Your success or failure to create and scale a business will come down to the kind of habits you incorporate into your daily life.

Follow the habits of highly successful entrepreneurs, and there's a good chance you will become one too. Strong personal habits that might positively impact a business include: healthy eating and working out, saving money and tithing.

Strong work habits might include a regular cold-calling regimen, weekly networking and delegating. There are hundreds of personal and professional habits that make for a great business, but unfortunately there are a few bad habits that are so ingrained within most entrepreneurs that they die hard.

Here are the three difficult habits to kick that may be ruining your business.

SEE ALSO: 12 habits of unsuccessful people

1. You pay attention to the stories, not the facts

Two weeks ago, you told your top salesperson that her performance numbers are off a bit, and she needs to work on getting her numbers up.

Since then, she hasn't attended your weekly sales meetings. The story you tell yourself in your head is that she is angry, and she is probably seeking employment elsewhere. You're telling yourself that she doesn't care about your meetings anymore.

This is a story, and there's a good chance it is not accurate.

The facts of this situation are that you told her she needs to increase performance, and she has missed two sales meetings. It's very easy to confuse the stories we tell ourselves with the actual facts of the situation.

Stories create emotions, which cause us to react, and those reactions are based on conclusions drawn from typically false inferences. Being an effective leader will require you to break the storytelling habit that's happening in your head. Instead, separate the facts from the stories, and make decisions based on what you know for sure.

2. You only believe what you believe

For the most part, what you believe about anything has been firmly implanted in you by others throughout your lifetime.

Building a business requires you to innovate, which means you must question every belief you have.

Zappos' CEO Tony Hsieh didn't believe that people would never buy shoes over the Internet because they couldn't try them on, and thus Zappos was built.

Steve Jobs didn't believe that a phone could just be a phone. He believed it could be a computer, a camera and a music player. One of the hardest habits to break is believing what you've been groomed to believe your entire life. If you can break this habit, there's no telling where your business will go next.

3. You ignore criticism

It takes a very healthy ego to build an empire. To have a Virgin-sized business you need to believe that you can be, do and have anything that you put your mind to.

That being said, one of the hardest habits to break is believing you are better than you are. When an employee or customer tells you that your product, your service or your attitude sucks, it's easy to revert to old habits, and defend the honor of this amazing business you have built.

You have 500 great customer reviews, and one that is glaringly terrible. It's easy to write-off that one bad review in your head, but if you can break the habit of ignoring criticism, there's a good chance that there's more to learn in that one bad review than in the other 500 good ones combined.

Even with over 60 live action films and TV series based on Marvel characters available for public consumption it’s hard to believe how many heroes still haven’t gotten their chance in the spotlight. Some of the most popular Marvel heroes still haven’t appeared on the big or small screen outside of animated form. The reasons for this are wide and varied.

The still tangled web of different property rights is a major reason. Many of your favorite mutants are controlled by 20th Century Fox who is finally just beginning to explore the X-Men universe. Other characters are caught in a weird limbo of rights between Sony Pictures, who still controls the "Spider-Man" franchise, Fox and Marvel Studios. For instance, both Fox and Marvel had the right to use Quicksilver who turned up in two different movie incarnations within weeks of each other. It sort of worked and it sort of didn’t.

Also, unlike DC that is more than OK with duplicating characters on the big and small screen, Marvel is creating one gigantic interconnecting universe. That means shows like "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." and "Daredevil" can’t create their own versions of known Avengers characters without fans assuming that’s the definitive Black Knight or Moon Knight (more on them later) for all of Marvel. And, frankly, there may just be too many popular Avengers members and international heroes for Marvel to deal with when you have that particular strategy.

Keeping that in mind, here are 20 Marvel heroes most fans are still hoping to eventually see kicking ass in some form or another (assuming the powers at be can find the time to give them a home).

