While many people claim that they thrive in high-stress environments, others work best in some place that is relaxing and tranquil.  Changing your job might not be an option if it is a high-stress position by nature, but you can still optimize your workspace to make it a more relaxing place to spend your time and do your work, in turn reducing your stress levels and increasing your productivity.  The biggest key to creating a relaxing workspace is styling it in a way that makes you happy.  If it feels right to you, then you’re on the right path.  Keeping that in mind, here are my seven tips for creating a more relaxing workspace:

1. Get rid of the clutter. All those stacks of paper strewn about your desk make you look not only disorganized, but also stressed out and perhaps even overwhlemed.  While they don’t have to go into the trash can, but they should be sorted and organized into file folders inside your desk, or somewhere else hidden from view.  The only papers on your desk should really just be those that are directly related to your current task. If you do nothing else, do this.  Many people will notice a dramatic improvement in their productivity once the clutter is gone.
2. Invest in a quality, comfortable chair. If you are going to be chained to your desk, you’ll want to be comfortable.  If you’re constantly fidgeting because you can’t get comfortable in your seat, you’re going to be distracted and less attentive.  Try petitioning to your supervisor to get you a good once, but if you can’t pull that off you might want to consider getting one yourself.  Head out to an office supply store and actually try out all the chairs to find one that you like.  Don’t just pick whatever’s on sale or what looks like it might be comfortable. Try it before you buy it!
3. Get a small fan. Office buildings with recirculated air can get stuffy and stale.  Combat that with a small fan on your desk that will help keep air circulating in your workspace.  It’ll also come in handy when things get warm and the air temperature isn’t quite to your liking.  I know I have a hard time concentrating when I’m breathing in stale or warm air and it affects my work. A fan really helps!
4. Go green. By this I don’t mean you need to invest in biodegradable or recycled materials.  I mean add a little green to your workspace in the form of plants.  Fake plants will not fit the bill, so don’t even bother with them.  Instead, pick up only real, live, oxygen-generating plants.  It’ll help with the stale air issue, but will also help liven things up and make it a more inviting space.
5. Tweak your lighting. Is it too bright or not bright enough?  Adding more light to your work area is easily accomplished by adding a desk lamp.  Making it darker can be trickier if you don’t have your own office or aren’t working from home, but if either of these situations apply to you, if you feel more comfortable in the dark, by all means, go for it and turn out the lights.  If you work in a cubicle, you’ll likely have to suck it up and deal with the lighting you’ve got.
6. Add some noise. Working in a completely silent area can be quite distracting for some people, so adding in a little noise can help.  The kind of “noise” you will want to add depends entirely on your tastes.  Some people could benefit from music, while others might enjoy the simplicity of a desktop water fountain and the relaxing sound of flowing water.  You may need to experiment with the type of music you listen to before you find one that fits.  Some music might be too distracting, so keep trying until you find something that helps relax you without distracting you.
7. Personalize your space. Looking at your work area, would a stranger be able to learn anything about you?  Is it devoid of a personality?  If  so, you might need to spruce it up a bit to make you feel more at home.  Family photos are a big personal item you’ll find on a lot of people’s desktops, but there are many other ways you can make your space your own.  Trade that boring desk calendar for one with a little more flair, get yourself some colorful paperclips and a fun mousepad, or tack up your favorite comic strip on the wall.7

Considerations for those who work from home:

Creating a more relaxing work environment can be a little bit different if you work from home.  In this case, you’ll want to make sure your work area is relaxing, but not too relaxing, and located somewhere you won’t be constantly interrupted.  You might not need the family photos since they’re just down the hall, but they’re still a nice touch. Otherwise, the tips above can be applied to your home office as well.

In many parts of the country, snow and ice still have a deathgrip on the local climate. In my neck of the woods, we still have massive piles of ice and snow on every street corner and at the end of every driveway. So it’s only natural that many of us are looking for a way to bust through the winter blues.

One thing that often works is to enjoy more tropical fruits, such as mangoes, bananas, coconuts, or papayas. These fruits are usually available all winter long, and are like an early preview of summer’s warmth. But beyond these warm feelings, many tropical fruits have far more powerful abilities.

Did you know that one tropical fruit can be used as a substitute for IV fluid in an emergency? Or that another tropical treat has been shown in studies to kill cancer cells? Aside from their health benefits, there are plenty of other reasons to love the following tropical fruits…and some of these benefits will definitely surprise you.

1. Coconuts

You might think of coconut as the sweet topping on German chocolate cake, but this fruit has plenty of health benefits as well. Coconut water has a ton of health benefits. It’s a sterile source of clean water, useful for survival hydration. On top of this, coconut water has the same level of electrolytic balance human blood. In the Pacific Theatre during World War II, coconut water was frequently used in the field as an emergency plasma transfusion for wounded combatants.

Coconut water makes a better sports drink than commercial products, as it is lower in salts and sugars and higher in potassium. And, of course, the flesh and oil of the coconut is also edible and good for you!

2. Mangosteen

The mangosteen is a small fruit with white flesh, popular throughout Asia. One group of scientists has proposed that alpha-mangostin, an antioxidant found only in mangosteen, can cause cell death in leukemia cells, effectively treating the disease. While more research needs to be done, mangosteen is also said to have powerful anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antifungal, and antiseptic properties.

3. Avocado

You might think of it as a vegetable, but this is actually a fruit. And not just any fruit, but a fruit that has been shown to lower cholesterol. They are also rich in folic acid, which can prevent some kinds of common birth defects. Even more interesting is that avocados are the ultimate life hack fruit: when you eat an avocado with other vegetables, you absorb more nutrients from the meal than you would have from eating the vegetables alone. Top your salad with a few slices of avocado, and you’ll be increasing your intake of vitamins and minerals from the meal.

4. Mango

A single mango will contain half of your recommended daily allowance of both Vitamin A and Vitamin C, as well as some B-Vitamins, omega-3 fatty acids, polyphenols, beta-carotene, and…well, maybe it would have been quicker for me to list the few nutrients that this little fruit DOESN’T contain…

I picked up an interesting tip about quickly ripening mangoes from the book “Urawaza”, which I reviewed here recently. If you pick up a mango at the supermarket that is still hard, soak it in simmering water for just 10 minutes to speed up the ripening process. The sooner you can eat one, the sooner you can start to enjoy its beneficial qualities.

5. Longan

Longan berries, native to China, have long been said by Asian herbalists to have relaxing properties, making them the perfect snack to enjoy to lower your stress levels. It is also said to have anti-cancer, antioxidant, and liver-protective properties. The longan contains high levels of iron, potassium, and large amounts of vitamins A and C. Finding them in a form other than fresh at your local market may be tough, but dried and canned longan are also available.

Conclusion

In general, eating more fruits is good for your health. Overall, tropical fruits have been known to reduce your risk of cancer and heart disease. On top of these benefits, a diet rich in tropical fruits ensures that you will have improved digestion and GI function. Best of all, these fruits can neutralize free radicals, protecting you from asthma, joint pain, and the above-mentioned heart and cancer risks.

You are what you eat. If you want to be smart, eat smart, and reach for these tropical fruits the next time you are craving a snack.

You can’t afford to build a career in a vacuum. Even the most independent professionals still need colleagues, clients, mentors, and friends. You can settle with the network you already have, but meeting new people has its benefits. The more people you meet, the more opportunities you have to learn new things, take on new challenges, and exchange interesting ideas. With a broader network, you can even get better business opportunities. If networking has all these benefits, why aren’t more people doing it?

One problem with networking is that it is a broad, ongoing activity. It seems like a daunting task. This is why most people just give up and wait around for the “right people” to come to them. But what are the odds of that happening without any effort on your part? This is why you need to set up a system to make networking easier. Your challenge within the next 24 hours is to set up that system. Why a 24-hour challenge? So that you can take action now and get results as soon as possible.

With that said, let’s get started.

1) Set up a tool to capture and manage your contacts. Estimated task time: 15 to 30 minutes.

The first thing you should do is to pick the right tool. You’ll need something that will allow you to input, gather, and analyze information in each potential contact’s profile. While you can fiddle around with a spreadsheet or a database for hours, this solution isn’t ideal. Setup should be easy so that you have no room for excuses or procrastination. The quickest way is to use an online form management apps, since it takes less than half an hour to set up an account and get your forms ready. There are many options out there, such as the popular Survey Monkey or Survey Gizmo, but personally I use PandaForm which has more features available to free users so we’ll be using that in the example.

You will be creating a “Potential Contact Questionnaire”. It’s a simple form where you can input details about each person you want to meet, including how you plan to introduce yourself and other relevant information that can make the introduction easier. Here are the fields you may need for your form, with the suggested field types in parentheses:

Contact information. Of course, you should start off by creating text fields for basic contact information such as the person’s name, email, and phone number. Don’t worry if, when filling up the form later, you realize that you can’t find the email addresses or phone numbers of your potential contacts. You can add an extra text field for “contact page link” instead if there’s a contact page on the person’s website. Don’t forget to add other fields like “Company” or “Mailing Address”, especially if you want to send notes or greeting cards via snail mail.

Tip: When using PandaForm, you need to make sure that email notifications are off so that when you input a contact’s email, they won’t receive a message by mistake. You can do this by clicking “Save” at the bottom, then clicking on “Settings”, then the “Notification” tab. Finally, click the “Off” button under “Send Confirmation Email”. See the screenshot below for an example:

Primary website (single line text). Almost everyone has their own website or blog today, so it’s important that you know this. Apart from being a means of contact, their website can be a way for you to find ways to initiate contact.

List of other relevant links such as a additional websites or blogs (paragraph text). If your potential contact has more than one site, you can type them up here, one URL per line – after you’ve built your form, of course.

