herself. Luckily, Chloe still follows her hunches despite Dan's doubt.

In time, Dan does come to trust Chloe. However, this is a trait that he has a hard time getting rid of completely. It results in a self-righteousness where Dan thinks he knows better for Chloe without asking for her point of view.

When Mum (the Goddess, Lucifer's mother) brought Charlotte back to life, Charlotte was confused. Dan and Mum (housed in Charlotte's body) had a relationship. Dan, not knowing that the real Charlotte had been absent from her body, assumed that his relationship was the same. However, when Charlotte says she doesn't know who Dan is, nor seems to feel at ease with him, it hurts him. Later, after Charlotte and he begin to get to know each other again, he tells Charlotte, "I like you, Charlotte. So if you need time, I can wait. You're worth it."

RELATED: Lucifer 10 Hilarious Quotes From Each Main Character

Apparently, waiting isn't quite Dan's strong suit, so in an episode shortly after, he tells her that if she wants space, he'll respect that, but he needs to tell her where he stands. He decides to tell her what he wants and says, "I want you. All in. The whole deal." It's a vulnerable moment. He opens himself up to her, and it works. They become a great couple.

No doubt, fans may not have expected Dan and Ella to hook up. The fact that they hooked up was interesting, not bad. They provided solace and understanding to each other as well as the comfort that both needed at the time. What was bad happened afterward. Dan tried to distract Ella from finding out his dubious role on a recent hit on Lucifer. Then after that didn't work, he tried to cast doubt in Ella's theory that a cop had been involved.

Later, when she discovers the truth of his involvement and decides to help him by hiding his role, he gets mad at her. He wants to be punished. So, basically, Ella can't do anything quite right. Luckily, their interlude never resulted in a relationship.

Dan comes across as pretty serious much of the time. This makes the moments when Dan is willing to try new things extra special. In Season 5, Dan tries to change, using self-help and improvement strategies. He borrowed a stack of self-help books from Linda. Also, he starts to wear an amethyst bracelet for chakra cleansing.

In previous seasons, Dan also does improv. He uses it to help him work through things. Dan also helps others use improv to heal and loosen up, such as when he brings Amenadiel to work through his issues. Unfortunately, each skit Amenadiel is in turns into one about his father. God, and how he may have to kill him.

There are multiple times that Dan has been the corrupt cop, such as when he tried to kill Lucifer by arranging a hit on him. Also, he once teamed up with Maze, to work outside of the law and get forced confessions. Even in the beginning of the show, Dan was a corrupt cop.

RELATED: Lucifer 10 Most Hated Storylines

Now, that Dan is becoming a more interesting and layered character, his corrupt cop role feels tired and flat. Hopefully, Dan will fight against his corrupt cop past and continue to grow into a more intriguing character.

When these two get on better, they have great humorous and petty interactions like siblings sometimes do. Lucifer steals Dan's pudding, which is a big deal to Dan. The two both mock each other. In Season 3, the two watch over a teen, who is part of a murder investigation. At first, they think she's an innocent witness. They take her to an amusement park at her bequest. Both tease each other; Lucifer even makes shirts of sick-Dan on the roller coaster.

When their relationship is like this, teasing, it's something to love. Dan also gives Lucifer advice from time-to-time, proving that the two might be a bromance yet (that is, if Dan stops trying to kill or harm Lucifer.)

At times, Dan sees all red with Lucifer. This leads him to think that he's doing a "good thing" by trying to get rid of Lucifer. When he thinks that Lucifer is human, he actually arranges a hit on Lucifer. When he finds out that Lucifer isn't human, he automatically believes that Lucifer is evil and must be stopped at any means possible.

Dan isn't always so good at listening to others during the best of times. But during the worst of times when he starts to hate and fear Lucifer, it brings out potentially disastrous conclusions--like his actions almost leading to Trixie's death.

This is a bromance fans can get behind. These two truly connect and respect each other. After all, Dan does bring Amenadiel to improv so that he can work through things. When Amenadiel becomes a father, it's Dan who gives him advice and helps him out. These two connect on many levels. They both are self-righteous, but they both are also extremely protective of their family.