SEE ALSO: RANKED: The best Marvel superhero movies of the past 8 years

DON'T MISS: Stan Lee has made 31 cameos in the Marvel universe — here they all are

Nova

First appearance: "Nova #1," Sept. 1976

Real identity: Richard Ryder

Lowdown: Sure, the Nova Corps are alive and well in the "Guardians of the Galaxy" movie franchise, but the greatest Nova of them all, Richard Ryder, hasn’t stepped hd his moment yet (at least not that we know of). Ryder has an Avenger connection as a one-time member and has saved the Marvel comic book universe on his own more than once. Every kid wanted his super powers growing up (Flying through space! a constant force field! Energy blasters!) and he’s also that Marvel relatable twentysomething that’s now missing from the big screen back to being a Spider-Man a goofy teenager again.

Best Chance: Baring a surprise cameo in "Guardians Vol. 2," the best hope for Ryder is to debut in a space-themed future Marvel Studios endeavor such as "Avengers: Infinity War," a fourth "Thor" film or – and this seems the most likely – "Captain Marvel."

Note: Another hero took the mantle of Nova over the past decade, the undeniably adorable Sam Alexander. It would be great for Marvel to bring a hero with real Hispanic heritage such as Sam into the mix, but he may just be too similar in personality to the new Spidey to work at this time.

She-Hulk

First appearance: "Savage She-Hulk #1"

Real identity: Jennifer Walters

Lowdown: One of Marvel’s most powerful heroes, Bruce Banner’s cousin is a Hulk in control of her own body (there’s no Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde issue here) with a keen intelligence and sharp wit. Marvel figured out the best way to exploit the character by focusing on Walters background as a defense lawyer, but since her debut three decades ago She-Hulk has been a key member of the Avengers, the Fantastic Four and The Defenders. The fact Marvel Studios hasn’t found a way to introduce a hero so interconnected in its comic book universe is sort of head scratching.

Best Chance: Future "Avengers" film or "Captain Marvel" although we’re betting on the later. Walters’ friendship with Carol Danvers is the perfect opportunity to also bring in some of Marvel’s other powerful ladies including a number of other heroines on this list. A "Defenders" appearance isn’t out of the question, we’re just not sure even Netflix has the budget to pull a CG motion capture She-Hulk off for more than a scene or two.

Cable

First appearance: "New Mutants #87" (as Cable), 1990

Real identity: Nathan Summers

Lowdown: The long grown son of Scott Summers and Madelyne Pryor – wait for it – a clone of Jean Grey, Cable was raised in the far future for his own protection only to return to the present a man seemingly older than his father and with combat abilities no one could have fathomed. He also was visibly battle scared with a robotic right arm. He’s a character with the sort of convoluted history that gives screenwriters headaches, but that tragic background has helped turn him into a fan favorite with more solo titles than his pop Cyclops has ever had. The question is how do you introduce him into an established movie universe without a 10-minute long exposition explaining who he actually is and how he got to be that way?

Best Chance: Cable is set to appear in 20th Century Fox’s "X-Force" that has been in active development since 2013, but still doesn’t have a director or release date.  However, a post-credits scene for "Deadpool" says the character will appear in "Deadpool 2."

The 2016 Summer Olympics officially kick off from Rio on Friday night at the opening ceremony.

While budget cuts are expected to make for a less lavish event than in summer Olympics past, Rio's opening ceremony will nevertheless feature some 11,000 athletes representing 206 countries. Team USA, unsurprisingly, will have the biggest delegation in Rio with 554 athletes. 

But on the other end of things, several countries have just one or two athletes representing them at the Olympics. Many of these small nations have never won a medal, but are Olympians all the same. 

Here are the 10 smallest athletic delegations in Rio:

EQUATORIAL GUINEA

Athletes (age): Reina-Flor Okori (36); Benjamin Enzema (27)

Sport: women's 100-meter hurdles (Okori); men's 800 meters (Enzema; track and field)

Country population: 760,000

One thing to know: Okori is competing in her fourth and final Olympics. 

TUVALU

Athletes (age): Etimoni Timuani (24)

Event: men's 100 meters (track and field)

Country population: 9,876

One thing to know: Timuani is also a professional soccer player.

SOMALIA

Athletess (age): Mohamed Daud Mohamed (20), Maryan Nuh Muse (19)

Sport: men's 5,000 meters (Mohamed; track and field); women's 400 meters (Muse; track and field)

Country population: 10.5 million

One thing to know: Mohamed Hassan Mohamed, who competed in the 2012 Olympics, defected to Europe after the London games. 