Additional reference links (paragraph text). These may include any relevant interviews, articles, and other resources that can help you learn more about the person.

Individual text fields for links to their social media profiles. You can add individual text fields for links to each of their social media profiles. In this example I only used one field for LinkedIn and another for Twitter, but you can add additional fields for Facebook, Tumblr, and other social media services you use.

Answers to “Why do I want to meet this person?” or “I hope this person will be my…”. List all the possible reasons you have for wanting to meet this person. Some options may include having them as your mentor, collaborator, contractor, or even just a friend to bounce ideas with. Since you can have more than one option per person, the best way to input this data is via checkboxes (see below)

A paragraph field for “How can I help this person?” Networking isn’t primarily about what other people can do for you, it’s about what you can do for them. By looking over a potential contact’s list of websites, blogs, social media profiles, and related links, you’re sure to find at least one way you can help them.

A paragraph field for your notes. You may need to jot down a few bullet points about the person you’re contacting. Include any “dealbreakers” that may turn off your potential contact. Some people may not like generic or template emails, extremely long emails, or unsolicited phone calls. They may also be vocal about the things they appreciate, such as courtesy or correspondence that gets straight to the point. If they mention any of these things, include them in your notes. Tip: An alternative for PandaForm users is to use the “Comments” text box that appears when you’re editing individual entries.

Create additional fields depending on your needs. You can create a few more fields and customize the form to suit your situation. For example, a simple text field for “Friend in common” allows you to write the name of a friend, relative, or other acquaintance that you and your potential contact have in common. You can also create an additional field for the date you’re planning on contacting them or even a draft of the first e-mail or phone call you want to make. Add as many fields as you need, but don’t overdo it.

Once you’ve finished your form, you can publish it. Then, bookmark a link to the published form on your browser for easy access whenever you think of a new potential contact. Click here to see what your published form may look like. Of course, it all depends on what fields you end up using.

2) Make a list of 5 to 8 people you’d like to meet. Estimated task time: 5 minutes.

Now comes the easy part – listing the people you want to contact. We all keep track of people we wish we knew, even if it’s just in our heads. Listing their names and basic contact information is a concrete step towards meeting these people in reality. You can write the list down in a sheet of paper or, better yet, open up your form and start creating an entry for each person – even if it’s just their names. The key to this task is just to start with your shortlist of potential contacts. You can fill up the rest of the questionnaire after you’ve listed at least 5 people.

3) Fill up your questionnaire for each person on your list. Estimated task time: 10 to 15 minutes per contact.

If you already used your form to list your potential contacts by name, edit the entries internally so you can complete the rest of the questionnaire for each contact. In PandaForm, you can do this by going to the “Forms” page and clicking on the form name. You’ll be taken to the records section where you can see all the data you already typed in when listing your contacts (see below).

Fill up the more difficult fields such as their contact information, list of websites, and anything else you haven’t filled up yet. When filling up the entry for “How can I help this person?”, make your answer as concrete as possible. Instead of writing something like “help them improve website”, write “send a quick email about the typographical errors you found on the homepage”. Having a concrete, action-oriented answer can make initiating contact easier.

4) Contact one person on your list today. Estimated task time: 10 to 15 minutes.

Now, go over the data you’ve gathered. In PandaForm, do this by clicking the name of the form in the Forms page and you’ll be directed to the list of records you’ve entered into your questionnaire. Choose a person from your list, open the record you’ve created about them, and start contacting them using what you already know. This is where your answer to “How can I help this person?” really comes in handy. It can be a great way to introduce yourself and provide value to the person you want to meet.

When completed, the time investment you spent on creating this system may only take 40 to 60 minutes. The rewards you get, however, will be reaped for a long time. Once you’ve created your questionnaire and get into the habit of filling it up every now and then, all you need to do is choose one of the people on your list and start contacting them.

Take on today’s challenge and start networking. You’ve only got today to make this happen – otherwise, you risk forgetting about it altogether. If you like my workflow, implement it with PandaForm and share your progress in the comments.

Leon Ho has a decade of experience in technology and the Internet. He was a manager of Software Engineering at Red Hat, Inc. and led an international team of software engineers. In 2007, Leon left Red Hat to launch Stepcase as an umbrella for both Stepcase Lifehack and Stepcase Apps. Recently, he won the #4 spot in BusinessWeek’s Top 24 Young Asian Entrepreneurs.

Two days ago I created a post about 5 reasons to label your digital photos on your iPhone. Now I will explain why participating in a Twitter campaign is worth your time.

Labelbox is a free iPhone app that helps you to label photos stylishly, quickly and on the move and is currently (at the time of this article) riding high in the app store in many countries. It’s number 4 in the Photography category (free) on the Apple App Store in the USA and riding high at number 1 in Japan. So why should you participate in this campaign?

This Twitter retweet campaign gives you four free labels to use with Labelbox by following three simple steps – retweet, follow and letting us know you’ve done it. We made it easy by making it three clicks of the mouse.  First, take a look what other people has done with Labelbox at Steply network:

Six Reason to join the campaign

1. Retweeting is free, easy and takes hardly any time.
2. You get free cloth labels to make your photos extra stylish.
3. It helps spread the usefulness of Labelbox to more people.
4. New people who find Labelbox through your help get a new useful app for free.
5. New people can also benefit from the campaign to get the free premium label pack. More for everyone.
6. We made it easy to retweet by simply clicking three buttons and following the simple instructions.

Visit the campaign page to particpate

Labelbox is a product of Stepcase and part of Steply photo app suite.

There are a lot of benefits of working from home, from being able to see more of your kids to a flexible schedule and more.  But it’s also very dangerous if you’re easily lured in by procrastination and the numerous distractions that can present themselves and hamper your work and productivity.  If you’re going to work from home, be it a day here or there, or full-time, you’ll want to plan it out.  Here are some tips for successfully working from home:

1. Make yourself an office, or at least a work “station” area. This will be the spot that you do your work.  If you don’t have a room that you can turn into a home office, you can set up shop at the kitchen table, although this is not ideal.  Taking your laptop and plopping down on the couch in front of the television will present many temptations.  You’ll want to make sure that your home office has everything that you need, and that may even mean getting an extra phoneline, be it a landline or a Skype account where you can be contacted at.  Invest in a good desk, chair, and computer so you’ll be comfortable working, but not so comfortable that you’ll be tempted to slack-off.
2. Try to set aside long periods of time for work. Working from home can give you much more flexible hours, but if you’re constantly interupted it’s going to be a lot harder to get things done.  Try to make sure you get a few large blocks of time.  For example, if you need to get in 8 hours of work, make 3 blocks of 3 hours, 2 hours, and another 3 hours.  If you need to run errands or take care of other things, do them outside of the blocks of time during your “breaks.”
3. Try to leave the house each day. Nothing will drive you crazier faster than being at home 24/7.  It’s a great opportunity to go for a walk outside, clear your head, and get your bearings.
4. Create a to-do list for the tasks you need to accomplish each day. Because it is so easy to get off task while working from home, having a checklist of the things you need to get done will help you visualize your progress.  I’m not typically a list person, but I have found this to be very helpful, and when I’m slacking off it’s clearly visible by the lack of things checked off.
5. Minimize distractions and set limits online. If the bulk of your work is done on a computer, you probably know all to well the distractions of the internet.  It’s easy to fall into the trap of Facebook or other sites if you keep it open on one of your browser tabs all day.  Allow yourself to check in before you start your work and on breaks only.  When it’s work time, close any non-work related tabs and websites. If you keep Facebook open, you will undoubtedly keep flipping back to it to see if there’s anything new posted.
6. Don’t procrastinate.  Look at your to-do list and actually do everything on it.  Don’t do 90 percent of it and tell yourself that you’ll just make it up and do it tomorrow.  You’ll create a cycle of constantly pushing things off to another day that is very hard to get out of.  There will be days when an emergency interrupts your work, as there would be if you were going into the office each day. If you’re already behind it can really put you back further.
7. Take care of yourself. Make sure you eat a good breakfast so you don’t have to stop working when the hunger pangs kick in, and schedule yourself a reasonable lunch break.  Some also find it helpful to dress as if they were going to work.  It’s not necessary to put on a suit, but something more than sweatpants and a tshirt might help you feel more on-task. Schedule a lunch date to maintain social connections outside of your home.

Working from home takes discipline.  If you’re just starting out, it may take you a little time to find your groove, but if you follow the tips above you’ll find it a lot easier.  The key is to keep a good work-life balance, establish boundaries, and take care of yourself.

So many people talk about boosting productivity, and making the most of their 40 hour work weeks. And yet, outside of the United States, not every country adheres to the “standard” 40 hour work week…which begs the question: should we be working harder, or working smarter?

The History of 40 Hour Work Week (And the 8 Hour Work Day)

As most people know, the 40 hour work week (and 8 hour day) both have their roots in the industrial revolution, when labor reformists began to push for shorter hours. At the turn of the 19th century, it wasn’t uncommon for some factory workers to be on the job for 16 hours a day, and so the 8 hour work day was quite a relief indeed. While some advances were made during the 1800s by workers who wanted shorter days, the 8 hour work day wasn’t widespread on a global scale until the first half of the 20th century.

In fact, it wasn’t until the International Labor Organization held its first conference in 1919 that the 8- or 9-hour work day was somewhat firmly established. In 1938, the Fair Labor Standards Act was passed into law. This established the five-day, 40-hour work week as the American standard for working hours.

Criticisms of the 40 Hour Work Week

MIT’s Eric Rauch noted in his paper “Productivity and the Workweek” that “An average worker needs to work a mere 11 hours per week to produce as much as one working 40 hours in 1950.” Additionally, “polls and surveys have shown that people in countries with the standard of living that the US enjoyed in the 1950s are no less satisfied than today’s Americans.”

