While working with a financial adviser isn’t for everyone, hiring a professional to manage your money can pay off in more ways than one. With a financial adviser in your corner, you’ll gain access to professional expertise and insights you can’t get elsewhere. And if you hire a true professional, they’ll help boost your returns with strategies you don’t even know about. (USA TODAY)

Nobody likes having to actually ask for a promotion . Advocating for yourself is a lot harder than speaking up for others. The good news is, if your boss is paying attention and your actions are speaking for themselves, you may not have to ask. You probably already know that doing good work is the single most effective way to show your boss you’re ready for more. (But it’s worth reiterating, because if you skip this step, you’re going to have a hard time getting promoted.) Ideally, you should be consistently exceeding expectations in your current job. This means you do just about every task as well and as efficiently as it can be done, and you usually finish tasks ahead of schedule. Once you’ve got that down, here are five more ways to prove you’re ready. (The Muse)

Have you ever wondered how to quit your job, start a location-independent business, and travel the world? In today's highly digital world, it's easier than you think to start a location-independent business. That's why thousands of people do so every year. They take the leap from their jobs and decide to take full control over their lives. In doing so, they seize control of their schedules, work on things they care about and enjoy life a lot more. But how do you get started with this process? We'll lay out some steps for you to follow. (Business.com)

Intel's CEO Brian Krzanich has had a busy 48 hours. He has condemned white supremacists, was among four CEOs to leave President Donald Trump's manufacturing council and today publishes a mid-year diversity report saying the company will reach its workforce representation goals in 2018 — two years earlier than previously expected. In his comments on the mid-year diversity report Intel released Tuesday, he called on corporate leaders to turn "this tragedy into action." (Fortune)

Three figures pretty much sum up Silicon Valley’s workplace diversity problem: 2% of the overall tech workforce is African American, 3% is Latino, and only 24% overall are women, according to a recent survey from Atlassian, an industry software firm. But SVAcademy, a new kind of accelerated job training and apprenticeship program for tech sales and business development positions, which publicly launched this week, is trying to change that, and their early results look pretty promising. (Fast Company)

Over the past three years, the influx of nearly 2 million migrants and refugees—many from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq—sparked a furious backlash across Europe. And last year, the number of people coming from Africa to Italy rose sharply. Many came from Nigeria, where plummeting oil prices have left people desperate to find work abroad. In response, the EU is spending billions of euros to try to reduce the number of people who decide to make the journey across land and sea. (CNBC)

Many expected the economic story of 2017 to be a boom in American growth, ignited by Donald Trump’s agenda of tax cuts, deregulation and infrastructure spending. Yet Europe is the region that has outperformed. The International Monetary Fund recently raised its growth forecasts for the euro zone for 2017 and 2018, while cutting its estimates for America. Business confidence in Europe, as measured by Eurostat’s economic-sentiment index, is at its highest point in over a decade. Unemployment stands at 7.7%, its lowest level since 2008. Since mid-2015, output in the continent has expanded by 2% per year—faster than America’s 1.7% yearly growth rate over the same period. (The Economist )

While the world has focused on North Korea, the globe's two biggest emerging economies are squaring off over their shared border. China and India's borderlands, though geographically desolate and inhospitable, have been a hot spot for increasing military tension in recent months. The two giants are wrestling more broadly for hegemony in Asia, and given that both are equipped with nuclear weapons, the situation could escalate. (CNBC)

Allstate Insurance Company and the Tom Joyner Foundation are kicking off its ninth year of supporting Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and their students through the annual Quotes for Education (QFE) program. Allstate will donate up to $100,000 in scholarship funds to the Tom Joyner Foundation to assist students attending HBCUs. (BlackNews.com)

The "On a Lighter Note" interviews leaders with questions that reveal their personalities in a less formal way. We delve into five questions with National Black MBA Association® President & CEO Jesse Tyson.

The National Black MBA Association® (NBMBAA®) and Prospanica® are pleased to announce Arne M. Sorenson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Marriott International, Inc., as a featured panelist at "The CEO’s" Luncheon presented by Nationwide at the 2017 Annual Conference & Exposition in Philadelphia on Thursday, September 28, 2017 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.