With high-profile video games often taking dozens (if not hundreds) of hours to complete, it's getting tougher for people with inconvenient obligations like jobs and social lives to keep up with them all.

I'm sorry, "The Witcher III" and "Metal Gear Solid V." It's not you, it's me. But really, it's you.

Thankfully, the past few years have also given rise to amazing games like "Gone Home" and "Journey" that offer some of the most memorable, impactful experiences in gaming while being the length of the average movie. For anyone who has played those games (and everyone should), there's something else that should be on your radar.

This is "ABZÛ."

SEE ALSO: Apple has completely changed its plan to conquer TV, report says

In "ABZÛ," you play as a nameless, silent and seemingly not human diver who is exploring the ocean for reasons they are never really explained.

It's not a mechanically complex game. You hold one button to swim forward, press another to give yourself a little boost and use one more button to occasionally interact with objects. This is not a game about fighting for your life.

You occasionally find a little robot buddy who can clear obstacles for you, but aside from a couple of switches you have to activate, it's not a game about puzzle-solving either.

With all eyes on Rio de Janeiro for the launch of the 2016 Summer Olympics, it's easy to forget that Brazil is one of the largest and most populous countries in the world. Rio may be the country's tourism capital, but from the Amazon basin to the Atlantic islands of Fernando de Noronha, there's a wealth of natural and cultural beauty across Brazil.

If you're making the trip this month to check out some of the Olympic Games in person, or simply have Brazil on your bucket list, here are 25 must-sees and dos.

Take a cable car up to Rio's Christ the Redeemer statue, which just might be Brazil's most famous landmark. It sits atop Corcovado Mountain, its arms outstretched over the megacity.

Swim in beautiful lakes hidden between sand dunes at Lencois Maranhenses National Park. The giant desert dunes get filled with water during the rainy season, turning into hundreds of super warm freshwater pools.

Enjoy a thrilling jump into the small but deep Buraco do Galego swimming hole, in Fernando de Noronha, an archipelago of islands off Brazil's eastern coast.

Some couples share everything — even Olympic glory. 

A handful of crazy-talented husbands, wives, boyfriends, and girlfriends will be competing in the Rio games this year alongside their significant others. 

Meet 15 pairs who bring a whole new meaning to the term "power couple."

Brianne Theisen-Eaton, of Team Canada, and Ashton Eaton, of Team USA, met at the University of Oregon and got married in 2013. Even though they compete in track and field for different countries, they still root for each other. "We call it 'Team North America,'" Eaton told People.

Source: People

Charlotte Caslick and Lewis Holland both play rugby for Australia and have been dating for a few years. “It’s great having someone to be with who really understands exactly what you’re going through," Holland told the Daily Telegraph. "It’s a level of understanding that’s pretty unique."

Source: The Daily Telegraph

Helen and Kate Richardson-Walsh are the first openly gay married couple to compete in the Olympics together. (Both play field hockey for Great Britain.) They've been teammates for two decades, but became a couple during the Beijing games and got hitched in 2013.

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Source: Gay Star News

For all but the most familiar firearm users and operators, the inner workings of a gun are a mystery.

Everyone knows firearms have a trigger, which when pulled fires a bullet. But between the pulling of the trigger and the bullet leaving the weapon, how does a gun function?

The YouTube channel C&Rsenal has an ingenious way of explaining how various guns function — with the use of X-ray animations showing what happens as a person pulls the trigger.

A selection of GIFs made from the channel's videos, showing some of the historical weapons used in World War I, are below:

SEE ALSO: This awesome infographic shows how silencers actually work

SEE ALSO: Here's what a rocket-propelled grenade looks like in extreme slow motion

A six-round 8 mm French Ordnance revolver, fired by a hammer:

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A three-round 8x50 mm Berthier Mle. M16 bolt-action rifle:

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An eight-round .32 ACP Mauser Model 1914 'Pocket Pistol,' which was striker-fired and had an ejector slide:

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So you want to do what you love.

... and you want to make money.

A handful of people have the privilege to do both. Not surprisingly, these folks tend to have a few things in common, as Cornell University economist Robert H. Frank lays out in a recent story for the New York Times' Upshot blog.