Elsewhere in the US, some states are switching from a 5 day week to a 4 day week. For example, Iowa’s state employees made just such a move in order to cut energy costs, as have Hawaii and Washington state.

One 2010 study actually proposed that a 21 hour workweek might be the best of all. According to the UK’s New Economics Foundation, “A much shorter working week could help to tackle a range of urgent and closely related problems: overwork, unemployment, over-consumption, high carbon emissions, low well-being, entrenched inequalities, and the lack of time to live sustainably, to care for each other, and simply to enjoy life. It would enable many more people to join the workforce and allow for measures to reduce damaging levels of inequality….We’d have more time to be better parents, better citizens, better carers and better neighbours. And we could even become better employees: less stressed, more in control, happier in our jobs and more productive.”

Compared to Other Countries

Looking at other countries around the globe, it’s clear to see that the 40 hour work week is anything but standard.

For example, the average work week in South Korea is 44 hours, while France has a law that states that 35 hours per week is the maximum allowable. European Union member countries have all agreed to cap the maximum hours worked per week to no more than 48. The work week in the Netherlands and Norway is 27 hours long, while workers in Australia and New Zealand work an averages of 33-34 hours per week.

Conclusion: Work-Life Balance

More and more, those Americans who are still employed are working longer hours, either to stay in the good graces of their bosses, or because they are overwhelmed by increased workloads due to layoffs. Either way, it seems like many Americans are working long hours to endear themselves to corporate supervisors, without guaranteeing additional job security.

According to Forbes, “To get ahead, a 70-hour work week is the new standard…Just how bad have things gotten? 1.7 million people consider their jobs and their work hours extreme, thanks to globalization, BlackBerries, corporate expectations and their own Type A personalities.” In fact, some experts say that a BlackBerry can extend your working week by as much as 15 hours.

That data is backed up by a similar study conducted by the International Labour Organization, which found that “one in five workers around the world – or over 600 million persons – are still working more than 48 hours a week, often merely to make ends meet…an estimated 22 per cent of the global workforce, or 614.2 million workers, are working “excessively” long hours.”

While many Americans are just happy to have a job, it seems that during a recession, it is even more important to work smarter, not harder. Long hours do not always equal greater productivity, and indeed it seems that working excessive hours can actually diminish productivity and quality…which is a problem that will affect both the worker and the employer equally.

How we used to label photos in the past

Back when cameras were not digital, labeling photos was a process of writing on the back of the printout. If you owned a Polaroid camera, scribbling on the bottom on the photo was another way to describe what was happening in the photo. However, this is no longer the case. Digital cameras and mobile phones have become the main tools in photography. Looking at photos is now usually online. Labeling photos usually involve writing in the ‘comments’ or description of online sites. If you’re looking at photos from your computer, there isn’t even any comments or descriptions for you to understand or remember what was going on.

Labelbox

With apps, it’s possible to label photos on your phone, so when you print them out, or share them online, it’s already labelled with artistic flair and with great style. If you’re using your computer, the label is there inside your photo. That’s why we wanted to create a solution and now released a free iPhone app called Labelbox.

If you are not convinced, here are 5 reasons you should consider labeling inside the photos.

1. It’s neat and tidy.

Using a pen means you have to print out the photo first, everyone has to decipher your handwriting, and sometimes it can make the photo harder to see because of the indentations created from the pen. If you make a mistake, it’s not easy to erase. Using labelbox means you can easily place where the text goes and delete it if it looks wrong, no indentation marks either.

2. Stylish and convenient.

With a pen, style is mostly all about your handwriting. If your on the move when your taking those photos, you don’t have access to your computer or laptop to make those extravagant edits to label. An iPhone app like Labelbox has 8 different tapes and labels providing multiple styles to label your photos and share them wherever you are. It takes 3 actions, Select, Swipe and Type, and the photo is labelled in a stylish, well presented manner.

3. Self censor your photos.

It’s not always about labelling, sometimes you just want to share something but keep a face private, yet you want to keep the original for yourself. Easy! Select a black strip, cover the eyes and it’s ready. The original can still be kept intact.

4. Easy to Remember.

Everyone is on the go, capturing the moment is the in-thing, but when you’re capturing lots of moments, it’s easy to forget what each moment was. Quick easy tagging using labelbox means you can label quickly before you forget, so when you look at the photo later, you already have a cue. Even better if you’re trying to share instantly, labelling it means your friends quickly understand what it is your photograph is saying. When you look at the photo in years to come, the label is a nice reminder of what you was taking.

5. Get Artistic.

Tapes and labelling is only one use… You can get artistic, creating frames, layering labels, and use it as a pet art project. It makes it more fun to try to think out of the box with creative ways to enhance your photos.

If you have an iPhone, download Labelbox for free from the app store. Hope you like it!

Now that 2011 is well underway and most people have fallen off the bandwagon when it comes to their New Year’s resolutions (myself included), it’s a good time to step back and take an honest look at our habits and the goals that we want to achieve.

Something that I have learned over the past few years is that if you track something, be it your eating habits, exercise, writing time, work time, etc. you become aware of the reality of the situation. This is why most diet gurus tell you to track what you eat for a week so you have an awareness of the of how you really eat before you start your diet and exercise regimen.

Tracking daily habits and progress towards goals is another way to see reality and create a way for you clearly review what you have accomplished over a set period of time. Tracking helps motivate you too; if I can make a change in my life and do it once a day for a period of time it makes me more apt to keep doing it.

So, if you have some goals and habits in mind that need tracked, all you need is a tracking tool. Today we’ll look at 7 different tools to help you keep track of your habits and goals.

Joe’s Goals

Joe’s Goals is a web-based tool that allows users to track their habits and goals in an easy to use interface. Users can add as many goals/habits as they want and also check multiple times per day for those “extra productive days”. Something that is unique about Joe’s Goals is the way that you can keep track of negative habits such as eating out, smoking, etc. This can help you visualize the good things that you are doing as well as the negative things that you are doing in your life.

Joe’s Goals is free with a subscription version giving you no ads and the “latest version” for $12 a year.

Daytum

Daytum is an in depth way of counting things that you do during the day and then presenting them to you in many different reports and groups. With Daytum you can add several different items to different custom categories such as work, school, home, etc. to keep track of your habits in each focus area of your life.

Daytum is extremely in depth and there are a ton of settings for users to tweak. There is a free version that is pretty standard, but if you want more features and unlimited items and categories you’ll need Daytum Plus which is $4 a month.

Excel or Numbers

If you are the spreadsheet number cruncher type and the thought of using someone else’s idea of how you should track your habits turns you off, then creating your own Excel/Numbers/Google spreadsheet is the way to go. Not only do you have pretty much limitless ways to view, enter, and manipulate your goal and habit data, but you have complete control over your stuff and can make it private.

What’s nice about spreadsheets is you can create reports and can customize your views in any way you see fit. Also, by using Dropbox, you can keep your tracker sheets anywhere you have a connection.

Evernote

I must admit, I am an Evernote junky, mostly because this tool is so ubiquitous. There are several ways you can implement habit/goal tracking with Evernote. You won’t be able to get nifty reports and graphs and such, but you will be able to access your goal tracking anywhere your are, be it iPhone, Android, Mac, PC, or web. With Evernote you pretty much have no excuse for not entering your daily habit and goal information as it is available anywhere.

Evernote is free with a premium version available.

Springpad

Springpad is another tool that is anywhere you have an internet connection. Although Springpad isn’t necessarily created to keep track of goals and habits, it can be manipulated like Evernote to allow for this type of tracking. In Springpad you could set up a notebook called “Goals” or “Daily Habits” and then add a note for each day outlining the things that you have accomplished.

Springpad only has a free version.

Access or Bento

If you like the idea of creating your own tracker via Excel or Numbers, you may be compelled to get even more creative with database tools like Access for Windows or Bento for Mac. These tools allow you to set up relational databases and even give you the option of setting up custom interfaces to interact with your data. Access is pretty powerful for personal database applications, and using it with other MS products, you can come up with some pretty awesome, in depth analysis and tracking of your habits and goals.

Bento is extremely powerful and user friendly. Also with Bento you can get the iPhone and iPad app to keep your data anywhere you go.

You can check out Access and the Office Suite here and Bento here.

Analog Bonus: Pen and Paper

All these digital tools are pretty nifty and have all sorts of bells and whistles, but there are some people out there that still swear by a notebook and pen. Just like using spreadsheets or personal databases, pen and paper gives you ultimate freedom and control when it comes to your set up. It also doesn’t lock you into anyone else’s idea of just how you should track your habits.

Conclusion

I can’t necessarily recommend which tool is the best for tracking your personal habits and goals, as all of them have their quirks. What I can do however (yes, it’s a bit of a cop-out) is tell you that the tool to use is whatever works best for you. I personally keep track of my daily habits and personal goals with a combo Evernote for input and then a Google spreadsheet for long-term tracking.

What this all comes down to is not how or what tool you use, but finding what you are comfortable with and then getting busy with creating lasting habits and accomplishing short- and long-term goals.

With the dismal month of February now behind us, March gives hope of spring and new beginnings.  It’s the perfect time to start working on your spring gardening plans, even though spring doesn’t officially start until much later in the month. Much of the United States still has to contend with cold weather spells in March, but for the southern portions of the country, things are already starting to heat up.

For many parts of the U.S., spring has already sprung or is just around the corner.  It’s an exciting time for gardeners, who have yet another chance to tend to and raise some some amazing plants, veggies, fruits, and flowers.

Consult the guide below for recommendations on how to best tackle gardening in your region.

All Areas -

• If you’ve neglected your houseplants all winter, now is the time to start feeding and watering them again. If necessary, repot them, and when watering make sure not to overdo it.
• If you have wet soil in your garden, avoid walking on it.
• Get your soil tested so you know what you’re up against this spring and summer.

