Marc and Angel Hack Life

They say having children changes everything.  While it’s unquestionably a remarkable time in one’s life, I can also see how the transition introduces obvious limitations.  Suddenly you have dependent beings of life to care for.  Responsibility kicks in, compelling you to dedicate a significant portion of your time and attention to the best interests of the little ones.  Combine this with the obvious physical and lifestyle limitations that come with age and it seems to me that there are several activities to check off the bucket list before settling down to start a family.

Here’s our list of 70 things to do before having children.  For us, it’s simply about conquering as many life experiences as possible.  We’re not quite there yet, but we’re getting closer. 

1. Live in a high rise condo with an amazing view.
2. Take a month long vacation on the opposite side of the world in a city with a completely different culture.
3. Attend the Super Bowl live.
4. Jump out of a perfectly good airplane.
5. Make love in places you aren’t supposed to.
6. Swim with the sharks.
7. Scuba-dive to a large ship wreck.
8. Audition to be on TV or in a movie… even if you’re just an extra.
9. Throw the house party of all house parties.  Supply all the booze and invite everyone you know.
10. Take sexy photos of yourself (keep them somewhere safe).
11. Learn to fly a plane.
12. Become skilled with a musical instrument.
13. Live in southern California for at least a year.
14. Live in the heart of New York City, Chicago, Boston or another major city for at least a year.
15. Spend a few weeks vacationing on the beaches of Kauai with your partner.
16. Surf a Hawaiian wave.
17. Learn to speak a foreign language.
18. Visit the North Pole.
19. Attend The Tonight Show or The Late Show as an audience member.
20. Read at least 30 books.
21. Jump off a cliff into a natural body of water in an exotic location.
22. Go mountain climbing.
23. Go deep sea fishing and learn to filet and cook your own fish.
24. Go horseback riding on the beach with your partner.
25. Drink warm beer out of a barrel in a real Irish pub.
26. Spend a night pub-hopping in London.
27. Stage dive and crowd surf at a rock concert.
28. Take a set amount of money and hit the Blackjack and Craps tables in Las Vegas.
29. Visit a high-end Las Vegas strip club.
30. Embark on a month-long road trip across the country with 3 of your best friends.
31. Ride a camel across a sandy desert.
32. Go white water rafting.
33. Go snowboarding in the Rockies.
34. Get in great shape and enter some kind of fitness competition.
35. Attain a solid understanding of how the government works in your country.
36. Master one particular style of dance.
37. Fall in love.
38.  Write a book… even if it’s short and never gets published.
39. Drive through a (somewhat safe) portion of a third world country like Mexico or Costa Rica to gain perspective on what true poverty looks like.
40. Go skinny dipping in a large body of water at midnight.
41. Take a shower under a waterfall.
42. Decide on your current life goals and write them down.
43. Spend New Years Eve in Times Square.
44. Go on a blind date (or a couple’s dinner date with new friends you hardly know).
45. Sleep on the beach under the stars in Key West.
46. Hit up Oktoberfest in Munich.
47. Hit up Mardi Gras in New Orleans.
48. Hit up Carnival in Rio de Janeiro.
49. Experience Spring Break in all its glory in Cancun, Mexico or Panama City Beach, Florida.
50. Catch a ride in a hot air balloon.
51. Rent a fast sports car and speed down the Autobahn.
52. Switch jobs until you find one you truly enjoy.
53. Buy your first house.
54. Own a convertible sports car.
55. Hike the Grand Canyon.
56. Attend a Red Sox vs. Yankees game in Fenway Park.
57. Spend a whole day making love without every leaving the house.
58. Learn to make one mixed cocktail like a pro bartender.
59. Run a marathon.
60. Stand up in front of a large audience and tell a great joke.
61. Shoot a gun.
62. Swim across the English Channel.
63. Bicycle ride down a mountain road.
64. Learn to sail a sailboat.
65. Learn the basics of a martial art.
66. Visit the Amazon Rainforest.
67. Bare all on a nude beach.
68. Master one really cool magic trick.
69. Master a few fancy dinner recipes.
70. Finish up your formal education (but continue learning).

