PFT: Chip Kelly's contract worth $32.5M

AP

When Colin Kaepernick was in college at Nevada, he was a phenomenal player ? the first player in NCAA Division 1 history to pass for 10,000 yards and run for 4,000 yards in his career. But he wasn?t a Heisman Trophy candidate or a first-round draft pick, in part because many people thought the Nevada ?pistol? offense was a gimmick.

Now that Kaepernick has led the 49ers to the Super Bowl from the pistol, the man who invented the offense, former Nevada coach Chris Ault, is celebrating what he has accomplished ? and predicting big things for the pistol in the NFL going forward.

Ault said on NFL Network this morning that contrary to what some people believe, the pistol isn?t predicated on a quarterback running the ball. In fact, Ault said he believes NFL defenses will be able to take away a lot of the runs that Kaepernick does so well. It?s just that when defenses are focused on preventing Kaepernick from getting to the outside, that leaves a lot open in the middle. Ault said he thought Frank Gore?s two touchdown runs against the Falcons in the NFC Championship Game were set up by the defense having to worry about Kaepernick running in the read-option.

?I think defenses will catch up, but here?s the beauty of the pistol: I know we saw Kaep run for 181 yards against Green Bay ? that?s certainly the read part of the game, it?s great ? but what you saw last week is what I believe our pistol brings to the table: Kaep didn?t run it. He read it and handed it off because Atlanta was taking away Kaep on the outside,? Ault said. ?And those two plays, I believe, that Gore scored on, both of them were read-type plays. The beauty of what we?ve done in the pistol and what I?ve seen the 49ers and the Redskins doing, is, it?s not just the read play itself. It?s also the play-action pass off of it.?

Ault said the pistol formation, in which the quarterback is not under center but is closer to the line of scrimmage than a typical shotgun formation, with a running back directly behind the quarterback, makes it harder for the defense to key on the running back.

?When that back sits behind the quarterback, the linebackers do not have a clear view of what he?s doing,? Ault said. ?You can run downhill power games, counters, gaps and all that from the pistol.?

Anyone who thought the pistol was all about the quarterback running the ball after watching Kaepernick?s record-breaking rushing game against the Packers saw in the 49ers? win over the Falcons that that?s not the case: Kaepernick led the 49ers to a win while running just two times for 23 yards.

?I don?t think the NFL quarterbacks are all going to start running the ball 15 times a game,? Ault said. ?But if you?ve got the read in your offense, it is a threat, it?s something you?ve got to be concerned about, and of course if you?ve got a guy like Kaep who can run like a gazelle, you?ve got to be more than concerned with it. You?ve got to put one and a half people on him.?

Ault said that any NFL team, even those with slow, pocket passers, could run its offense out of the pistol.

?They could run the pistol formation,? Ault said. ?They don?t need to run the read part of it. When we first put the pistol in, in 2005 and 2006, that?s all we ran ? we ran the power, the gap, the counters, the zones, the outside stuff. We did not run the read at that time. So the pistol offense, the most important thing there is you can run any offense you?ve been running.?

Ault isn?t suggesting that his offense is the best for every team ? he acknowledged that it has weaknesses and strengths like any other system. But he says it?s not a gimmick. It?s here to stay.

Source: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/01/22/chip-kelly-contract-worth-32-5-million/related

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Violinist Vanessa-Mae rehearses for a new role - Olympic skier

LONDON (Reuters) - Violinist Vanessa-Mae has put music on hold for a year and is rehearsing for a new role - skiing for Thailand at the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, in February 2014.

Vanessa-Mae, 34, is in training with the aim of competing in at least five internationally recognized events to qualify for the giant slalom and possibly the slalom at the Sochi Olympics.

"People are surprised when they see me skiing - a classical violinist, Oriental, who has lived in the city all her life," Vanessa-Mae told Reuters in a telephone interview.

"But it has been my dream to be a ski bum since I was 14. This is something I am determined to do."

The violinist is a British citizen but she also holds a Thai passport. She was born in Singapore to a Chinese mother and a Thai father but she was brought up in England when her mother remarried a Briton.

Vanessa-Mae, whose full name is Vanessa-Mae Vanakorn Nicholson, would be only the second Thai to compete at a Winter Olympics if she qualified. Academic Prawat Nagvajara represented Thailand in cross-country skiing at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics and the 2006 Turin Winter Olympics.