But what we wanted to know was this: Among these high earners who adore their gigs, are there any psychological commonalities that the rest of us might be able to incorporate into our own lives?

Turns out, the answer is yes. According to the latest psychological research, people who make a lot of money and adore their jobs tend to share three key traits.

SEE ALSO: Here are 25 habits that psychologists have linked with happiness

DON'T MISS: 11 surprising things your physical appearance says about you

#1: They're experts in their field.

Dozens of studies belonging to a field known as positive psychology suggest that the happiest people are those who identify their unique skills — or "signature strengths"— and find a way to incorporate these into their daily life.

A team of British psychologists who recently studied hundreds of college students for two months found that, compared with students who reported rarely or never using their signature strengths, those who reported regularly using these skills tended to report better progress in reaching the personal goals that they'd been asked to identify at the beginning of the study. Those students also tended to report being happier (according to their scores on a widely used psychological measure of satisfaction) over the same time period.

Plus, experts tend to make more money than non-experts. As economists Philip Cook and Robert Frank argue in their book "The Winner-Take-All Society," those who become highly skilled at their jobs are capturing a much larger share of total income in almost every field.

"Moral: Become an expert at something!" Frank wrote in the Times.

#2: They feel good about what they do.

Sure, you might feel okay with what you do at work each day, but how do you feel about what your employer does for the rest of the world? In his book "What Price the Moral High Ground?", Frank says feeling good about your employer's broader mission is one of the most important aspects of occupational satisfaction.

"When most people leave work each evening, they feel better if they have made the world better in some way, or at least haven’t made it worse," Frank writes in the Times. 

And, not surprisingly, research suggests happy employees are better for the company in the long-run. A Harvard Business Review survey of 12,000 electronic journal entries from 238 professionals across seven different companies suggested that employees were far more likely to have new ideas on days when they felt happier. Win-win.

#3: They regularly find themselves blissfully submerged in their work.

When was the last time you were so immersed in something that the world around you seemed to fade away? Research from the Hungarian psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi suggests that this state of consciousness, which he and other researchers have called "flow," also happens to be the time when we feel the most joyful, creative, and at-peace.

Fortunately, further research suggests that this positive, flow-state is under our control: Finding a job or a hobby that encourages us to enter our flow state can help us feel happy and satisfied.

Plus, if you've found a job that regularly gets you in your "flow," chances are you'll be more likely to devote a lot of time doing it. Dozens of psychological studies suggest that this time spent practicing can add up and increase your odds of becoming an expert in your field. Again, experts tend to make more money than non-experts.

If you want to get rich, start by studying the people who have already done so.

"The only person who can teach you how to think like a millionaire is a millionaire," writes Steve Siebold in his book, "How Rich People Think."

The same could be said about billionaires.

Below, we've rounded up 11 habits of self-made billionaires. You may notice that none of them require dramatic life changes — a few tweaks here and there to your daily routine could result in huge gains.

SEE ALSO: 13 habits of self-made millionaires, from a man who spent 5 years studying rich people

They meditate

Science says that meditation has a number of mental and physical health benefits, from improving memory to boosting the immune system.

Ray Dalio, founder of Bridgewater Associates, told The Huffington Post, "Meditation, more than anything in my life, was the biggest ingredient of whatever success I've had."

Dalio is not alone. Jack Dorsey, CEO of both Twitter and Square, and media mogul Oprah Winfrey say that they practice meditation daily.

They're charitable

"The world class set their sights on impacting the world with their wealth," Siebold writes. "Some do it through philanthropy, others through business or various financial vehicles."

A handful of billionaires have taken to philanthropy, including founder and CEO of Bloomberg Media Michael Bloomberg, who has donated $3 billion over his lifetime.

And then there's the Giving Pledge, which Warren Buffett and Bill and Melinda Gates created in order to invite the world's wealthiest people to pledge more than half of their wealth to charitable causes either during their lives or in their wills. Some have even pledged to give away more than 99% of their fortunes.

They wake up early

There may be some truth behind the age-old adage: The early bird gets the worm.