The scenes with these two together truly shine and displaythe best parts of Dan. With Amenadiel, Dan doesn't come across as a "douche" but as a really good and wise friend.

While Dan has evolved throughout the series, he is still one of the easiest characters to manipulate. Michael proves this in Season 5, Part 1. In this season, Dan has finally seen Lucifer's true face, and he's terrified. He thinks that Lucifer is evil, and that he must save Chloe from Lucifer's influence. Michael tells Dan to shoot Lucifer, and Dan obeys easily. Normally, Lucifer would be dead because he was with Chloe and being with Chloe usually makes him vulnerable. However, things are changing, and luckily, Lucifer lives.

Still, after all of Dan's self-reflection and self-improvement in Season 5, this is a call back to the original Dan, the one who wasn't so popular with fans.

NEXT: 5 Ways Supernatural And Lucifer (The Show) Are Similar (And 5 Ways They're Totally Different)

Next Game Of Thrones: Cersei's 10 Shadiest Burns, Ranked

Heather Frankland is a writer, teacher, and public health advocate. She has had creative work published in literary journals and online websites. She enjoys analyzing her favorite shows and movies and is happy to exercise that talent at Screen Rant, previously exercised in long conversations over beer with friends.

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Lucifer: 5 Things We Love About Dan (& 5 Reasons We Hate Him) - Screen Rant

Wednesday, 02 December 2020 Lifestyle

30 Nov, 2020 07:04 AM5 minutes to read

A Reddit user shared that one of their best life hacks is "smiling in the mirror when you're feeling down". Photo / 123rf

We all have a way of doing certain things that we know doesn't sound like it would work but actually does, a tip or a trick that we've learnt or has been passed down to us and that we know is worth doing.

A Reddit user asked people to share the life hacks they use that sound "crappy" but work really well. The answers did not disappoint.

"A knitted fake wasp nest. Our wasps buggered off the same day, haven't been seen since," one Reddit user replied with.

Other people replied to the same thread confirming the hack works as wasps are extremely territorial and will fly off looking for another spot if they think that one is taken.

"They actually are territorial and will leave if they think a specific area has already been claimed. I have heard a paper bag stuffed with newspaper and hung up will also work for this. Wasps don't have great eyesight," a user suggested.

Another user shared the always insightful piece of wisdom that "writing things down by hand helps you remember them better".

"Bending your knees up using a little stool to support your feet while pooping. It has changed my life," another Reddit user shared.

"Don't save your banking information on online stores. Makes impulse buying much more difficult if you have to track down your wallet," another user suggested. Very good advice for the upcoming holiday season, actually.

"If you keep forgetting if you locked your door/car/lock, do something silly after locking it. It will help you remember if you have to think back," one Reddit user posted.

Other users agreed, with one further adding: "I would always say "it's [day of the week] and I locked the door. The act of figuring out what frickin day it is helped me remember."

A Reddit user shared that one of their best life hacks is "smiling in the mirror when you're feeling down". "The act of smiling releases molecules in the brain that help relieve stress, pain and sadness," the user added.

A Reddit user took the opportunity to share some incredible advice on the importance of befriending what the user describes as "invisible" people.

"Befriend the "invisible" people that everyone overlooks, the hotel maids, the janitor at your office, anyone doing a thankless job that people often look down upon. Treat them like valuable human beings because they are. These are people working far harder than most of us can imagine, taking care of themselves and their families and often barely scraping by. You never know in this life when you're going to be the one interaction that saved someone's life, or at least made it a little bit better for a day or a moment. And you never know when some person who nobody paid attention to could end up being there for you, especially if they know and like you," the user posted.

Another user shared that they started saying "silly" instead of "stupid", "for example 'Oh I'm so stupid or 'that was stupid'". According to the user, saying the word "silly" instead improved their self-esteem.

"Kiwi juice has enzymes that break down meats, tenderising the steak," another user shared.

"Pineapple does the same thing, but has a much stronger flavour. So put a bit of kiwi mush on your steak about 30 minutes prior to cooking it and it will be amazingly tender without a strange flavour added."

And finally, one of the best pieces of advice on an already very useful thread: "If something's worth doing, it's usually worth doing badly."