"I wanted to compete for Thailand because there is a part of me which I have never celebrated -- being Thai," said Vanessa-Mae. "My father, like most Thais, has never skied but he's really excited about me doing this as is the Thai Olympic Committee."

Vanessa-Mae started skiing at the age of 4 but music has always been her priority. She made her international professional debut aged 10 and made her mark on the world stage when she broke from tradition and became known for her sexy, glamorous style and for mixing classical music with pop.

Her first techno pop-style album, "The Violin Player," was released in 1995 and reached No. 11 in the UK albums chart and she has not stop touring since, although she has not released a new album since 2004.

SECOND PASSION

Vanessa-Mae said she had always wanted to spend more time on her other passion, skiing, so moved to the Swiss alpine resort of Zermatt in 2009 where she is now in training for the Olympics. She hopes to compete in her first event by April.

International Ski Federation spokeswoman Riikka Rakic said Vanessa-Mae was one of five actively registered Thai athletes so she has a license to compete for Thailand but she needs a minimum of five starts in FIS (Federation Internationale de Ski) competitions and certain points to qualify for the Olympics.

"She has a full year to quality and there are many events so there are plenty of options still," said Rakic.

A National Olympic Committee of Thailand spokesman said Vanessa-Mae would be welcome to race for Thailand if she qualified. So far no Thai athlete has qualified for Sochi.

Vanessa-Mae said she knew it would be tough to make the Olympics but she had given herself a year sabbatical from music to do this -- and always worked better with a deadline.

"When it comes to music I am a perfectionist but when it is skiing, I have no delusions about a podium or even being in the top 100 in the world," she said.

"Of course there is a risk that I could break something but life is short and you have to go for it. Just to qualify for the Olympics in my hobby would be a dream come true for me."

Once Sochi is over, she intends to return to music.

"It's time for a new album but doing this will give me a new perspective. Living my dream of being a ski bum is great but the best job in the world is being on stage, making music," she said.

(Reporting by Belinda Goldsmith, editing by Paul Casciato)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/violinist-vanessa-mae-rehearses-role-olympic-skier-130313168--spt.html

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Scaling Social Media Selling - Online Marketing Blog

As companies evolve their appreciation and understanding of the opportunities to connect with prospects, customers, employees and the industry at large through online content and social media, interest in scaling such efforts has increased significantly.

It?s understandable why: A recent study reported on by eMarketer?indicates that 67% of BtoC marketers and 44% of B2B marketers saw leads generated through social media channels.

Many companies are investing in social media listening for things like buying signal keywords to engage with prospects and creating content specifically to address the kinds of questions that lead to inquiries. However, there?s only so much a community manager or social media strategist can do.

In situations where organizations have sales teams that are not kept entirely busy by the marketing department, some of the more enterprising sales and account executives will create social profiles and even blog.

Establishing an online presence to build their personal brand amongst a community of prospective customers can help them stand out and attract new business. For the right kind of sales person, building up individual brand can be instrumental for creating awareness that lowers barriers and facilitates reputation, credibility, trust that result in shorter sales cycles and an increase in inbound inquiries.

When sales organizations can facilitate this activity so that it helps individual sales executives build their online footprint at the same time as building trust in the overall brand, then it?s a win all around.

As our agency works more and more with companies on content marketing strategy that impacts revenue, interest in helping sales executives undertand how content and social media can increase individual sales has become increasingly important. Here are a few steps to consider for doing that.