The wealthiest people tend to be early risers. Take Jack Dorsey, who wakes up at 5:00 a.m. to meditate and work out. Or Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, who wakes up at 5:45 a.m. to exercise before starting his workday.

Branson and Dorsey aren't the only successful people who wake up before the sun. In his five-year study of rich people, author Thomas C. Corley found that nearly 50% of them woke up at least three hours before their workday actually began.

Samsung had a smartwatch on sale before Apple did, but it still seems like the Korean giant is taking cues from its rival in Cupertino.

In fact, Samsung submitted several pictures of what looks like the Apple Watch as part of a patent application published on Thursday.

Most of the pictures in the patent application depict a generic smartwatch. But two figures clearly depict Apple's smartwatch, not a Samsung device. Samsung's submitted images including Apple's crown and several of its proprietary band designs. 

The patent, "Wearable Device," describes a format for attaching watch band straps to a smartwatch device. Patent figures — the graphics — aren't really the important part of a patent application.

But the doppelganger drawings in the patent application suggest that Samsung engineers have at the very least drawn inspiration from Apple's smartwatch. 

The Apple Watch is the best selling smartwatch with 72% of the market, according to an IDC estimate. Samsung is second with 7%. 

A history of imitation

The patent describes the drawings as "views illustrating diverse shapes, structures, and materials of a first strap portion or a second strap portion in a wearable device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure."

Samsung and Apple have had a lot of disputes over patents and intellectual property in recent years, and of the long-running battles over patents is entering its last act. In 2012, a jury in California found that Samsung had infringed three of Apple's design patents for the iPhone.

Now, Samsung has appealed that $1 billion case to the Supreme Court. On Thursday, several major designers filed a brief with the Supreme Court backing Apple over Samsung. 

"Samsung copied many many features" of the iPhone, an Apple lawyer wrote in an earlier brief in that long-running case. 

Perhaps the watch is the next battleground.

Samsung did not respond to a request for comment. 

Take a look for yourself: 

SEE ALSO: Samsung's newest invention looks suspiciously like the Apple Watch

This is a piece of marketing material Apple published shortly after the Apple Watch announcement in 2014...

... and it's a dead ringer for Figure 10 in Samsung's patent application.

This buckle looks familiar.

Nestled in the rolling hills of rural Romania, the Castelul de Lut Valea Zanelor looks like a cottage that jumped straight out of the pages of a fairytale. 

The rustic hotel recently finalized construction, and will soon be available for booking.

Here's the inside scoop on the enchanting estate. 

In a small Romanian village just outside of Sibiu, the Castelul de Lut Valea Zanelor brings quirk and charm to the Fagaras Mountains, an area aptly known as the Valley of the Fairies.

For more info, click here »

Razvan and Gabriela Vasile, the owners of the hotel, named the finished estate "Castelul de Lut Valea Zanelor," which translates to "Clay Castle of the Valley of the Fairies."

The 10-room hotel is made entirely out of natural materials like wood, clay, straw, and sand.

I don't feel like I'm alone when I say that my cellphone and I are inseparable. This also applies when I'm commuting by car.

Although hand-held phone use is against the law in many parts of the country, Bluetooth hands-free technology allows the driving public to make calls with fewer distractions.

But the problem is where to store those phones. As prevalent as mobile phones have become over the last decade and a half, carmakers have lagged behind in phone storage solutions.

Having driven a few Cadillacs in recent months, I noticed that the New York-based luxury brand is doing some interesting stuff with phone storage.

SEE ALSO: Mercedes is winning the luxury market with an unusual strategy

In May, I had a chance to check out Cadillac's new XT5 crossover SUV.

As I stepped into the XT5's well-appointed cabin, I immediately looked for somewhere to put my phone.

The natural first choice is to put the phone in the cup-holders, but that greatly detracts from their utility.

Landing your first "real," post-college job as a 20-something can be exciting — and scary. 

You finally get the chance to prove yourself, but there's more room than ever to mess up.

Lauren Berger, founder and CEO of InternQueen.com, knows this well. Despite feeling prepared with 15 internships under her belt, Berger says she struggled through her first job, getting behind on email and forgetting important tasks.

But she learned from her mistakes and went on to start her own company.