The National Black MBA Association® (NBMBAA®) and Prospanica® welcomes Dan Pallotta, Founder & President, Charity Defense Council and author of "Uncharitable: How Restraints on Nonprofits Undermine Their Potential," as Thursday’s Opening Keynote Speaker at the 2017 Annual Conference & Exposition in Philadelphia on Thursday, September 28, 2017 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.

Technology is constantly evolving (just ask the first generation Kindle!). Yes, these sorts of advancements and innovations make our everyday lives more convenient, but they also make tech one of the fastest growing career fields. Interested in a tech role? As these 19 awesome companies prove, there are plenty of opportunities out there. (The Muse)

Just 4% of funding from U.S.-based VC firms through July 13 of this year went to women-founded start-ups in their earliest stages, known as angel or seed funding, figures from PitchBook, a private capital data and research firm, show. Early-stage VC funding, the next level up, shows a similar pattern at 3% so far this year. Both sets of figures are unchanged from 2016. (USA TODAY)

There are millions of successful woman-owned businesses all around the world, which has sparked the launch of BusinessWomen.org – a blog that profiles "Amazing Business Women". . . . Recently, BusinessWomen.org announced that women of all ages and nationalities are invited to submit their stories for a chance to be published on the web site. (BlackNews.com)

Global and domestic unrest put downward pressure on mortgage rates this week. According to the latest data released Thursday by Freddie Mac, the 30-year fixed-rate average slipped to 3.89 percent with an average 0.4 point. (Points are fees paid to a lender equal to 1 percent of the loan amount.) It was 3.90 percent a week ago and 3.43 percent a year ago. The 30-year fixed rate is at its lowest level since late June. The 15-year fixed-rate average slid to 3.16 percent with an average 0.5 point. It was 3.18 percent a week ago and 2.74 percent a year ago. (The Washington Post)

Banks are scaling back on lending to Americans with the lowest credit scores, according to a study from TransUnion. Lenders processed fewer new personal loans, auto loans, and credit cards for subprime borrowers year-on-year in Q2 for the first time since 2012. (Business Insider)

Last year, a Northwestern Mutual study revealed that 85% of U.S. adults suffer from financial anxiety. And in the three-year period leading up to that study, more than one-third of Americans claimed they were growing increasingly worried about money matters. (CNN Money)

The bar for a chief executive of a public corporation to repudiate a United States president is extraordinarily high. Corporate leaders aren’t given their power, prestige, responsibility and nine-figure pay packages to use the corner office as their personal soapbox. With President Trump’s comments on white supremacists and other right-wing extremists ringing in the ears of America’s chief executives, that high bar appears to have been passed. (The New York Times)

Wal-Mart's second-quarter results make it crystal clear the retailer is committed to growing its e-commerce business, with Jet.com founder Marc Lore at the helm of it all. Faced with the threat of Amazon encroaching on its turf, Wal-Mart has been rolling out initiatives like "easy reorder," free two-day shipping with no membership required, and an online grocery service, which is slated to hit 1,100 Wal-Mart stores this year. (CNBC)

No president in modern history has sought to slash regulations on businesses quite like Donald Trump. And as a result, Internet service providers can sell and track your data without your permission. Coal mining companies won't be obligated to protect the nation's streams from debris when extracting coal from mountain tops. Firms that operate in hazardous industries, like electrical contractors and freight truck operators, face looser reporting requirements when their employees get hurt or sick on the job. Electronic cigarette makers won't have to meet the same labeling and approval processes as other tobacco providers anytime soon due to a delay by the Trump administration. (CNN)

Blackstone co-founder Steve Schwarzman and other CEOs on the now-defunct White House policy forum were perplexed by President Donald Trump's efforts to take responsibility for disbanding the group, sources told The New York Times. Schwarzman, who chaired the group, thought he had an agreement with the White House to announce that the idea of ending the Strategic and Policy Forum was a joint decision, the Times reported. (CNBC)