The Regions:

Mid-Atlantic -

Average March Temps: Low 25.4° High 44.5° (Albany, NY) ,  Low 37° High 58.4° (Richmond, VA)

While frost is still an issue in March, hardy annuals such as Alyssum, Dianthus, and Viola can still go out before the last expected frost. Hold off on planting your summer bulbs and tubers until the soil warms up and dries, and plant shrubs when the ground warms.  You’ll also want to wait on planting vegetables and fruits until the danger of frost has passed and the ground is no longer frozen and is actually workable.  If you have roses in your garden, prune them before buds break.

Midwest –

Average March Temps:   Low 25.7° High 47.3° (Sioux City, IA),  Low 36° High 55.8° (Kansas City, MO)

Frost is also an issue in many Midwestern states during the month of March, so you’ll want to start growing your seeds indoors.  You can also cut back grasses, as well as finish pruning shrubs.  Start spraying fruit trees.

Northeast -

Average March Temps: Low 25.2° High 42.2° (Portland, ME),   Low 20.1° High 38.1° (Montpelier, VT)

It’s still rather cold in the Northeast in March, so like the Midwest, you’ll want to start your warm season seeds indoors and keep an eye on plant crowns that might have heaved out of the ground during a thaw.  Towards the end of the month as it warms up, you can start removing mulch.

Pacific Northwest -

Average March Temps: Low 14° High 30° (Missoula, MT),   Low 35° High 45° (Seattle, WA)

March in the Pacific Northwest is conducive to starting your seeds of greens indoors.  Things you can do to start preparing your garden include: deadheading early bloomers, continuing to mulch, diligently hunt slugs and set out your apple maggot traps. At the end of the month you can plant peas.

Southeast -

Average March Temps:  Low 33° High 53° (Birmingham, AL),  Low 50° High 72° (Orlando, FL)

Unlike the northern parts of the country, in the southeast you can start actually planting things in the ground.  This is an excellent time to plant cool season vegetables such as lettuce, peas, root veggies, cabbage, broccoli, chard, and greens. You can also plant cool season flowers and berry bushes. Cool season greens and root crops (carrots, onions, beets, radishes, turnips) can be planted directly outdoors.  Seeds of warm season vegetables like tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant should be started indoors at this time.

Southwest -

Average March Temps:  Low 17° High 41° (Colorado Springs, CO),  Low 41° High 66° (Phoenix, AZ)

The Southwestern portion of the U.S. can also start planting things outdoors beginning in March, but freezes are still possible so you’ll want to keep covers on hand.  Start out by pulling back your mulch so that the soil can warm up. You can start planting your summer bulbs, as well as beets, greens, lettuce, potatoes, and corn.  Indoors, you’ll want to start growing your eggplant, peppers, tomatoes, squash and melons – it’s still a little too cold for them.

Regional Exceptions:

Florida -

Average March Temps:  Low 64° High 80° (Miami, FL),  Low 50° High 73° (Tallahasse, FL)

It’s tropical season in Florida right now, so for the most part you’re safe.  Cold spells can happen on occasion, so keep prepared. At this time you can begin replacing cool weather annuals with summer annuals, and start putting your perennials in the ground so they can establish. Plant your warm season crops before it gets too hot out.  You should have already started growing your citrus trees in containers, now you can transplant those outdoors.  Established citrus trees can be fertilized now, but you should wait 4 to 6 weeks to feed newly planted ones.

Northern California -

Average March Temps:  Low 50° High 68.6° (Chico, CA),  Low 44.5° High 69.9° (San Francisco, CA)

In Northern California, March is the time to start planting summer blooming bulbs and tubers.  You’ll also want to prune old growth off the bougainvillea, plant potatoes, and fertilize trees and shrubs.  Feed your roses, and harden and set out seedlings. It’s a great time to start gardening!

Southern California -

Average March Temps:  Low 44.5° High 69.9° (Los Angeles, CA),  Low 41.9° High 74° (Carlsbad, CA)

If you haven’t done it already, start your seeds.  It’s also time to spray fruit trees and divide fall blooming perennials.  Start scouting for slugs and snails.

Hawaii -

Average March Temps:  Low 45.3° High 62.6°

Hawaii is a year-round, gardening paradise. At this time of the year you’ll want to continue mulching and start feeding your gardenias.  It’s also time to sow a cover crop.

Alaska -

Average March Temps:  Low 38.1° High 51.7° (Anchorage, AK)

While many people think of Alaska as perpetually snowy, it’s actually got four seasons and gets warm.  March, however, is still on the cold side so it’s best to start your seeds indoors right now.  You can also check on your rhubarb, it could be up.

The little black book, quite literally, fits into the palm of my hand. And despite its small size, it packs quite a whallop. Plainly titled “Book of Secrets”, this micro-book is a treasure trove of life hacks, trivia, quotes, and “secret information”. Compiled by a team of authors (Lloyd Bradley, Thomas Eaton, Emma Hooley, Patrick Humphries, and Charlotte Williamson), this 152 page book is so engrossing, you’ll read it in a single session.

Eaton, co-author and lead editor for the book, studied history at Oxford and Cambridge. He worked on the television program “The Weakest Link”, and has also written trivia quizzes for other TV programs and newspapers in the UK.

Beyond the facts about government conspiracies, underground movie theatres, and lost historical tidbits, there are also plenty of practical secrets and hacks, ranging from food preparation tips to business tips to sneaky tips to manipulate people.

The Look of the Book

I wasn’t kidding before when I was talking about the size: the dimensions of the 2008 edition of the book are 3.375″ x 3.75″. The book is super tiny! And the size is arguably the coolest thing about the book (well, besides the content of course!). It’s tiny enough to fit in the smallest purse, a pocket, or a backpack, meaning you can take it with you to read on the go.

The cover is completely black, emblazoned only with the title “Book of Secrets”. It’s definitely got an air of mystery. The interior includes illustrations, but they are all in black and white. Each section spans between 1/2 and 4 pages, and covers subject material ranging from funeral parlor secrets to “secret lotions and potions” to weight loss tips and secrets.

Apparently, the 2005 edition is slightly larger in size, and is bound in leather. My experience with the book, however, is based entirely on the 2008 edition, which has the dimensions listed above and is bound in a thick, shellacked paper not unlike oaktag.

My Top Picks for Clever Tricks and Advice

The book covers a wide array of topics, and it’s hard to pick among the various tips and sections to determine what parts of the book were the most interesting. That being said, there are a handful of hacks and tricks that were especially interesting to me. Here are six of my favorite hacks, sections, and tricks from the little black book of secrets.

1. Quieting a Crying Baby: Feed the baby a teaspoon of onion water. To make onion water, simply place a coarsely chopped onion in a jar of hot water, and allow it to cool. This infusion can be stored in the fridge for 3 days.

2. A Collection of Tips for Flirting with Women: Among the 10 tips in this section of the book, some of the most important pieces of advice relate to how to dress, how to make her laugh, and the importance of being sincere (but not too sincere).

3. How to Get the Best Deals on Vacation Packages: The experts say that you need to shop around, plan ahead, and consider your destination’s current political and economic climate carefully.

4. Dietary Tricks to Avoid Migraines: If you are prone to headaches or migraines, you should avoid herbal supplements like ginko and ginseng. This is because these herbs stimulate blood flow, which can, for some people, lead to headaches. As a migraine sufferer, this was very important and helpful information for me to have.

5. Drink Green Tea for Perfect Teeth: Green tea not only combats bad breath, but the flavonoids in this type of tea also work in tandem with the active ingredients in toothpaste and mouthwash to provide your teeth with an extra boost of protective power.

6. The Top 20 Secrets of Winning Friends and Influencing People: This section includes tips about the importance of listening, the value of teamwork, and cultivating a personality that people will respond well to.

Conclusion

I could go on about the useful sections that will be of interest to life hackers. The advice on how to master public speaking is excellent, and the four-page section on the secrets of eggs/egg trivia was surprisingly interesting. And if you are a fan of fried chicken, the faux-Kentucky Fried Chicken recipe is definitely worth checking out. The bottom line is that if you are looking to learn some new tricks to help you succeed in life or business, this book will help you achieve that goal, while also providing you with entertaining trivia and historical info.

If you’d like to learn more about this book, you can preview selected pages from “Book of Secrets” at the website of the publisher, Andrews McMeel. Just click the Google Preview button underneath the image of the book cover.

Being a full time student, working two part time jobs, being married, and doing some writing and development on the side proves to be daunting. With my discovery of GTD a few years back I was like everyone else; enamored with the idea of getting things off their mind to then produce better and more effectively. I instantly grabbed onto the practice of “ubiquitous capture” by taking notes so I wouldn’t let as many things fall through the cracks.

At first I just used a junky old notebook and a crappy Bic pen. I slowly improved my tools as any good, geeky GTD student would. But it wasn’t until I switched over to a full digital work-flow that I started to see real benefits with the use of my system. I am in a very technical field at work and technical major at school; computers and devices are around me all day long. It only made sense to capture and process thoughts and actions digitally as it was faster and more “iron-clad” for me.

Here are 5 tips on on digital note taking as well some of the pitfalls to look out for.

Make sure to stay engaged

There is absolutely nothing more annoying that someone click-clacking their way away on a keyboard or iPhone when you are trying to have a conversation with them, regardless if they are actually taking notes or not.

If you are a very fast typer, maybe around 50+ WPM it is a good practice to listen to what someone is saying then jot down a sentence or two to summarize it. Or, if you are in a meeting you could always say, “one second while I get this down so I don’t forget.” The idea is to capture what you need without constantly looking at your screen or phone and not paying attention.