• Understand the importance of a social presence in your industry ? Leverage social media monitoring, customer surveys and industry research to get a broad view of what role social media plays in the brand and prospect relationship. Talk to social savvy sales people to get their first hand perspectives and ?identify what?s working.
• Conduct a self-assessment ? While marketing should have a benchmark for the overall brand, it?s also important for the sales organization to determine the current social and online content participation of individuals. Who has profiles and how are they using them?
• Embrace a model to attract, engage and convert ? Provide sales teams with the ?why? of using social media and content. Set expectations for time investment and time to see a return. A model that shows a path for social sales development and what that means for individuals will be instrumental for identifying training and successful implementation.
• Identify tools ? Efficiency and scale are essential for effective social selling, so identifying tools like blog publishing platforms, social media monitoring and promotions will be important.
• Understand social audiences ? Social listening and community participation will provide insights but helping sales executives see both short term engagement opportunities as well as long term nurturing will help avoid scenes like the?biscuit?in Tommy Boy. ?Being useful is the most valuable sales tactic on the social web, not explicit sales pitches.
• Create a personal brand content plan ? With an understanding of why and what, the how for building a personal brand online is an important next step. ?The hub and spoke model works as well for individuals as it does for companies overall and making a connection between personal brand building and that of the overall organization is key. ?This plan covers topics, keywords, types of content, social networks, promotions and engagement tactics. It also identifies the content that the brand can create to be repurposed ?by sales teams for congruent messaging and efficient content marketing.
• Monitor success and optimize performance - Leveraging social media monitoring tools, web analytics and the sales performance data that comes from marketing automation services can all provide?crucial?feedback for social sales performance optimization. It boils down to: knowing your target audience interests/pain points/goals that are solved by the solution you?re selling.?Be the ?best answer? for information on those topics in a way that attracts mentions, social shares, links and discussion. The result will be prospects seeking you out more than you scrambling for where your next customer is going to come from.

There?s a lot more to a framework for enabling sales organizations with individual content and social media plans that are good for both individuals and the overall brand, but these are some important considerations to get started. ?Everything from where to find the time to create content and engage on social networks to addressing the fear of a sales person publishing things they really shouldn?t can be addressed with the right plan and resources.

Here are a few practical?social media tips for sales people that want leverage social media to build their personal brand online.

Every organization will have a few cowboys (or cowgirls) that go off and do their own social media thing. ?But a smart and adaptable social content plan plus good training can empower entire sales teams to scale a company?s social media sales efforts and boost performance of both individual sales executives and the overall brand at the same time.

Does your organization enable sales execs with blogs, or social media sales training? If you work for a business in a sales executive capacity, does your company support social media and content publishing by the sales organization?

?

Source: http://www.toprankblog.com/2013/01/scaling-social-media-selling-7-steps-to-building-trust-credibility/

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Keeping Your Business Fit | DemGen Inc. - Virtual Sales, Marketing ...

Monday, January 21st, 2013

I saw this quote, ?You cannot build fitness on dysfunction? ~ Gray Cook?, on a client?s site in the fitness industry.

We had a very healthy dialogue and I mentioned this quote buried within their site and why it resonated with me.

Immediately, I converted it to the general fitness of a business, as I have periodically encountered ?dysfunction? within clients and prospective client?s business models.

Obviously if we are hired to restore function, grow sales, improve customer satisfaction and communications, we need to be able to address the ?dysfunctional? aspects first.? If a client is not wanting/willing to address these concerns, I feel professionally tied and unable to move them to health and vitality, and therefore recommend they choose another ?doctor?.

The problem typically does not require radical change and is a relatively easy fix in our view.? A good example is when a client requests that we generate more customers and we discover that their current clients are not being properly cared for. ?We?d recommend that they take a look at their entire customer life cycle and resolve any issues, before they move forward and grow.

The ?Fix? may be creating systems, enabling proper and consistent follow through, training or retraining a current staff member of their team.? The main point is that more sales is not always the answer.

I?ve found that there is typically ?dysfunction? at some level and to some degree with all companies, mine included.? The real value comes in determining if it critically affects your internal team and becomes rampant and/or affects your clients in a critical way.? I don?t think we need a degree to figure out what the root cause is and have the will to resolve, heal and come from a place of health.

Maybe start with a few questions:? why am I here?? What?s the purpose of this business?? Who do we serve and how do we serve them best?? Is this situation effecting the positive outcome to those answers and if so, what do I need to do to resolve it.

My challenge to you is to pick an area of dysfunction within your business and restore it to health.? I?m going to do the same.

Wishing you a vibrant, healthy and fit business!

Gary Evans

Source: http://www.demgen.com/keeping-your-business-fit

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5 accidentally shot at gun shows in US

By Vignesh Ramachandran, Staff Writer, NBC News

Five people were wounded in accidents at gun shows in North Carolina, Ohio and Indiana on Saturday, according to authorities.