A Reddit user went to great length to describe how you're better off doing something badly than not doing it at all.

"Half-assing the dishes is better than leaving them to fester in the sink. Sending old friends a happy birthday message when Facebook prompts you is better than losing touch entirely. Taking a quick shower without soap is better than not showering at all. Piling your laundry up in a basket instead of putting in the wardrobe is better than leaving it scattered over the floor," the user wrote.

"Also applies to self-improvement stuff as well as maintenance. Don't worry so much about doing 100 pushups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats and a 10km run that you do nothing, just walk around the block and do one of each of the others for now. Just write one page a day of that novel, and allow it to be terrible. Write simple, buggy programs. Draw badly. Watch YouTubers cook or fix their car or put on make-up or build something, even, if you can't find the energy to yourself," the person continued.

"If you're having trouble finding a date start pre-emptively assuming that everyone is off-limits and just focus on finding genuine friends who match your orientation.

"Somewhere along the line you'll lose your discomfort and start getting better at doing what you want or need to do."

For more useful life hacks, check out the full thread on Reddit.

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People share the life hacks that sound terrible but really work - New Zealand Herald

There are many times when I speak to students or clients about establishing business relationships, especially financial ventures and I have their attention of them constantly. At one point, I want them to ask the question, If you had your entire business going today and no-one bankruptity or losing the ability to work because of an illness, how would your business be? asks Sofiya Machulskaya.

Sometimes they estimate that they will be unable to get paid for their life insurance, leanings or supplements and this keeps them trapped in financial traps that are not attractive to most customers. At other times, they tell me about a family member and/or friend who was fired for poor work performance and now they are also trapped as they can pay their own premium or personal event insurance with the persons personal insurance policy. No wonder business relationships arent what they need to be.

I mention this question because I have seen many small business owners and executives in this position I refer to as trapped. Although I never actually asked them if this term describes them, as I believe my students and clients could look at their business like I do for them.

Typically, in an established business relationship business owner and employee have a personal relationship, one that is strictly professional, one that adds value and is relatively good at solving my problems. Initially, the person represents a huge value; they overcome all my benchmarks and specifications and meets some objective of a successful business relationship. During the time, however, I constantly have to spend more time and effort NOT to let the person slip away. There is often a great deal of frustration, anxiety and worry because it is clear that my relationship is NOT as good as it used to be.

Before anyone wants to say Thats not the way life is, stop and ask yourself if you have chosen a good business partner. Have you put into practice the following three simple questions that will aid you in deciding if a person has the skills to keep your business relationship in the good driver range.

After answering all these questions:

If you arrive at the conclusion your relationship is ONLY at the good driver or great driver stage how do you proceed to either mitigate or remove the uncertainty and begins to move towards your goal of a mutually beneficial business relationship explains Sofiya Machulskaya.

If I have chosen the best partneris there a remote possibility that they will actually want to close a deal with me? If the answer is no, ask yourself what you can do to make this relationship mutually beneficial and take the necessary steps to reduce the anxiety and intensity of the situation.

Have I asked for a 60% reduction in my business insurance rate during the next sixty days that I will stick to? If the answer is no I must ask myself why? What needs to be done to achieve improved or at least efficient business relationship?

If any of these questions are answered with a resounding No of course please ask yourself another one. If you have answeredallof these questions with agreement, operate in a business partnership and stick with it! There is nothing worse than someone developing an expectation that you will NEVER budge when it seems like a relationship is going nowhere. Once the relationship is going down the road you can now move on to the other two main reasons why business partnerships dont or dont work out.

The first is that you have chosen a self partner and not a partner owner.

I have been most successful in business when I have found a John Assum who is willing to give 100% to the John Assums idea and not take anything for himself for years, years! I would have eventually developed an expectation that it will take me way too long to ever be able to do anything. It was great in the beginning because I could proudly tell the world I had created a relationship that was the envy of the industry much to my surprise I never even had to tell my family and my friends. That death-defying feeling of success has now been replaced by feelings of feelings of negligent partners, dishonest partners and picked dominoes!