Edit and consolidate

One of the biggest things that I noticed from taking extensive school notes was that a lot of the stuff was pure garbage. I would say that out of typing through a whole 55 minute lecture, I had about a couple of pages of text that was extremely out of order and mostly indecipherable. After taking a look through each class’s notes I soon realized that I have about a half a page of bullet points that were really important and all the rest was considered details and reference.

Now, I wouldn’t say delete everything that isn’t the main points of what you captured, but I would say to consolidate your notes. One good way of doing this is to summarize your notes from a meeting and then take the original junk that you typed down and save it in a “repository” of some kind just in case there was a minor detail you actually did need later.

Make them available from anywhere

I am a very mobile person and because of that I need a way to input notes and access them from anywhere I have an Internet connection or device. My tools of choice that make this happen include Springpad, Evernote, and Simplenote. I won’t go into which one I think is better; the important thing is that you can reach them from anywhere and all of them are decently reliable and extremely useful.

Put a voice to your notes

Something that I have found to be game-changing when it comes to capturing information is recording a lecture or meeting while taking notes. There are several ways that you can do this, but what I have adopted is the Livescribe pen and paper so I can write naturally, record audio with my writing, and still have digital notes that can (somewhat) easily be transformed to text. You can of course use tools like OneNote for Windows and Circus Ponies NoteBook for Mac to record and type at the same time.

Have you ever had a note you took during a meeting that didn’t make a lick of sense? I know I have. Yet, when recording audio and locking it up to your notes you can refer back to what was being said around the moment you were capturing it. This helps clarify and make your notes come “alive”. Of course, you definitely want to tell your colleagues that you are recording them before hand, that is unless you are looking for someone to sue you.

Choose a tool and stick to it

The biggest tip, and this goes with everything that is related to personal productivity systems; find a tool you love, one that works well for you, and stick to it. I am Captain Fiddly when it comes to list making, project tracking, note-taking, and productivity software. About a year and a half ago I gave up on googling “best note-taking tools” and “best online GTD systems” and just stuck with what I had and what worked well enough for me.

If you have a productivity system itch like I do, pick something simple like Simplenote or if you want a little more power, Evernote or Springpad and devote 30 days to that tool. I guarantee after 30 days that “itch” will go away and you can concentrate more on getting things done rather than finding the best new note tool that doesn’t exist.

I recently picked up a copy of “Urawaza: Secret Everyday Tips and Tricks from Japan” by Lisa Katayama, and I really enjoyed it. Described by Think Geek as “the Ninja version of Martha Stewart”, the book consists of dozens of off-centered lifestyle tips, covering everything from cooking tricks to winter sports.

For example, you might “turbocharge” your winter sled by treating the bottom with nonstick cooking spray, or refresh stale coffee with a sprinkle of salt. Or, you might even use a household iron to help you perfect your bowling technique. If you have a common household problem, chances are that there is an urawaza trick that can help you out.

The History of Urawaza

As author Lisa Katayama explains in the introduction of the book, the culture of urawaza had its roots in post-WWII Japan. The country’s resources had been tapped by the war effort, and even basic provisions had become harder to come by.

There were plenty of families that were trying to do more with less after the war, and even in modern Japan there are many families living in tiny city apartments who are looking to make the most of their space and resources. In 1997, the Japanese TV program “The Ito Family Dinner Table” brought urawaza into the mainstream. The program became so popular that at one point, over 30 percent of Japanese households tuned in to watch the show every week.

The Look of the Book

Each tip in the book is framed on a single page, outlining the dilemma, the urawaza solution, and a brief blurb that explains why the tip works from the scientific standpoint. It’s short enough to read cover-to-cover in a single sitting, and accessible enough to skim through for only a few minutes at a time.

Even the design of the book is geared to help the reader be more productive. The front of the book is emblazoned with big friendly letters that encourage the reader to “DO EVERYTHING BETTER!”, a move that reminds me warmly of the “DON’T PANIC” cover art of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

The obi-style wrapper on top of the book jacket is billed as “an instant fast-forward” (read: built-in bookmark) to help readers mark their place and easily refer back to tips they are looking to try out.

So, What’s In This Book?

The book contains over 100 tips across seven topic sections. Readers can peruse a variety of life hacks that include health tips, tricks to “amaze your friends”, beauty advice, “household hacks”, kitchen/food tips, laundry shortcuts, and tips for the great outdoors.

Basically, whether you are young or old, male or female, there will be plenty of relevant hacks and tips for you to peruse. Whether you are looking for a way to prevent your car doors from freezing shut in the winter, or want to learn to master the perfect manicure, there’s a hack for that.

My Top Picks

Out of the dozens of great tips in this book, I have selected six that I thought were really interesting, unique, or just plain useful. Narrowing it down was tough, but the following tips are pretty excellent.

1. A Foolproof Hiccup Cure: Instead of drinking water or swallowing sugar, the book suggests that you stick a cotton swab into your mouth and try to tickle your uvula. Doing so will initiate a gag reflex that will override the hiccup cycle. Kinda gross, but foolproof.

2. Stop a Crying Baby: If you swish a little water in your mouth next to the baby’s ear, this will calm the child. This is because the sound is similar to the noises that the baby was accustomed to hearing while still in the womb.

3. Vinegar Tricks: A dab of apple cider vinegar can banish blemishes, and a mix of white vinegar and tap water can be applied to your hair to make it shiny.

4. Coffee Stains Begone: Boil spinach in water, and use that water and a toothbrush to lift stubborn coffee stains from fabrics. The oxalic acid present in spinach is good for busting coffee stains, but proceed with caution: this trick won’t work on white fabric because of the green pigments from the spinach.

5. Fix a Shrunken Sweater: If you’ve accidentally shrunk a favorite wool sweater, you can return it to its original size by soaking it in a solution of tap water and hair conditioner for about 30 minutes.

6. Use Your Washing Machine as a Shredder: Just place your documents into a pair of nylon pantyhose, and send them through the wash. The ink will fade or blur, and the paper will crumple and fall apart.

Conclusion

I really enjoyed reading this book. Although I haven’t had a chance to try out every single trick yet, I’ve found that some are better than others. For example, the “soap-in-the-microwave” trick was fun to watch, but didn’t deliver much in terms of results.

But, I especially enjoyed the “create your own urawaza” section at the tail end of the book, as well as the section devoted to the art of tsubo (Japanese pressure points). The tips are solid overall, and the book is definitely worth picking up if you are a fan of life hacks.

Working a 9 to 5 job and then adding in the time to commute, plus having kids means very little time for parents to do much of anything, especially in households where both parents work or in single parent homes. That means very few homecooked meals for many families during the work week, and instead a lot of processed foods, take-out, and fast food dining. As we all know, that’s not a very healthy diet, especially for growing children. So what’s a working parent to do? It is actually possible to make some homecooked meals for your family, even if you spend more time at work and on the road than you do at home.

Plan Ahead

Before you head out for your weekly grocery store trip, think ahead for the next week of some meals you might like to have. I personally am not into meal planning very far in advance because it’s too rigid of a structure for my likings, but that does work out for a lot of people. If this sounds like something you might like, pull out a calendar or print one off your computer and start planning out what you want to make for meals each day. Then, add each ingredient you’ll need to your grocery list so you’ll remember to get everything when you’re at the store. If meal planning isn’t your thing, you can do like I do and plan for a variety of scenarios and buy foods that you could use to make one of several different meals. For example, chicken can be prepared in a multitude of ways. You can buy chicken breasts, as well as spaghetti, bread crumbs, marinara sauce for a chicken parmigiana meal. You could also buy some chicken broth, carrots, and celery in case you decide you might want to make chicken and dumplings instead of the chicken parmigiana.

The benefit to planning ahead and making a grocery list is that when you get to the store, you’ll remember to get everything you need and are less likely to forget something. You’ll also avoid some impulse purchases if you have a plan of action and an idea of what you’d like to eat the following week.

Gather Up Some Quick Recipes

Pull up your favorite search engine (mine is Google) and type in “quick dinner recipes”. You’ll get a lot of results and a lot of different sites with many of the same recipes. Choose which ever site looks interesting to you, and start looking. If you find recipes that you like, bookmark them and/or print them out. 10 or so different recipes is usually enough variety for your standard “feed the family” meals. This is a part of the “Planning Ahead” process, and you can reference these prior to heading out to the grocery store. Look for ones that take 20 minutes or less to prepare, and an hour or less to cook.

Invest in a Crock Pot

Crock pot cooking is popular among working parents. All you have to do is throw your ingreidents in the crock pot, set the heating setting to low for 6 to 8 hours (depending on the recipe), and when you get home, you’ll have a hot, fresh homecooked meal just waiting to be dished out. You’ll want to look for special crock pot recipes, or pick up a crock pot cookbook. Many of your favorite dishes can be altered to slow cooking in a crock pot. The plus side of crock pot cooking is that when you get home, it’s all done and you don’t have to spend an hour making dinner.

When You Don’t Feel Like Cooking

There are days you’ll come home, too tired to cook or not wanting to make the effort. Many times, this is when people get pizza or Chinese delivered. But if that happens all too often, you’ll want to have a few no or little effort meal ideas on hand. Some of my favorite go-to meals for the days I just don’t feel like cooking include:

• Spaghetti with sauce & rolls or breadsticks. Parents like it, and kids love it too. In 10 to 15 minutes, and you’ve got a meal.
• Grilled cheese & tomato soup. The kids might be okay with just the grilled cheese sandwich, and parents who need a little something more will appreciate the bowl of soup. I recommend two kinds of cheese for an extra tasty sandwich (muenster and cheddar is my favorite combo). Pan fry the sandwiches in butter while you warm the soup in a pot. In less than 10 minutes, you’ve got a meal.
• Breakfast for dinner. Kids will often find it fun to have breakfast for dinner, and its an easy meal for you to make. Ideas include French Toast, waffles, pancakes, toast, eggs, sausage, and bacon.