In her second book, "Welcome To The Real World," Berger chronicles this experience along with everything she learned about making the most of a job and turning what you love into a career. 

Here are 15 ways she writes that 20-somethings can distinguish themselves in their first jobs:

SEE ALSO: 14 of the biggest misconceptions 20-somethings have about success

DON'T MISS: 15 things you should do right before a job interview

Stay connected

Once you've made a professional contact, you need to maintain the relationship or you'll lose it. Berger follows  a "three times per year" rule for staying in touch with industry contacts, and checks in with them in the fall, spring, and summer.

"When you reach out to employers, you just want to drop them a short paragraph telling them how you are doing," she says. "Don't ask for anything unless you need to."

You want to form genuine relationships; not use people to get ahead. 

Accept rejection — and move on

When you're still learning the ropes, rejection will become a common occurrence. Get used to it. Your ideas, pitches, and attempts to impress your boss will all be rejected at one time or another, Berger says.

However, it's important to accept these moments, realize that no one gets it right every time, and learn from the experiences. Berger suggests focusing on your successes instead, which will motivate you to push forward.

Get used to being uncomfortable

Once you decide what you want to do, go for it — even if it's uncomfortable to put yourself out there at first. If you can train yourself to be okay with feeling uncomfortable, you'll open yourself up new opportunities everywhere.

"When I feel myself tensing up or getting scared or insecure about any situation I try to push myself to do it anyway, because I know forcing yourself outside your comfort zone forces you to mature and grow," Berger says. 

German cuisine might not be light, but it's good.

And although it's easy to get caught up in the country's endless varieties of wurst (sausage), there are plenty of other delicious options... Though vegetarian friendly most are not.

There are meatballs bathed in gravy, potatoes prepared every which way, and many decadent desserts.

Keep scrolling for some of the country's best dishes.

Guten Appetit!

Weisswurst translates to white sausage, and despite its rather plain appearance, this Bavarian specialty is a breakfast staple. Make sure to peel off the skin before eating.

If you're looking for a hearty meal, look no further than schnitzel, which is essentially breaded and fried meat. There's chicken and pork schnitzel, but veal is the most common — and best — option.

The apple strudel you'll find in Germany (apfelstrudel) features a flaky crust, a warm apple filling, and powdered sugar, all of which is bathed in vanilla ice cream or sauce.

On August 4, 1958, Billboard magazine launched its first Billboard Hot 100 chart.

When the chart ranking premiered that day in print, Billboard was tracking the nation's top songs through a formula that encompassed "such factors as [radio] disc jockey plays, jukebox activity, and record sales."

The '50s kicked off the heyday of radio and the dominance of rock 'n' roll, which got its name in the decade.

Today, radio airplay still counts for a third of Billboard's song ranking formula, while downloads, physical sales, and streaming — the "modern-era, digital jukebox"— make up the rest. The sound of radio is, of course, much different now.

Check out which songs made the top 10 on Billboard's first Hot 100 list:

SEE ALSO: The biggest hit song the year you were born

MORE HERE: The biggest hit album the year you were born

10. Peggy Lee — 'Fever'

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9. Johnny Otis — 'Willie and the Hand Jive'

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8. Jack Scott — 'My True Love'

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You recently graduated and got your first "real" job — congrats! That probably means that you'll be moving into a new apartment, where you'll have rent to cover, bills to pay, and furniture to buy. Oh, you'll also need a new work wardrobe — and you'll probably want to grab the occasional drink or meal at your new neighborhood hot spots.

All of those things cost money — a lot of it. And chances are, that job you just accepted doesn't pay as much as you'd like.

Luckily, there are some easy ways to make extra cash when you're in your 20s and trying to make ends meet.

FlexJobs, an online service specializing in telecommuting and remote work, recently put together a list of high-paying jobs that you can do on the side.

To qualify for the list, each job had to be considered "flexible"— and not full-time — and had to pay at least double the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, according to the job posting on FlexJobs.

Brie Reynolds, director of online content for FlexJobs, says that "side jobs" are defined as anything part-time, including freelance, temporary, short- or long-term, work-from-home, or in-person-flexible gigs.

