Targeted advertisements, tailored information feeds, and recommended content are now common and somewhat inescapable components of our everyday lives. With the help of searches, browsing history, purchases, likes, and other digital interactions, technological experiences are now routinely "personalized." Companies with access to this information often downplay the fact that users' personal data serves as a key form of monetization, and their privacy policies tend to use the terms "personalization" and "customization" to legitimize the practice of tracking and algorithmically anticipating users' daily movements. In Making it Personal, Tanya Kant sheds light on the dilemmas of algorithmic personalization, exploring such key contemporary questions as: What do users really know about the algorithms that guide their online experiences and social media presence? And if personalization practices seek to act on our behalf, then how can users constitute, retain, or relinquish their autonomy and sense of self? At the heart of the book are new interviews and focus groups with web users who-through a myriad of resistant, tactical, resigned or trusting engagements-encounter algorithmic personalization as part of their lived experience on the web. Tanya Kant proposes that for those who encounter it, algorithmic personalization creates epistemic uncertainties that can emerge as trust or anxiety, produces an ongoing struggle for autonomy between user and system, and even has the power to intervene in identity constitution. In doing so, algorithmic personalization does not just generate "filter bubbles" for individuals' worldviews, but also creates new implications for knowledge production, the deployment of cultural capital as an algorithmic tactic, and, above all, formations of identity itself.

Public social services are increasingly being individualised in order to better meet the differentiated needs of competent and independent citizens and to promote the effectiveness of social interventions. This book addresses this development, focusing on a new type of social services that has become crucial in the 'modernisation' of welfare states: activation services. The book discusses and analyses the individualisation of activation services against the background of social policy reforms on the one hand, and the introduction of new forms of public governance on the other. Critically discussing the rise of individualised social services in the light of various theoretical points of view, it analyses the way in which activation and the 'active subject' are presented in EU discourse. It compares the introduction of individualised activation services in five EU welfare states: the UK, Germany, Italy, Finland and the Czech Republic, focusing on official policies as well as policy practices. The book provides original insights into the phenomenon of the individualised provision of activation services. It is useful reading for policy makers as well as for students and researchers of welfare states, social policies and public governance.

In the world of harmonious collaboration, how does your rhythm of connection set the beat? The resounding wisdom of Frank Iero reverberates: "The best music happens when you have a personal connection to it." As a devoted music lover and practitioner, I've realized this philosophy extends far beyond melodies—it's a universal truth that underscores every interaction and achievement in life. Make It Personal: Discover the Five Dimensions of Human Collaboration in the Workplace unravels a journey through diverse experiences. As a musician, the flute, piano, and saxophone have been my companions, each whispering the importance of personal bonds. From early days with a plastic Yamaha recorder to navigating cross-industry corporate leadership, connection weaves through every note of my life's symphony, where music has been a metaphor for collaboration. Life's composition ventured into technology. As a senior leader orchestrating global innovation and transformation, the familiar cadence of personal connection echoed—why do some collaborations flourish while others falter? What sparks successful relationships in a world dominated by algorithms? In the crucible of these questions, my pursuit evolved into an academic endeavor. My exploration traversed studies, culminating in a doctoral thesis that uncovered human collaboration's five dimensions. Each melody-like dimension intertwines, creating a harmonious resonance that elevates relationships and drives innovation. Leadership, I've found, isn't confined to titles; it emanates from the heart. Minouche Shafik's words resonate: "In the future, jobs will be about using our hearts." This sentiment drives my academic exploration into a guide for nurturing workplace connections. Make It Personal melds academic insight with relatable narratives. Characters inspired by real experiences offer perspectives that illustrate collaboration's dimensions. My anecdotes provide the delicate counterpoint that accentuates the symphony of workplace connections and transformations – a journey guided by the belief that true collaboration emerges from the heart.

Too many people inherit somebody else's Jesus, depending on family or friends for their spiritual vitality and growth. Through fascinating personal stories, scriptural insights, and practical interactive studies, "Your Own Jesus" can set readers free to live their faith without compromise.

Alex seems determined to avoid Leo’s gaze, but that’s like a red rag to a bull. Leo loves a challenge.

What if knowing the answers to five simple questions could give a kid hope?In a world where kids are known by a number on a jersey, digits on a car pool tag, and random usernames, we need more adults who will stop and take the time to know them personally.It's Personal is for volunteers and other leaders who work with children and teenagers. A practical guide for a personal (and more effective and fulfilling) approach to leading kids, It's Personal revisits the story of Zacchaeus and explores Jesus' simple model for how to be personal. Jesus' encounter with Zacchaeus shows us how to engage kids and teenagers personally to give them a renewed sense of identity, belonging, and purpose.Something remarkable can happen when you start seeing people the way Jesus sees them.Taking the time to answer the five questions in this book for a kid or teenager could radically change someone's faith, maybe even yours.

This book addresses the development of increasingly individualised public social services in the EU. It focuses particularly on activation services that have become crucial in the 'modernisation' of welfare states, comparing their introduction in the UK, Germany, Italy, Finland and the Czech Republic.

Brilliant and engagingly written, Why Nations Fail answers the question that has stumped the experts for centuries: Why are some nations rich and others poor, divided by wealth and poverty, health and sickness, food and famine? Is it culture, the weather, geography? Perhaps ignorance of what the right policies are? Simply, no. None of these factors is either definitive or destiny. Otherwise, how to explain why Botswana has become one of the fastest growing countries in the world, while other African nations, such as Zimbabwe, the Congo, and Sierra Leone, are mired in poverty and violence? Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson conclusively show that it is man-made political and economic institutions that underlie economic success (or lack of it). Korea, to take just one of their fascinating examples, is a remarkably homogeneous nation, yet the people of North Korea are among the poorest on earth while their brothers and sisters in South Korea are among the richest. The south forged a society that created incentives, rewarded innovation, and allowed everyone to participate in economic opportunities. The economic success thus spurred was sustained because the government became accountable and responsive to citizens and the great mass of people. Sadly, the people of the north have endured decades of famine, political repression, and very different economic institutions—with no end in sight. The differences between the Koreas is due to the politics that created these completely different institutional trajectories. Based on fifteen years of original research Acemoglu and Robinson marshall extraordinary historical evidence from the Roman Empire, the Mayan city-states, medieval Venice, the Soviet Union, Latin America, England, Europe, the United States, and Africa to build a new theory of political economy with great relevance for the big questions of today, including: - China has built an authoritarian growth machine. Will it continue to grow at such high speed and overwhelm the West? - Are America’s best days behind it? Are we moving from a virtuous circle in which efforts by elites to aggrandize power are resisted to a vicious one that enriches and empowers a small minority? - What is the most effective way to help move billions of people from the rut of poverty to prosperity? More philanthropy from the wealthy nations of the West? Or learning the hard-won lessons of Acemoglu and Robinson’s breakthrough ideas on the interplay between inclusive political and economic institutions? Why Nations Fail will change the way you look at—and understand—the world.

FOREWORD BY GUY KAWASAKI Presentation designer and internationally acclaimed communications expert Garr Reynolds, creator of the most popular Web site on presentation design and delivery on the Net — presentationzen.com — shares his experience in a provocative mix of illumination, inspiration, education, and guidance that will change the way you think about making presentations with PowerPoint or Keynote. Presentation Zen challenges the conventional wisdom of making "slide presentations" in today’s world and encourages you to think differently and more creatively about the preparation, design, and delivery of your presentations. Garr shares lessons and perspectives that draw upon practical advice from the fields of communication and business. Combining solid principles of design with the tenets of Zen simplicity, this book will help you along the path to simpler, more effective presentations.