In Raleigh, N.C., authorities said three people were wounded when a loaded shotgun accidentally discharged at the Dixie Gun and Knife Show at the N.C. State Fairgrounds.

Officials say Gary Lynn Wilson, 36, was having his shotgun checked before entering the show when the incident happened. He?was unzipping his 12-gauge shotgun's case when it accidentally fired birdshot pellets, hitting three people,?The News & Observer in Raleigh reported. Wilson was planning on privately selling the gun at the show,?according to NBC affiliate WNCN.

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The three victims, Janet Hoover, Linwood Hester and Jake Alderman, were hit, respectively, in the right torso, left hand and right hand, WNCN reported. They were taken to the hospital for non-life threatening injuries.

Witness Daniel Peadan told WNCN he was about to enter the building, when he heard a loud pop: "The people right there at the door, a lot of them ran ... They scattered?because it was chaotic."

"This was an accidental discharge," said Brian Long,?a spokesman for the North Carolina Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, in a statement.

The show closed early Saturday because of the shooting, according to The News & Observer. When the show reopens Sunday private gun sales will not be permitted, but only sales by licensed dealers at the show are allowed, Long said. By Saturday evening, the event's website?clearly stipulated: "No personal firearms are to be brought into the show."

The Wake County Sheriff's Department is investigating Saturday's incident, and it's not clear yet whether there are pending charges, according to Long.

In Medina, Ohio, an exhibitor at a local gun show was opening a box containing a gun when the weapon went off, striking his partner, who was sitting next to him, NBC station WKYC of Cleveland reported.

The victim suffered non-life threatening injuries in the arm and thigh and was taken to a hospital.

Police told WKYC the shooting was accidental, and a man who attended the show had sold that gun to the exhibitor.

In Indianapolis, state police said a 54-year-old man was loading his .45 caliber semi-automatic gun when he shot himself in the hand, The Associated Press reported. The victim, Emory L. Cozee, had been leaving the Indy 1500 Gun and Knife show at the state fairgrounds, officials told the AP. Loaded personal weapons are not permitted inside this show, according to the AP.

Cozee was hospitalized. Police told the AP no charges will be filed and the shooting was accidental.

These incidents all happened on the first "National Gun Appreciation Day," which was organized by Political Media, a Republican consulting firm.

In Raleigh, police say around 200 gun-rights supporters marched around the legislative building in downtown Raleigh on Saturday, The News & Observer reported.

Across the country Saturday, there were similar rallies by gun-rights advocates. In Brooksville, Fla., about 1,000 people gathered holding signs like "Stop the Gun Grabbers," Reuters reported. In Denver, just miles away from the scene of the July 2012 movie theater massacre, about 500 people were outside the state capitol rallying, according to Reuters.

The attack on an elementary school in Newtown, Conn., that left 20 first-graders and six staffers dead in December has sparked a new debate over gun control. Last week, President Barack Obama proposed new gun controls to reduce violence.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Related stories:

Source: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/01/19/16603029-5-accidentally-shot-at-gun-shows-in-north-carolina-ohio-indiana?lite

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10 Things to Know for Monday

Your daily look at late-breaking news, upcoming events and the stories that will be talked about Monday:

1. OBAMA'S AMBITIOUS AGENDA FACES THAT DC GRIDLOCK

The 17th president to win re-election has goals that a divided Washington could thwart.

2. ALGERIA DEATH TOLL TOPS 80

Dozens more bodies are found at the natural gas plant in the Sahara, a day after special forces stormed the facility.

3. WHY MLK'S 'CONTENT OF THEIR CHARACTER' QUOTE STILL SPURS DEBATE

Liberals and conservatives use the civil rights leader's words to support opposing views on politics, affirmative action and programs for the disadvantaged.

4. MALIAN FORCES ADVANCE ON AL-QAIDA STRONGHOLD

Backed by French airstrikes, government troops push toward Diabaly, where militants had taken over a military camp.

5. HOW 'BRAIN PACEMAKERS' MIGHT SLOW ALZHEIMER'S

Currents from tiny wires inserted into holes drilled in a patient's skull could offer hope for staving off dementia.