We selected the 13 jobs a 20-somethings could do on the side in their spare time:

SEE ALSO: The 13 most meaningful jobs in America

Temporary transcript processor

Pay: $15 an hour

Description: Data-entry jobs like transcript processing are great side jobs for people who love to work independently, have solid attention to detail, and enjoy the unique challenges of data entry.

Data-entry specialists are needed to input data from a variety of sources into the correct corresponding fields quickly and accurately, and working well under pressure is a must.

Copy editor/writer

Pay: Up to $17 an hour

Description: Copy editors and writers can be responsible for the writing, execution, and proofreading of materials across digital and print platforms.

Depending on the employer, they may write and edit for marketing materials, editorial content, social media, or other types of material.

Freelance photographer

Pay: Up to $20 an hour

Description: Make no mistake: Photography side jobs require someone who is highly skilled in photography and related software for editing and retouching photos. Photography experience is almost always required, and graphic design and Photoshop experience is a plus.

Sometimes the biggest hurdles to designing your home aren’t money or ideas but the crazy voices inside your head. Here’s a breakdown of common design-related psychological stumbling blocks and solutions for getting over them and on with the business of creating your ideal space.

1. Fear of Color

2. Fear of Hardwood Floors in the Kitchen or Bathroom

Once upon a time, people had hardwood floors in their kitchens and bathrooms and the sky did not fall nor did the world end. Tile floors in these rooms, where fear of water damage and hygiene rules, aren’t required by law. In fact, if you have a small space, an open-plan loft, or a one-story house, one of the secrets to creating flow is keeping flooring consistent throughout the space. If you spill water on a hardwood floor, all you have to do is mop it up. Wood isn’t as slippery as tile. Its lifespan is longer than yours, and, unlike aging skin, tired wood can be refinished.

3. Fear of Using White in a Family House

The all-white decorating scheme offers an appealing neutral backdrop, a serene atmosphere, and an easy way to mix old and new pieces. But parents of young children often fear that white is high maintenance, too hard to live with, and unfriendly to families. Granted, you might want to think twice before installing white wall-to-wall carpeting, but painted white floors can be mopped up, a white slipcover can be bleached, and a white laminate table can be wiped clean with a sponge. White walls and furnishings can create a sanity-preserving backdrop in a house riddled with children’s toys in a riot of colors, and white walls are the perfect place to showcase kids' artwork.

The sun was shining on Battery Park Ballfields on Wednesday.

It was a beautiful New York day, the kind of day that makes you want to leave the desk and play some ball. 

In the shadow of Goldman Sachs' headquarters in downtown New York, over 600 employees of the bank came out for a day of wiffle ball, competition, and camaraderie, all in the name of charity.

The bank was raising money for Harlem RBI, a nonprofit year-round youth-development program based in East Harlem, New York. The organization has grown to serve more than 1,700 boys and girls annually in both Harlem and the South Bronx, ages 5 to 22, providing them with year-round sports, educational, and enrichment activities.

Youth from the program also attended, serving as umpires and referees and calling the shots for the day.  The tournament pit different groups at the bank against each other in different rounds.

Some high-profile players also made an appearance at the games. Gary Cohn, the president and COO of Goldman Sachs, Yankees player Mark Teixeira, and Mets general manager Sandy Alderson got involved, mingling with kids and employees and trying their hands at bat. 

Is it competitive?

"Oh yes," said Cohn. "Of course it's competitive. This is Goldman Sachs." 

Gary Cohn, president of Goldman Sachs, left, Mark Teixeira, Harlem RBI board member and Yankees player, center, Brian Levine, cohead of global equities trading and execution services at Goldman Sachs, left, and kids from the Harlem RBI program.

The wiffle-ball tournament was the brainchild of Levine. He recently moved back to New York from London, where he was actively involved with London-based charity Greenhouse Sports.

Brian Levine at bat, part of team "Home Run Delta."

Levine wanted to continue giving back in New York and came up with the idea after meeting Yankees player and Harlem RBI board member Mark Teixeira six months ago. He wanted to build awareness of the charity and introduce the youth of the program to Wall Street. After the tournament, he planned to give them a tour of the Goldman trading floor. 

The TMT Unicorns.

