What You Need to Know Today: November 6

Good afternoon, Early Risers!

Here’s what you need to know

TECH

Starbucks is killing it in digital. Howard Schultz is dropping earnings reports like José Bautista flips bats. Starbucks’ shares are up another 50 percent in 2015 —  mostly due to the success the company is having in digital. “In October, mobile payments reached a new milestone, accounting for 21 percent of all Starbucks transactions in the U.S. — momentum that could make even Apple envious,” says WiredHere’s what Starbucks understands about tech that most of its competitors don’t.

Facebook launches Music Stories. There have been rumors of Facebook entering the music streaming space for months, but it looks like Facebook doesn’t want to compete just yet. Today, Facebook rolls out a new feature that lets users share and listen to 30-second song clips from Spotify or Apple music inside their Newsfeed. Why only 30-seconds? The preview is to entice your friends to buy or save the song in their music libraries. A win-win-win for Spotify, Apple, and Facebook.

What are people talking about? BlackBerry’s new — and most likely — last smartphone Priv — which is being reviewed today. Here’s what some of the experts are saying.

CAREER

Cheating in online classes is big business. How much would you pay for someone to take an online class for you? $1,225.15 is how much No Need to Study would charge for an online English Lit. class at Columbia University. “That extra fifteen cents made it seem official,” says The Atlantic’s Derek Newton, who went undercover to find out how much money organized cheating services make.

A day in the life of a millennial ad executive #Blessed. If someone ever tells you they know everything — run. I think this same rule should apply to people who tell you they love their job more than life itself. Here’s a hilarious depiction of a day in the life of a millennial ad exec. “Sitting at a desk for 50 hours a week and managing budgets for seven different ad platforms is the stuff dreams are made of.” LOL.

LIFESTYLE

Oprah’s book club has some unexpected competition. According to inside sources, Indianapolis Colts QB Andrew Luck likes recommending good reads to teammates in the locker room. “He’s always saying, ‘I read this great book,’ ” said backup quarterback Matt Hasselbeck. “He’s recommended books on concrete architecture, Rob Lowe’s autobiography, or ‘Mountains Beyond Mountains,’” a 2003 account of a doctor working to fight tuberculosis. Look for the official Andrew Luck book club sticker of approval coming to an Amazon book store near you.

Soft Mudder. Tough Mudder unveiled a shorter (read: softer) event that does away with all the obstacles legends are made of. The new course won’t have ice water ponds, electric fences, or tear gas. Full details.

How millennials are redefining business travel. Don’t show this to your boss… “An Expedia survey found that 37% of 18-to-30-year-old business travelers spend more on room service when their companies are paying, compared to only 21% of business travelers in the 46–65 demographic.” Millennial travelers were also 60% more likely to report buying flight upgrades like extra legroom and in-flight entertainment during business trips, says Fast Company. “In fact, Boston Consulting Group found that millennials spend 13% more on airline tickets than non-millennial business travelers.” But wait, there’s a caveat to all this. Millennials may, on average, spend more on business travel, but they do it in style with purpose. Here’s how millennials get more bang for their buck with business travel.

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#NOWYOUKNOW

21 Stoic Life Hacks for Stoic Week

If you didn’t know, November 2-8 is Stoic week. To celebrate, millennials’ favorite modern stoic Ryan Holiday shares with us 21 of his best stoic life hacks (#4 is one I’ve been practicing).

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Check out what you missed in the last Daily Brief here.