6. WHERE THE MAKER OF BUSHMASTER RIFLES IS EMBRACED

Residents of Ilion, N.Y., a blue-collar stretch of the Mohawk Valley, defend their 200-year-old Remington plant.

7. US FLU OUTBREAK SPREADS TO POLITICS

New York City weighs mandatory sick leave in the private sector to match San Francisco and the District of Columbia.

8. WHAT'S TARNISHING US MILITARY BRASS

At least 30 percent of commanders fired over the past eight years lost their jobs because of sex offenses.

9. WHERE BIG WAVES DRAW BEST SURFERS

Swells of at least 20 feet greet competitors in the Mavericks Invitational at a break off Half Moon Bay, south of San Francisco.

10. COACHING BROTHERS TO BATTLE IN SUPER BOWL

Ravens coach John Harbaugh will face off against his sibling, 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh in the NFL title game on Feb. 3.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/10-things-know-monday-104352258.html

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93% Zero Dark Thirty

All Critics (186) | Top Critics (42) | Fresh (173) | Rotten (13)

Chastain makes Maya as vivid as a bloodshot eye. Her porcelain skin, delicate features and feminine attire belie the steel within.

No doubt Zero Dark Thirty serves a function by airing America's dirty laundry about detainee and torture programs, but in its wake, there's a crying need for a compassionate Coming Home to counter its brutal Deer Hunter.

While "Zero Dark Thirty" may offer political and moral arguing points aplenty, as well as vicarious thrills,as a film it's simply too much of a passable thing.

From the very first scenes of Zero Dark Thirty, director Kathryn Bigelow demonstrates why she is such a formidable filmmaker, as adept with human emotion as with visceral, pulse-quickening action.

A timely and important reminder of the agonizing human price of zealotry.

Not only is Zero Dark Thirty one of the year's best movies, it's an inspiring one to share with your daughters. That is, if they're old enough to deal with explicit torture scenes.

It is played out in a matter-of-fact way, like a documentary. Step by step we follow the evidence with Maya as she doggedly pursues Osama Bin Laden for more than a decade.

With a little editing and some greater humanity infused into it, this could have been brilliant. 'Zero Dark Thirty' is solid and good overall, but not great. (Full Content Review for Parents also available)

I'd call it efficient. I would not call it inspired, groundbreaking, brilliant, innovative -- or even particularly effective as drama.

The fact that commentators, pundits, and politicians on both sides of the political spectrum are condemning Zero Dark Thirty is a sure sign that director Kathryn Bigelow and journalist-turned-screenwriter Mark Boal have done something right.

What makes Zero Dark Thirty such a fascinating film is that it plays both as an engaging procedural thriller and a serious examination of the country's moral compass. It is already doing what great movies do-starting conversation.

It asks its audience: When does the risk of doing something outweigh the risk not doing anything? What are the costs of revenge? Where will the "war on terror" take us next?

Zero Dark Thirty is the perfection The Hurt Locker promised.

Zero Dark Thirty is a model of artistic restraint, a film letting fantastic history trump the need to score partisan points.

An effective and expertly made film, but a more character-driven story would've added some flesh to the bones of a great, true story.

It's particularly comparable to Zodiac, while there are also obvious parallels to Homeland, and a riveting, Call Of Duty-type finale.

This is an instant classic.

Zero Dark Thirty is a gripping, authentic-feeling account of the dark side of the war on terror.

Chastain's Maya is a red-tressed Pre-Raphaelite madonna with the cleft chin and chiseled features of an action hero.

After the lengthy torture scenes, procedural repetition takes over until the murkily-filmed Seal Team 6 raid. But Jessica Chastain is quite convincing as a CIA operative dedicated to her job.

A well-acted, well-intentioned, disjointed mess.

A well-produced and well-acted procedural/thriller film that stays focused on the frustrating nuts and bolts CIA led search for the elusive Al Qaeda leader.

A gripping, almost necessary, piece of filmmaking.

The picture acknowledges the very real presence of torture on the post-9/11 landscape -- had the filmmakers ignored the subject, the movie would be little more than vile, jingoistic nonsense.

(Jessica) Chastain's powerful performance, for which she deserves a best actress Academy Award, drives the film. She has no private life, no friends. Her obsession drives her.

"We always get our man, eventually."

Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/zero_dark_thirty/

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