Individual employees and teams donate to the cause and Goldman matches each employee contribution. The winner of the tournament, as well as six kids from Harlem RBI, will have the chance to watch the Yankees play the Mets in the Subway series at the Goldman Sachs box at Yankee Stadium on Thursday night. 

People form impressions of your personality in a matter of seconds.

It's not necessarily fair, but it's reality.

Especially in a professional setting, one thing you'll want to immediately appear is competent: knowledgeable, skilled, and capable.

Fortunately, there are ways to make yourself seem competent as soon as you meet an interviewer, coworker, client, or boss (and sometimes even as soon as they see your photograph).

Here are seven easy, sneaky strategies for appearing as competent as possible:

SEE ALSO: 15 science-backed tricks to instantly seem smart

1. Speak quickly

If you've got something to say, say it fast.

In one study, Brigham Young University researchers had 28 university students listen to recordings of six people whose voices had been manipulated to sound slower or faster than normal.

The student volunteers rated the speakers most competent when their voices had been sped up and least competent when their voices had been slowed down.

2. If you’re a woman, consider wearing makeup

Research suggests that wearing makeup can make women seem more competent.

In 2011, Nancy Etcoff at Harvard University led a study in which more than 250 adults looked at photographs of 25 women with different types of makeup. One-quarter of them wore no makeup; one quarter were made to look "natural" (some makeup); one quarter were made to look "professional" (a bit more makeup than the "natural" group); and one quarter were made look "glamorous" (the most makeup).

As it turns out, judges rated the "glamorous" women the most competent and the barefaced women the least competent.

3. Ask for advice...

You might fear that asking for help will make you look stupid.

But recent research from Harvard Business School suggests that asking for advice can instead make you seem more competent.

In one experiment, 170 university students worked on a series of computer tasks and were told they'd be matched with a partner who would complete the same tasks. (The partner was really a computer simulation.) When they'd finished the tasks, the "partner" either said, "I hope it went well" or "I hope it went well. Do you have any advice?"

As it turns out, students who'd been asked for advice rated their "partner" more competent than those who hadn't been asked for advice.

The researchers explain that when you ask for advice, you're validating the person's intelligence and experience, so they feel good about you in turn.

With "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" (opening March 25) giving us a new look at the Dark Knight as Ben Affleck takes over the character, it's time to take stock of the best — and the worst — Batmans we've seen in movies and TV.

The Batman of the screen has evolved from a witty crime fighter on TV to a darkly conflicted man in the movies.

Fans of Bruce Wayne, aka Batman, are extremely loyal to the actor they believe portrayed him best. Any objection is liable to lead to rowdy debates. Who can forget Seth Rogen and Zac Efron arguing the better Batman — Michael Keaton or Christian Bale — in "Neighbors"?

So let's add some more fuel to this superhero debate. Here are the actors who played Batman on TV and in movies (we've excluded animation, with a couple of important exceptions), ranked, starting with the worst.

SEE ALSO: The 21 best heist movies ever, ranked

8. George Clooney ("Batman & Robin," 1997)

Still trying to find his footing post-"ER," Clooney was jumping back and forth between romantic comedies and action movies when he took the Batman role after Val Kilmer was one-and-done in "Batman Forever." It turned out to be a disaster. Fans were exhausted by director Joel Schumacher's colorful aesthetic and the cartoonish villains played by Arnold Schwarzenegger (Mr. Freeze) and Uma Thurman (Poison Ivy). And Clooney’s Batman was too jokey. The gruff Dark Knight had become playful and soft.

"Batman & Robin" is the lowest-grossing movie in the franchise, making $238 million worldwide.

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7. Lewis G. Wilson "The Batman" TV show, 1943)

Wilson has the distinction of being the first actor to play Batman, starring in the 1943 series. Though he had the comics as a reference point, Wilson was still at a disadvantage being the first to put on the tights. He holds his own, but it's certainly not a performance that is memorable, as you can see in the footage here.

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6. Robert Lowery (“Batman and Robin” TV show, 1949)

The second effort at a Batman series led to the casting of a bigger actor to play Batman. Lowery's physique and the show's better fight scenes make for a more enjoyable experience. 

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