What’s on your list?

Photo by: Dawvon

There is no shortcut to greatness.  It’s all about taking the right steps… small, seemingly inconsequential steps that fuse together, emitting a positive effect on the bigger picture.  Below are 28 astute takes of insight from around the blogosphere.  Take heed to this wisdom, and you’ll soon be on your way to living a prolific life.

1. Always show kindness to others. – “Every time you’re nice to someone else, they become more likely to help you or be nice in return.” – via On Simplicity
2. Be grateful for what you have. – “Gratitude shifts your focus from what your life lacks to the abundance that is already present.  In addition, behavioral and psychological research has shown the surprising life improvements that can stem from the practice of gratitude.” – via The Change Blog
3. Clear clutter!  Get rid of the stuff you don’t need. – “If you have too much to pick up, look for, clean around, organize, and trip over, then it’s no wonder you’re feeling disorganized.  And if you’re having to do it over and over and over again, it’s no wonder you’re feeling unproductive.” – via simple mom
4. Study and learn from the mistakes others have made. – “By reading about those I aspire to be like, not only do I get to witness the unique dealings of THEIR struggles, I can skip some of the hard knock lessons by learning from steps already taken in someone else’s heels.  It’s a real advantage when you have serious intent on getting somewhere.  Learn from others and utilize the wisdom harvested over time to spare yourself some grief and gain an idea of what to do.” – via InMyHeels
5. Be a team player.  Teamwork is the key to progress. – “I heard a story about some horses that were in a competition to see which could pull the most weight.  One horse pulled 3,000 lbs and another one pulled 4,000 lbs.  Someone suggested the horses team-up together to see how much they could pull.  Most guesses were in the 7,000 lb to 10,000 lb range but when those two horses worked together, they pulled an amazing 20,000 lbs.  That’s the power of teamwork.” – via The Wisdom Journal
6. Graciously thank the people who deserve it. – “You are making MomGrind a lively, vibrant community where people get to know each other and exchange ideas.  Without you, MomGrind would be just another platform for me to talk endlessly… A special thank you to my top ten commentators for the month of July.” – via MomGrind
7. Learn to make the right first impression. – “Drive a flashy sports car and it implies you have money.  Live on the “wrong side of the tracks”, some people think you’re “less than”.  Wear wrinkled, dirty clothes and you could be labeled as “low life”. – via Blogging Without A Blog
8. Having 5 close friends is far more important than having 50 acquaintances. – “What if I were to get convicted of a crime - even if I’m innocent - and get put in jail for ten years.  Who would be at the gates when I’m released?” – via Goodlife Zen
9. Money is worthless in a state of loneliness. – “Money makes the world go round but people are what make the world worth living in.  It’s easy to get caught up in the daily rush of making a living and forget that each day we spend rushing around is a blessing.  The opportunity to spend time with the ones we care about is something that I overlook all too often.” – via Frugal Dad
10. Find your passion and follow it. – “In the first few months (of writing this blog), I often felt like I was speaking to an empty room.  I felt like I wrote articles nobody read.  Even after blogging for three months, I got no more than six visitors a day.  In that difficult time, the only thing that kept me going was passion.” – via Life Optimizer
11. Run, jog, walk… just make sure you exercise. – “We need physical activity to stay healthy.  The benefits of regular exercise are well documented.  We need to find exercise routines that are fun and match our individual tastes.  Developing a good exercise routine is a habit that will increase both the quantity and quality of your life.” – via My Super-Charged Life
12. Eat healthy!  You are what you eat. – “healthy eating is the most important thing you can do to affect your health.  You can’t exercise away bad eating habits.  You can be a long distance runner and still have high cholesterol that puts you at risk for a heart attack.  So healthy eating should be a priority for everyone who wants a long healthy and enjoyable life.” – via Life Learning Today
13. Accept failure.  Learn from failure. – “Failure has become your friend.  Some of life’s biggest lessons have come to you when you have failed.  Each time you move forth into a new endeavor, success and failure are both acceptable options.  With success you get you want and with failure you get to learn something.” – via The Positivity Blog
14. Be true to yourself… Be yourself! – “Human beings often give up the power of being true to themselves, hiding amongst the shadows of social roles and familiar comforts instead.” – via The Urban Monk
15. Figure out what you truly want in life. – “Know what it is that you want.  I know this sounds simple, but really it can be quite challenging.  I had everyone else’s ideas in my head for so long, I couldn’t even hear my own voice.  So this step is crucial.  Invest the time it takes to get quiet, filter out everyone else’s ideas from your own, and be totally and brutally honest with yourself.” – via Divine Purpose Unleashed Keep reading →