It’s possible to make homecooked meals for your family as a working parent; it just takes a little forethought and planning. Readers – what are some of your favorite, fast and easy meals to make?

Say the words “weight loss”, and people instantly think of hitting the gym or eating meager meals of rice cakes and tofu. But if you use some sneaky tricks, you can lose weight without feeling like you’ve made major lifestyle changes. You won’t even realize you’ve been working out or dieting if you make use of these seven handy tips.

1. Standing Crunches

Simply tightening and releasing your abdominal muscles more frequently will result in a stronger core (and maybe even some lost inches around your midsection). You will want to flex your core muscles, hold your abdominal muscles in that position for a count of five, and then release.

The trick is to work these “standing crunch” moments into your day at semi-regular intervals. You might try getting in the habit of doing them every time you walk thru a doorway, while waiting for the elevator, or while standing in front of the stove making dinner. If you remind yourself in these circumstances to always do a standing crunch, eventually you’ll get to the point where you do them unconsciously.

2. Take More Steps

Yes, take the stairs instead of the elevator. Obviously. But there are plenty of other ways to work a few extra steps into your day. For example, try running more errands on foot, or take the time to walk up and down every aisle at the grocery store (you’ll take more steps and likely remember more items that you needed to pick up). You could even write a letter instead of an email, and walk to your nearest post office dropbox to mail it.

3. Wear Those Stupid Shoes

I really, really, REALLY hate those hideous “tone-up” shoes that look like you’re walking on rockers. But thankfully, shoe companies have started to make shoes that tone your lower half, without looking like a crime against fashion. Just by wearing these shoes, you can burn more calories without making a single change in your daily routine. While you won’t find “tone-ups” in fancy dress varieties, there are plenty of sandals and sneakers that offer these health benefits.

4. Eat More

By eating smart, you can trick yourself into feeling full before you even sit down to eat. It comes down to knowing how to best manipulate your own body chemistry.

“Ten minutes before each meal, eat some healthy fat (around 70 calories or fewer): a handful of nuts, a few slices of avocado, or a spoonful of peanut butter, for example. That helps activate ghrelin, a hormone that lets you know you’re full,” says Dr. Michael Roizin.

5. Stay Hydrated

Drinking plenty of fluids is important year-round, whether during the heat of summer or the height of winter cold season. If you drink more water, you’ll see an improvement in your skin and overall health. But more importantly, you’ll also find that you are less hungry and you will be satisfied with smaller portions. When you feel like snacking, have a glass of water first. After ten minutes, see if you are still feeling peckish.

6. Get Inspired by the Ballet

You don’t have to be Baryshnikov to get moving and burn calories like a dancer. Take some time that you’d usually spend sitting to do a plié. First, make a “V” with your feet. While keeping your heels planted on the ground, bend your knees slowly, and then slowly return to your former position, without jerking or straining. You can also rise up on your toes.

Try to do these knee bends and stretches while on the phone, while standing in line at the deli, or during the commercial breaks of your favorite TV show. You’ll gain flexibility, and burn off a few extra calories at the same time.

7. Find a Secret Weapon

Do some research and find a “super food” that will kick your diet or weight loss plan into high gear. It doesn’t have to be anything unpleasant or hard to find, but the simple act of introducing a new food (or an old favorite) into your diet will add excitement to meals and make you feel like you’ve got a secret weapon at your disposal.

Examples of “secret weapon” foods may include:

Chia seeds: Rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, these tiny seeds are able to absorb 12 times their weight in water, so adding a sprinkle of them to your morning granola will help you to stay hydrated for a longer period of time (a fact that makes them very popular with runners). A side benefit of this hydration is that you will likely feel fuller for longer.

Soups: According to the experts at Women’s Health magazine, “Research from Pennsylvania State University found that dieters who ate soup two times per day were more successful in losing weight and maintained, on average, a total weight loss of 16 pounds after 1 year. Chunky, broth-based soups, such as chicken and vegetable, are most filling.”

Eggs: One University of Washington study found that people who consumed a diet that consisted of 30 percent protein ate 441 fewer calories per day than those who ate a diet that consisted of only 15 percent protein. Eggs are most often thought of as a breakfast food, but eggs can add extra protein to dishes like ramen and salads as well.

Conclusion

With what amounts to over-the-top fidgeting, you can really make a difference in terms of calories burned and muscles engaged per day. With these sneaky tricks at your disposal, you can eat less, move more, and not feel like you’ve made much of an effort at all.

In GTD, Mr. Allen doesn’t speak of date information related to actions very much other than the brief discussion of giving yourself a hard landscape by ways of your calendar. So, to that end, let’s take a look at the wide-world of dates and GTD, and how they can be used within your system.

If you’re like many avid Facebook users, you may have noticed that in the past few weeks the site rolled out a new photo viewer.  While I appreciate the fact that I can click on a photo in my feed and have it pop over the content, and then close it and go back to my feed without losing my place, I do not like the fact that I can no longer right click on the image to grab its URL or do a “save as”.  Fortunately, there are ways around the new image viewer that will allow you to still grab the URLs or save images, or even bypass the new viewer completely and view photos like you used to be able to.

F5 to Reload the Page

A simple way to kill the new photo viewer is once you’ve clicked on an image and have the new viewer up, click the F5 button on your keyboard.  This will reload the page and close out the viewer. What you’ll now get is the “old” way of viewing photos on Facebook. Yay!

CTRL + Clicking

Instead of just clicking on an image to view it, instead, hold down your CTRL button as you click.  This will open the image in a new tab in your browser, minus the ugly photo viewer.

Facebook Image Link for Google’s Chrome Browser

Chrome users can download a new plug-in that will add additional context menu options when you right-click on an image posted on Facebook.  The new photo viewer was introduced a little over a week ago, and amongst the most common complaints about it is that right-clicking a photo no longer gives you the option to copy the photo’s web address.  That makes it a lot more difficult to display images individually or to save them to the local computer system.

With Facebook Image Link installed, the options added to the context menu include:

• Open image URL
• Show image URL
• Show high res image URL

You can download the Google Chrome extension for installation at the Google Chrome Extentions gallery.

Facebook Photo Theater Killer

Userscripts like the Facebook Photo Theater Killer create another way to circumvent the Facebook photo theater.  This Greasemonkey script will essentially replace the new photo viewer with the older viewer that is still accessible.  However, it’s not known if or how long Facebook will keep the old viewer up and running, so if Facebook disables the old viewer, this userscript will break.  But for now, it’s a good work-around and is the only option at the moment that will automatically prevent the opening of photos in their new photo viewer.

If you have any other solutions you’ve come across, please share them in the comments.  I’d love to hear them, and I’m sure our readers would as well.

Ever since the 1980s, there has been an increasing amount of media coverage on stress-related topics. For decades, scientists, researchers, and doctors have been investigating how the human body responds to stress, and whether it is possible for some people to become addicted to stress.

While there are no hard figures to reveal how many Americans may be suffering from stress addiction, experts do agree that people suffering from this problem face varying degrees of danger to their health.

Are you addicted to stress? And if so, does that mean you will be facing serious health problems down the road? Or, will you be one of the few people who benefits from stress addiction?

The Type A Paradox

A bevy of medical experts have noted that there are a variety of human responses to stress, and not all of them have to be negative. In fact, high-strung Type-A personalities may actually benefit from stressful lifestyles based on their genetics and lifestyle preferences.

”Anyone familiar with the corporate world has had experiences with driven executives who seem to thrive on stressful circumstances that most others could not tolerate,” says Dr. Waino W. Suojanen, a professor of management at Georgia State University. ”There is plenty of anecdotal evidence that some executives deliberately seek out the management life because they get a high out of controlling people. Indeed, the making of decisions seems to become addicting.”

So why would someone benefit from stress addiction? Dr. Robert Ader of the University of Rochester, has studied stress addiction for many years, and he explains that stress can actually have some beneficial effects on the body. ”Through our animal work we have hypothesized that it might be possible that some people might need stress because it elicits the release of catecholamines, such as adrenaline, in the blood stream, and this is not necessarily bad because it might increase resistance to some types of disease.”

Dr. Paul J. Rosch adds that because of these unexpected health benefits of stress, prescribing the right medical treatments can be very challenging. “The Type A individual has perhaps become addicted to his own adrenaline and unconsciously seeks ways to get those little surges,” he explains.

“The Type A individual is apt to be irritable and depressed. Thus, recuperating from a heart attack by spending three weeks on a deserted beach might be a perfect prescription for one individual, but lethal for some Type A’s, who would be ‘off the wall’ in a matter of hours.”

Stress and Genetics

Stress, when combined with certain genetic factors, can increase a person’s risk for developing depression or even chronic fatigue disorder. According to Dr. David Mrazek, “People with a genetic variant of the serotonin transporter gene [are] more likely to become depressed [if] they have experienced stressful situations.”

While he notes that the types of stress caused by childhood abuse or major medical are more likely to affect those with the genetic variant, even “the hassles of everyday life [were] associated with an increased risk of depression if a person had this genetic variant.”

Stress While Pregnant

Even if you are one of the rare people who thrive under stressful circumstances, all bets are off if you are a woman who becomes pregnant. Stress is arguably the most dangerous thing a pregnant woman can be exposed to. Stress during pregnancy has been linked to all kinds of ill effects for the developing baby.

For example, stress can cause miscarriages, lower IQ scores for babies, and can affect the development of the child’s immune system. In fact, one Harvard study revealed that children who had mothers with highly stressful pregnancies were more likely to suffer from auto-immune disease, including asthma and allergies.