I must be realistic and admit the risk is a little high having partners who are self-extended but in my opinion I have found if I have a John Assum or John Assum Big Fish who dont care, who refuse to grow and change, who are out to hurt anyone, which consists of your John Assum and your John Assum Big Fish of course I must look out for myself. On the other extreme, I have found that many seemingly self-improvement gurus/teachers, despite the best of intentions are actually someone who is most likely a perpetually poor or a self-improvement guru/teacher and who operates out of spite and destruction of the self vs personal growth of the person/team.

More:
The 3 Most Important Questions to Ask Before If and When You Stop and Ask for the Business by Sofiya Machulskaya - ABCmoney.co.uk

The social barometer is flailing wildly as you read. In twos and threes and more, it is being discussed in hushed tones and sometimes openly that Aiteo will be celebrating 21 years in business in few days. Age 21 is a significant milestone for an individual or an institution. It is the age that is globally accepted that one is fully welcomed into adulthood. For Aiteo, however, it had long been a primus inter pares in the continents oil and gas industry, taking on challenges and charting new terrains where otherwise established companies dither. Attaining this new age in an industry famed for its high mortality rate is, therefore, a testament to Aiteo longevity, consistency and commitment to truly serving the needs of communities across Africa, helping the continent to reassert its energy independence and building a high-quality asset base, while increasing market share, revenue and shareholder value, writes Lanre Alfred

With just a clear-cut vision and a bullish ingenuity and industry, Benedict Peters, the CEO/Founder of Aiteo Eastern Exploration and Production Company Limited, has built an integrated energy group with the experience and assets necessary to provide oil and gas on a regional and global scale. Over the past two decades, the company has grown from a peripheral player in the downstream sector of the oil and gas industry into a leading full-service energy company exploring and conquering territories that others dare not allow cross their imagination. In the intervening years, the company now discovers, produces, stores and delivers energy resources to marketplaces worldwide.

Aiteo, which contributes over 5per cent of Nigerias daily oil production, has one of the largest private storage facilities (with a capacity of more than 320 million litres at Port Harcourt and Apapa) for refined petroleum products in sub-Saharan Africa while it is also involved in refining and production, bulk petroleum storage, trading, marketing, supply, power generation and distribution. The company states on its website that each of these areas holds massive potential, with a global focus on the future of energy generation, significant oil and gas reserves still to be found throughout Africa, and a large number of alternative revenue streams to be found in the refinement of different petroleum products and derivatives.

A conglomerate with a turnover of over $20billion annually and a downstream business of bulk storage of over 300 million litres per annum, Aiteo has evolved into an integral contributor to the advancement of the African energy industry. Its integrated value chain in the upstream, downstream and power sectors is underpinned by extensive local capacity development with significant opportunities to sustain its future business. Aiteos major fields now include Nembe (Flowstation), Santa Barbara, Ogoroba, Oloibiri and Nembe Creek Truckline.

Aiteos strategy is to be a vital part of the worlds energy solution by developing its core assets in the areas of oil, gas and electrical power areas. As such, it has acquired three power plants that have a combined capacity of 2300 megawatts and it believes that Nigerias power shortage could be resolved through optimal utilisation of the nations huge gas deposits.

Twenty-one years is a long way from when Peters launched Aiteo. A native of Onicha Oloma in Delta State., the University of Benin graduate of Geography and Town Planning, he began his career in the oil and gas industry in the early 1990s, working with Ocean and Oil, the entity now known as Oando Nigeria Plc. He moved to MRS Oil Nigeria PLC as Group Executive Director, ending as its Managing Director, before leaving in 1999 to establish Sigmund Communecci, a petroleum products supply and trading company, which gave birth to Aiteo. When Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) announced its decision to divest some onshore assets it considered disposable in the Niger Delta, Aiteo raised the single largest debt-financing in the Nigerian oil and gas sector from local banks to become a successful bidder for 45per cent per cent of OML 29 at Nembe Creek Trunkline in 2014. The same year, Ventures Africa magazine named him the 17th richest person in Africa and the 7th richest in Nigeria.