The Web is grand.  With its fame for hosting informative, easy-to-skim textual snippets and collaborative written works, people are spending more and more time reading online.  Nevertheless, the Web cannot replace the authoritative transmissions from certain classic books that have delivered (or will deliver) profound ideas around the globe for generations.

The 30 books listed here are of unparalleled prose, packed with wisdom capable of igniting a new understanding of the world.  Everyone should read these books before their 30th birthday.

1. Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse – A powerful story about the importance of life experiences as they relate to approaching an understanding of reality and attaining enlightenment.
2. 1984 by George Orwell – 1984 still holds chief significance nearly 60 years after it was written in 1949.  It is widely acclaimed for its haunting vision of an all-knowing government which uses pervasive, 24/7 surveillance tactics to manipulate all citizens of the populace.
3. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee – The story surveys the controversial issues of race and economic class in the 1930’s Deep South via a court case of a black man charged with the rape and abuse of a young white girl.  It’s a moving tale that delivers a profound message about fighting for justice and against prejudice.
4. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess – A nightmarish vision of insane youth culture that depicts heart wrenching insight into the life of a disturbed adolescent.  This novel will blow you away… leaving you breathless, livid, thrilled, and concerned.
5. For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway – A short, powerful contemplation on death, ideology and the incredible brutality of war.
6. War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy – This masterpiece is so enormous even Tolstoy said it couldn’t be described as a standard novel.  The storyline takes place in Russian society during the Napoleonic Era, following the characters of Andrei, Pierre and Natasha… and the tragic and unanticipated way in which their lives interconnect.
7. The Rights of Man by Tom Paine – Written during the era of the French Revolution, this book was one of the first to introduce the concept of human rights from the standpoint of democracy.
8. The Social Contract by Jean-Jacques Rousseau – A famous quote from the book states that “Man is born free, and everywhere he is in chains.”  This accurately summarizes the book’s prime position on the importance of individual human rights within society.
9. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez – This novel does not have a plot in the conventional sense, but instead uses various narratives to portray a clear message about the general importance of remembering our cultural history.
10. The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin – Few books have had as significant an impact on the way society views the natural world and the genesis of humankind.
11. The Wisdom of the Desert by Thomas Merton – A collection of thoughts, meditations and reflections that give insight into what life is like to live simply and purely, dedicated to a greater power than ourselves.
12. The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell – Gladwell looks at how a small idea, or product concept, can spread like a virus and spark global sociological changes.  Specifically, he analyzes “the levels at which the momentum for change becomes unstoppable.”
13. The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Graham – Arguably one of the best children’s books ever written; this short novel will help you appreciate the simple pleasures in life.  It’s most notable for its playful mixture of mysticism, adventure, morality, and camaraderie.
14. The Art of War by Sun Tzu – One of the oldest books on military strategy in the world.  It’s easily the most successful written work on the mechanics of general strategy and business tactics.
15. The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien – One of the greatest fictional stories ever told, and by far one of the most popular and influential written works in 20th-century literature.  Once you pick up the first book, you’ll read them all.
16. David Copperfield by Charles Dickens – This is a tale that lingers on the topic of attaining and maintaining a disciplined heart as it relates to one’s emotional and moral life.  Dickens states that we must learn to go against “the first mistaken impulse of the undisciplined heart.”
17. Four Quartets by T.S. Eliot – Probably the wisest poetic prose of modern times.  It was written during World War II, and is still entirely relevant today… here’s an excerpt: “The dove descending breaks the air/With flame of incandescent terror/Of which the tongues declare/The only discharge from sin and error/The only hope, or the despair/Lies in the choice of pyre or pyre–/To be redeemed from fire by fire./Who then devised this torment?/Love/Love is the unfamiliar Name/Behind the hands that wave/The intolerable shirt of flame/Which human power cannot remove./We only live, only suspire/Consumed by either fire or fire.”
18. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller – This book coined the self-titled term “catch-22” that is widely used in modern-day dialogue.  As for the story, its message is clear: What’s commonly held to be good, may be bad… what is sensible, is nonsense.  Its one of the greatest literary works of the 20th century.  Read it.
19. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald – Set in the Jazz Age of the roaring 20’s, this book unravels a cautionary tale of the American dream.  Specifically, the reader learns that a few good friends are far more important that a zillion acquaintances, and the drive created from the desire to have something is more valuable than actually having it.
20. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger – This novel firmly stands as an icon for accurately representing the ups and downs of teen angst, defiance and rebellion.  If nothing else, it serves as a reminder of the unpredictable teenage mindset.
21. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky – A smooth-flowing, captivating novel of a young man living in poverty who criminally succumbs to the desire for money, and the hefty phychological impact this has on him and the people closest to him.
22. The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli – This book does a great job at describing situations of power and statesmanship.  From political and corporate power struggles to attaining advancement, influence and authority over others, Machiavelli’s observations apply.
23. Walden by Henry David Thoreau – Thoreau spent two years, two months and two days writing this book in a secluded cabin near the banks of Walden Pond in Concord, Massachusetts.  This is a story about being truly free from the pressures of society.  The book can speak for itself:  “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.”
24. The Republic by Plato – A gripping and enduring work of philosophy on how life should be lived, justice should be served, and leaders should lead.  It also gives the reader a fundamental understanding of western political theory.
25. Lolita – This is the kind of book that blows your mind wide open to conflicting feelings of life, love and corruption… and at times makes you deeply question your own perceptions of each.  The story is as devious as it is beautiful.
26. Getting Things Done by David Allen – The quintessential guide to organizing your life and getting things done.  Nuff said.
27. How To Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie – This is the granddaddy of all self-improvement books.  It is a comprehensive, easy to read guide for winning people over to your way of thinking in both business and personal relationships.
28. Lord of the Flies by William Golding – A powerful and alarming look at the possibilities for savagery in a lawless environment, where compassionate human reasoning is replaced by anarchistic, animal instinct.
29. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck – Steinbeck’s deeply touching tale about the survival of displaced families desperately searching for work in a nation stuck by depression will never cease to be relevant.
30. The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov – This anticommunist masterpiece is a multifaceted novel about the clash between good and evil.  It dives head first into the topics of greed, corruption and deception as they relate to human nature.
31. BONUS:  How To Cook Everything by Mark Bittman – 900 pages of simple instructions on how to cook everything you could ever dream of eating.  Pretty much the greatest cookbook ever written.  Get through a few recipes each week, and you’ll be a master chef by the time you’re 30.
32. BONUS:  Honeymoon with My Brother by Franz Wisner – Franz Wisner had it all… a great job and a beautiful fiancée.  Life was good.  But then his fiancée dumped him days before their wedding, and his boss basically fired him.  So he dragged his younger brother to Costa Rica for his already-scheduled honeymoon and they never turned back… around the world they went for two full years.  This is a fun, heartfelt adventure story about life, relationships, and self discovery.

During happy hour last Friday I spent some time listening to one of my colleagues confess her utter distaste for the Windows Vista Start menu.  “The system is organized all wrong.  The programs I need are buried and the ones I never use are right at my finger tips.  I waste so much time digging through menus,” she said.  “But you can easily rearrange that,” I replied.  She looked down with a despondent expression on her face.  “I know,” she said.  “Someone else told me that too, but I haven’t taken the time to figure it out.”