Stress Addiction Warning Signs

According to Debbie Mandel, author of “Addicted to Stress: A Woman’s 7 Step Program to Reclaim Joy and Spontaneity in Life”, there are many warning signs that can indicate that a person has become addicted to stress. Mandel says that if you answer “yes” to any of the questions below, you may be at risk for developing stress addiction:

“1. Do you tune out during conversations thinking about other things?
2. Do you feel rushed wherever you are because you feel that you ought to be completing the next task somewhere else?
3. Do you feel uncomfortable, worried, and nervous in your mind or body when you don’t have something you must absolutely do right now?”
 
Mandel says that clients she treats for stress addiction get hooked on the surge of adrenaline they get when rushing around, frantically trying to check off items on their to-do lists. Many stress addicts, she adds, are also using their stress to keep from dealing with feelings of inadequacy. “In the case of stress addiction, all this busyness stems from the addict’s constant need to prove the self, suppressing feelings of unattractiveness, unworthiness and inadequacy seeping out through the seams of body and soul. It is a case of compulsion versus passion,” she explains.

Conclusion

There are good kinds of stress, and bad kinds of stress. Falling in love definitely counts as “good stress”, and getting fired is unquestionably “bad stress”. No two causes of stress are created equal, and it also seems that no two people will have the exact same response a given stressful event.

Even if you thrive on stress, your addiction may be putting your health at risk. As with everything in life, moderation is best. So, if you absolutely love the adrenaline rush of multi-tasking on 12 urgent projects, you need to make sure you find a little time each day to relax. Examine your motivations for reveling in stress, and make sure you balance your long-term health with your lifestyle choices.

If you’re anything like me, you wake up in the morning, hit the ground running, work through lunch, and only stop thinking about your job when your head hits the pillow. So, needless to say, I occasionally have days where I’m stressed out of my mind.

According to Dr. Paul J. Rosch, the president of the American Institute of Stress, ”Americans increasingly seem to be living life in the fast lane. A better understanding of the harm that stress can cause, as well as the possibility of some benefits, would help an increasing number of people.”

You may think that your day is too jam-packed with meetings and events to find the time for relaxation…and you’d be wrong. Believe it or not, you can take measures to reduce your stress levels that will only take 45 seconds of your time. Here are ten tips that can help you de-stress in record time.

1. Read a Poem

Take 45 seconds to savor a single haiku, or read over your favorite sonnet. Beautiful language can really twist your mind in a way that helps to push away the cares of the day.

And even if poetry isn’t really your thing, you might find enjoyment in reading something with a humorous bent. Think Shel Silverstein, Ogden Nash, or Dr. Seuss.

2. Blow Off Some Steam

Get up and get moving, just for the amount of time it takes to hum a couple rounds of “Happy Birthday”. If you can burn off some of that nervous energy, you’ll feel energized, refreshed, and far more mentally capable of handling the stresses of your day.

If you can get some sun in during those precious few seconds, so much the better. Never underestimate the power of fresh air and sunshine to improve your mood.

3. Follow Your Nose

I’ve written about the benefits of aromatherapy in a previous post here, and I’m still impressed by the speed with which a single sniff of perfume can change my mood. If you don’t have essential oils on hand, peel an orange at your desk and crush the rind in your hand to release the scent of the orange. Orange is a great scent to help you feel energized and rejuvenated.

4. Elevate Your Brain

Meditate, pray, commune with nature…whatever works for you. Take a few moments to center yourself, open your mind, and get spiritual…if that sort of thing is helpful for you.

5. Pump Your Jam

There’s a reason that sporting arenas play songs when introducing the starting lineup for a sports team. The right song can change your outlook on life in under 45 seconds. The trick is to find a song snippet that works for you.

Maybe it’s the “Tro lo lo” guy, something off a Jock Jams compilation album, or the over-the-top intro to “The Final Countdown”. Alternatively, maybe a snippet of something classical would be better for calming you. It comes down to personal preference, and exactly what about your day has got you so stressed out.

6. Don’t Forget to Breathe

Breathe in through your nose, and out through your mouth. Slowly. Repeat. Make sure the breaths are steady and full.

It’s just that simple.

7. Chuckle

Hit the randomizer button on your favorite web comic, engage in cube warfare with a co-worker, or check out a website that offers a “Joke of the Day” service. Laughter really is the best medicine, and if you can laugh away the stress, your outlook for the rest of the day will be a lot more rosy.

8. Organize

Sometimes the best way to tackle stress is to clean house and get organized. Set up a new email filter, organize your paperwork, clean the clutter off your desk, or something along those lines. When you have all your ducks in a row, so to speak, your workload will seem a lot more manageable.

9. Snuggle Up

Get cuddly with a pet, a blanket, a favorite sweater….anything soft that you stroke with your fingertips. Just like Lenny in “Of Mice and Men”, most people find that they reach their “happy place” when touching something soft like fur or textiles. Scratching a dog or cat behind the ears can help to quickly lower your blood pressure…if there aren’t any pets allowed in your office, try carrying a lucky rabbit’s foot.

10. Chow Down

Eating or drinking helps to relax us. That’s why we give pacifiers to babies. Just try to make sure you’re making smart food choices (ie, choose a crunchy apple over a bag of potato chips).

Conclusion

There just aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done. Stress management is an incredibly important tool, and the more techniques you can master to lower your blood pressure, the better. With just 45 seconds, you can de-stress and re-focus your mind to maximize your productivity.

cc by M0les

“You miss one hundred percent of the shots you never take.” (Wayne Gretzky)

I’m not particularly gifted (sigh) but I am pretty driven. I choose to be proactive, focused and disciplined (mostly) because I’m fascinated by what we human beings can achieve when we commit to exploring our potential and when we don’t allow our thinking or emotions to get in the way of our possibilities. In some ways, I guess my drive and determination come (in part) from my lack of inherent ability.

Who knew that being not-very-talented would have an upside?

Growing up, I wasn’t a great athlete, student, musician or a great anything for that matter. I was good at a few things (okay, eating), average at a few more and pretty crap at a whole bunch of things. For all the money my parents spent on years of guitar lessons, I should be frickin’ Carlos Santana, Jimi Hendrix and Slash all rolled into one. If only there had been some musical ability in the mix, I could have been anything.

Based on what I still remember (and can still play), I think my parents invested somewhere in the vicinity of four thousand dollars per chord. Having said that, if you ever need somebody to belt out a horrible acoustic rendition of House of the Rising Sun at your next party, I’m your guy.

What do you mean – “no thanks”?

That hurts.

And if, per chance, something is in need of repair at your house, whatever you do, don’t ask me to fix it. Sure, I may look handy but don’t be fooled; as a repairman, I’m about as useful as an ashtray on a motorbike. Combine my total lack of technical and mechanical aptitude with my enormous-for-no-good-reason ego, my enthusiasm, my unwarranted optimism (about my potential to fix things) and my ineptitude with tools – and I’m sure to create more havoc than harmony at your place.  

The strange thing is, part of me always thinks I’m going to be able to fix whatever it is I’m taking apart – despite my abysmal track record. It’s the one area that I don’t seem to learn in. Maybe it’s my over-developed optimism-gene kicking in. Fortunately, I’ve always had girlfriends with great mechanical aptitude. And large forearms.

Stop it.

Enough about me.

Your Best Life

When it comes to the matter of creating and sustaining our best life (whatever that means to each of us personally), the question we should ask ourselves is not, “how much potential do I have?” but rather, “how much of that potential am I currently using?”

Earlier this year, I published a fantastic letter I received from Mel - one of our readers and part of our community. If you haven’t read it, I suggest you take a peek. Her achievement of creating and maintaining such a significant change in her world is inspirational. She lost 56 kgs (123 lbs) and has kept it off for a year and a half. But more important than the weight-loss (in my opinion), is the fact that she has also created and maintained amazing change on many levels beyond the physical.

Go Mel.

After years of stopping and starting. Of wasting time. Of not reaching her goal. Of living in a body which embarrassed her. Of feeling self-conscious. Of hiding in her house. Of crying. Of avoiding people. Of pretending to be happy. Of shortness of breath. Of poor health. Of chaffing. And of walking to the letterbox in the dark… Mel changed. Massively.  She transformed her body, her thinking, her habits, her behaviours and her life.

Her entire reality.

Now, we could spend hours debating and discussing why it took her so long (to change once and for all) but the pertinent question for this chat is:

Did she always have the potential to create amazing change?

Of course, the answer is yes. She didn’t wake up one day and miraculously possess more potential. No, she woke up one day and started using what had always been there. And to keep using it no matter what. What she didn’t always have was the mindset, the awareness, the discipline or the momentum – but she always had the potential for incredible transformation.

For a range of reasons, there was a time when she was not (genuinely) ready. Not prepared to pay the price. Not willing to get that uncomfortable. Not willing to face her fears. The potential was there but it wasn’t being exploited – kind of like the guy who buys the amazing car and then leaves it in the garage because he’s too scared somebody might scratch it. Or resent his success. Or steal it when he’s not looking.

And when Mel created the right internal environment - when she got to that point – she opened the door to something that was always there: her own personal world of amazing. Her potential.

You and Me?

The amount of inherent potential you and I have is finite but how much of that potential we use is completely optional. Isn’t that great news? Of course, there’s no way of knowing, measuring or quantifying exactly how much potential we each have – or how much of that potential we will typically use in a lifetime (various figures like three percent get thrown around)  - but it’s my belief, observation and experience that most of us don’t use most of what we have.

So the next obvious question is…

What Stops us from Exploring, Developing and Maximising our Potential?

A bunch of things but mostly, it’s a fear thing.

Fear of failure. Of embarrassment. Of being judged. Of the unknown. Of being ridiculed. Of the commitment required. Of the potential pain, discomfort and risk. The day we decide that we’re prepared to deal with those inevitable realities of the human experience, and the day we stop trying to keep everybody except ourselves happy, is the day the transformation begins.