He has also diversified, through his Bravura Holdings Company, into the development of a platinum mine in Zimbabwe by investing an initial $1bn. The 3,000 hectare (7,413-acre) concession where it plans to dig the mine is in Selous, 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of Zimbabwes capital Harare and close to existing platinum mines. Peters Bravura, which has little experience in mining, also intends to explore mining lithium, rare earth minerals and tin in the landlocked Southern African country. The big time came but with its variegated pitfalls.

Trashing Stereotypes

Commerce is far too precious and fundamental to be left to the wiles and exploits of villainous characters hence Benedict Peters believes that the doctrine of altruism and love must be preached as counteraction to the doctrine of mercantilism, cut-throat competition and greed that has overtime become the norm in business circuits.

Indeed, the story of Aiteo can never be disentangled from the founder, Peters. It is the story of a man who was bold enough to brave the odds of the uncertain and unstable international oil business because of a personal and profound belief in the Nigerian system.

Sigmund Communecci was Aiteos forebear. Sigmund Communecci owned and operated a petroleum storage terminal in Abonnema Wharf, Port Harcourt. In October 2000, the company sought and secured a credit line of N250million from City Express Bank with a 365-day repayment window. Having satisfactorily fulfilled its end of the bargain with an inspiring performance of the first loan, the company got another loan of N500million from the same bank in May 2002, and another N350million a month later. The company became attractive to several top banks as facilities were extended to it on the strength of its corporate uprightness. In his quest to make it a 360-degree energy conglomerate and ensure phenomenal growth and transformation, Peters rebranded Sigmund Communecci in 2008 and renamed it Aiteo.

There is no gainsaying billionaire extraordinaire, Benedict Peters is an inspiration to most of his peers; he paved his path to acclaim like the proverbial fortune hunter who dared the odds and braved through storms to create eternity from a moment. Peters wealth bears the sweet, dazzling glow of infinity; pundits would say its because he worked for it. Even his detractors would acknowledge that he toiled really hard to attain his current height.

Yes, in top business schools across the continent and beyond, the corporate exploits of Peters are veritable case-studies for academic researches. And there seems to be unanimity of opinions that the patently self-effacing businessman has created phenomenally successful businesses and changed the world in significant ways.

A force of nature; a towering force of hope and entrepreneurial depth, indeed, very few men can knead the tripartite traits of genius, modesty and character into that moral and human centaur that remains unattainable to generations of tycoons and multi-billionaires like this entrepreneur extraordinaire.

No doubt, becoming an industrialist however, is not mere lip service. It requires consistent effort and focus to grow from just being an entrepreneur with interest in a particular business to becoming a respected and renowned empire builder. Nigeria is blessed with many of such men who started from the scratch, kept their nose to the grindstone and turned seemingly insignificant ideas into behemoth industries. Yes, billionaire extraordinaire, Benedict Peters is one of these great Nigerians.

He is one man that would be sent to Mars and still treat it as a stepping stone to Saturn the quality of constant invention and self-improvement that has earned him worldwide acclaim and prosperity.

Peters has become the high watermark by which his contemporaries are measured. Innovative and insightful, he is a ruler of his world and not bound by a time clock, yet he does not abuse the privilege. Today, he is celebrated at home and abroad as one of Nigerias league of extraordinary entrepreneurs.

Interestingly, however, there is no gainsaying the business terrain is like a wilderness riddled with storms. But despite its inherent dangers, Peters navigates through its perilous paths with a stubborn resolve and unyielding spirit, like bog-hardened seekers.

Aiteos Arrival and Continued Financial Integrity

Aiteo Eastern Exploration and Production Company Limited, the succeeding entity for Sigmund Communecci, was founded with a commitment to provide responsible energy extraction and production and fuel economic growth while improving the quality of life of Nigerians through its diverse activities.

Many had expected that the change in its corporate identity would come with concern and uncertainties from banking partners and perhaps, the likelihood of withdrawal of the financial goodwill that the company used to enjoy under its former name. Rather, the credit facilities increased as Aiteo became more audacious and ambitious.

Precisely on Friday, March 6, 2009, Aiteo got a $30m Inventory Finance Facility from Ecobank to part-finance the local purchase/importation of petroleum products unde

Continued here:
Aiteos 21 Years of Consistency and Commitment to Serving Africas Communities - THISDAY Newspapers