Personally, I’ve spent years making mistakes. Taking risks. Being criticised. Embarrassed. Judged. Labelled. Liked. Disliked. I’m okay with all of it because where there’s discomfort, there’s growth. There’s learning. And in the middle of it all, I found me. Despite many protests, I went to university (for the first time) at thirty-six. After being told that I wouldn’t get a book published, I wrote my first book at thirty-seven. I did my first (regular) TV gig at forty-two. I didn’t know what a blog was at forty-one. I’ve had two failed businesses. In order to build my speaking skills, I did hundreds of presentations for little or no money. For years. Some of them were horrible. I was horrible. My ‘apprenticeship’ into the world of professional speaking was a ten-year journey. I could go on, but I don’t want to bore you. Needless to say, my failures lessons far outweigh my triumphs.

In some ways, the ‘safest’ thing for me to do would be to not share my thoughts, ideas, opinions and beliefs in such a public way. Some people don’t like it. Doing what I do – sharing my philosophies with a large audience – means that I will be criticised, disliked and uncomfortable on a regular basis. That’s okay, I’ll simply choose to live, laugh, love and learn. Because I can.

One of my favourite mentors at university (Dr. Paul Callery) once told me:

“If you don’t want to offend anyone, then say nothing, do nothing and be nothing.”

Smart man.

I’ll finish today’s post with a message I often share with my charges:

I don’t care how young, old, fat, fit, tall, small, genetically gifted, intelligent, qualified, skilled, experienced or inherently talented you are (or aren’t), all I care about (in terms of you creating lasting change in your world), is what you do with what you’ve been given. You can’t change your genetics but you can change how you use them. You can’t change your chronological age but you can change what you do (choices, behaviours, habits) at your age. And in the process, you can lower your biological age. You can’t change other people but you can change how you behave and react around them. You can’t alter your level of natural ability (potential), but you can determine how much of that ability you tap into, exploit and develop. You can’t change your past but you can change the way you let it influence and impact on your present and your future. That is, you don’t need to be limited by, defined by or determined by your history (as many people are). Your history doesn’t necessarily tell you anything about your potential and is often a poor indicator of what’s possible for your future. If you’re like many, then your achievements – or perhaps lack of achievements – are more a reflection of your fear (to take a chance and get uncomfortable) than they are a reflection of your potential.

And finally, don’t allow your self-limiting, over-thinking, fear-influenced mind to stand between you and happiness. You are good enough, talented enough, courageous enough and definitely worth it.

Enjoy your journey.

And your potential.

<!– –>

Craig Harper (B.Ex.Sci.) is a qualified exercise scientist, author, columnist, radio presenter, television host, motivational speaker and university lecturer. For the past 25 years he has been a leading presenter, educator, motivator and commentator in the areas of personal and professional development. You can visit Craig’s blog at Motivational Speaker.

FREE eBook – So… You’ve Decided to Get in Shape (Again)
Craig’s FREE eBook takes 20 – 30 minutes to read, and addresses the REAL getting-in-shape issues based on his 25 years of experience. To get Craig’s FREE eBook click here, weight loss books.

Most of those “work from home” opportunities that you see on TV, in the newspaper, or online are scams or pay you so little for the time you’ve invested that it’s not worth your while.  In my quest to figure out a way to ditch the 9 to 5 job so that I could work from the comfort of my own home, I have come across many different opportunities.  Whether you want to work from home so that you have more time with your kids or because you’d rather wear your jammies instead of a suit, the following are some great ideas on how to earn your living by working from home.  I can’t promise you’ll get rich overnight or quickly earn enough to replace your salary, or that it will even be easy, but if you stick with it and keep trying you’ll eventually have achieved your goal.

Start your own website.

There are two kinds of websites – the ones that sell products and the ones that provide information.

If you can think of a good idea for a webstore and invest enough time and energy into marketing it, you might do well.  But keep in mind, you will have to constantly keep at it.  There will be orders to fill and plenty of accounting and inventory work to keep you busy,  provided you have a good product, there’s demand, and you’ve marketed yourself well.  The “If you build it they will come” slogan does not apply to websites.  If no one knows you’re out there, the chances of them accidentally stumbling upon it are virtually nil.  It can also be expensive if you don’t know how to create or operate your website, or how to market it.  You may very likely need to enlist the help of paid professionals.

If the idea of running an online store does not appeal to you, perhaps you’d like to create a website that offers information, rather than products.  It could be that you make brilliant cartoons and think that would get a following, or perhaps you’d like to start up a news blog or maybe even a site for dog owners.  There’s no limit as to what topics you have to choose from, but my advice is to choose something that you love.

My experience:

I started up a news website along with my husband in 2006.  We are both news junkies who love to write.  I always wanted to be a journalist,  but I knew where that career field was heading and I didn’t really want to be an intern or do time as the obituary writer.  So we took our passion for news and for writing and our love for our hometown of Cleveland, Ohio, and we started up a news site.

I can’t say that we’ve gotten rich off of it,  but it helps pay the bills.  It’s daily traffic rivals and surpasses that of established news media outlets in our market, and we’ve brought on board some award-winning journalists in recent years.  It’s also gotten us other opportunities over the years, such as press passes to concerts and sporting events, chances to test out new products or listen to unreleased CDs, and so on.

We’ve stuck with it for so long because it is something that we enjoy.  I can’t stress this enough – if you start a website about something that you are not passionate about, chances are you will burn out pretty quickly.  It takes a lot of work to build up a successful website, and you have to be willing to put in the time yourself until it is big enough that you need to bring in some extra help.

We’ve saved a lot of costs because I know how to build websites and have a background in graphic design and a bit of SEO know-how. If you don’t have these skills, or a friend who might be willing to lend some of their talent, it will end up costing you more.

Answer questions, do surveys, and conduct searches.

This tactic to making money online will most definitely not make you rich, but can help you earn enough to pay for the little things you’d be buying anyways, or give you some extra spending money to treat yourself every once in awhile.

There are plenty of opportunities to take surveys for money.  This has never appealed to me, so I can’t honestly direct you to a legit one.  They’re out there, but do your research first.  Otherwise you might just find yourself added to another spam distribution list.

If you’re good at searching for information online and have an interest in a wide variety of topics, becoming a ChaCha.com guide might be up your alley.  People ask questions, you find them the answers, and then you get paid.  The more time you spend working, the more you will make.

If you use the internet, you probably use a search engine regularly.  Well what if all those searches you conducted could earn you money?  With SwagBucks.com, you can earn money for your searches.  It pays you to do what you’d already be doing on Google, Yahoo, Bing or whatever your favorite search engine is. You again won’t get rich by doing this, but you can build up enough points to score gift cards to Amazon.com and other places.

My experience:

I did a few surveys for AOL way back in the day that they paid me for, but these kind of things haven’t interested me all that much because they don’t pay out all that well and I’m more interested in making a living online than earning some extra spending money.  But I know people who have done these and are pleased with it.

Find a work from home job.

They are out there, but they’re hard to find and pretty darn competitive.  These jobs can range from a medical transcriptionist to a search engine optimization specialist.  Or, perhaps, you could find a position as a social media consultant.

My experience:

I’ve seen these from time to time posted on Craigslist, but I’ve never actually gotten one yet.  My advice to finding them is to scour the job postings on not only your local city, but some big cities like New York as well.  Often times there will be work from home jobs posted on only the NYC Craigslist because that’s where the company is based out of, that’s their local Craigslist, and they don’t want to go to the bother of posting it on all of the cities.   You’d apply for these jobs the same way you’d do any other job, and your interview will likely be over the phone, unless you happen to be near where the company is based.

Write about what you know.

Do you have a degree in nutrition?  I know Livestrong.com is hiring writers for their site through Demand Media Studios.  DMS also hiring writers and editors for every other topic under the sun to be published on eHow.com and their numerous other web properties.  You can make about $15 or more per article, and a few dollars for each article that you edit.  You can work as much or as little as you want.  Once you “claim” an assignment, of which there are tens of thousands, you have 7 days to complete it.

Yahoo bought up Associated Content and have amassed their own army of writers to create articles on numerous topics.  They also utilize their writers to do local feature stories for Yahoo Local cities.  They work similarly to Demand Media Studios, in that you can “claim” assignments.  I signed up to see how it worked, and it seems as though most of the payment for them is “performance based”.  In other words, you get paid based on the number of hits your article gets.

Scour the blogger job postings on ProBlogger.net.  There are lots of people hiring everyday for people to write blogs for them on numerous topics.

My experience:

I signed up with Demand Media Studios and was accepted, but I haven’t done much since. The number of assignments available and is somewhat overwhelming, but I could easily earn the equivalent of a 9 to 5 salary by writing articles every day.  I’ve written for many, many blogs and websites over the years about everything from lawncare to nursing school and mobile phones.  There are topics, such as new technology, that I consider myself to be well-versed in and there are others that I am not that familiar with, so I do a lot of research to write well about them.

Turn your talent into cash.

Most people have at least one talent.  Figure out what yours is, and come up with a plan to capitalize on it. This is what finding a work from home job is all about.  If you love to knit, why not sell your goods on Etsy?  Are you an awesome coder?  There’s more work out there than you’ll know what to do with.  Are you an expert gardener?  Start a blog and share your tips, or maybe even make some expert how-to videos for eHow.com.

You don’t have to quit your job and start working from home overnight.  It will likely take you some time to progress to a full work from home job, so start out small and work your way up.  If what you do is something that you love you’ll be more successful.  You need to be dedicated and motivated, and not easily distracted by the freedoms that working from home offers.  Successfully earning a living by working at home CAN be done, but it will most certainly take a lot of hard work.