Suddenly it dawned on me, you have to spend a little time now to save a lot of time later.  You must give some to get some.  This idea ties into the notion of working smarter not harder.  Countless hours can be saved over the long-term by spending just few productive minutes now.

Here are a few ideas to help kick-start the practice of spending minutes to save hours:

1. Learn to Search Google Effectively – If Google is the prime portal to the information superhighway , Google’s advanced search operators are the most efficient vehicles on the road.  Once you learn them, you will find what you seek in half the time… every time.
2. Organize Your Space – How fast can you access something in an organized space?  Instantaneously!  Spend a little time organizing your space and you’ll forever spend less time searching and more time doing.
3. Research and Use the Right Tools – Possessing the right tools can easily shrink a mountainous task into a molehill.  The time you take to find the right tool will be repaid 1000 times over.
4. Uncover the Shortcuts – Keyboard shortcuts, driving a less congested route, hitting 2 birds with one stone, etc.  There are simple shortcuts for almost everything you do.  It’s worth your while to uncover them.  Once you do, you can shave a few minutes off your tasks on a daily basis.  Compound this over a year and you’ll saving hours of precious life.
5. Automate Tasks – Spend the time necessary to automate everything you can.  Create checklists to help you remember things.  Design templates to speed the process of recreation.  Utilize modern technologies to automate bill payments, data backups, to-do list reminders, etc. 
6. Listen Carefully the First Time – The better listener you are, the more you will learn.  The more you learn now, the fewer questions you will have later… and the less time you will spend searching for answers.
7. Take Useful Notes – …and store them in a trusted place so you always know where to look.  Not doing so will lead to extensive wastes of both time and opportunity.
8. Handle Simple Tasks Immediately – Constantly thinking about doing something simple but avoiding the actual act of doing it takes more time than actually doing it.  Follow the GTD 2-Minute Rule.  If it takes less than two minutes, do it now.
9. Learn to Type Efficiently – If you use a computer on a regular basis, learning to type efficiently will save you days (if not weeks) worth of time over the course of your lifetime.
10. Adhere to Basic Safety Precautions – If you don’t spend the time to put on a helmet, how much time will you waste in an injured state when you bang your head?  If you don’t spend the time to backup your data and the hard drive crashes, how much time will you waste trying to recover files?  You get the idea.
11. Reflect on Your Goals and Direction – Not doing so is committing to wasteful misdirection.  The process of self reflection helps maintain a conscious awareness of where you’ve been and where you intend to go, giving you the ability to realign your trajectory when necessary.
12. Teach Someone How to Help You – Teach your dependants how to fish so you no longer have to fish for them.
13. Presort Before Placing – Presort the lights and darks before tossing them in the hamper.  Presort those files before stacking them on the desk.  That which takes a couple seconds now will take several minutes later on.
14. Make Reservations – When a 1 minute phone call can save 1 hour of waiting.
15. Let Your Mouse Do The Walking – Shop online.  Rent movies online.  Pay bills online… etc.  It’s sooo much faster.

Photo by: Jek in the Box

Time is a vital constituent of life… so time saving activities are life saving.  The best way to save time is to simply do things right the first time.  Confucius once said, “Desire to have things done quickly prevents their being done properly.”  In other words, haste makes waste.  If you agree with these statements, you will find value in the remainder of this article. 

Here are 25 sharp cuts of time saving wisdom from around the blogosphere.  Each links back to a source article containing additional insight.  Enjoy.

Men talk of killing time, while time quietly kills them.
- Dion Boucicault

1. Consolidate all weekly errands into one trip. – “Try to consolidate all of your errands into one trip away from home, instead of driving back and forth several times from store to home.” – via Frugal Dad
2. Stop overanalyzing things. – “Stop analyzing and just do it. There comes a time when you have to stop evaluating something and just bite the bullet and do it, if it doesn’t work out do something else and start again.” – via Change Your Thoughts
3. Don’t waste the current moment.  Be here now. – “Without looking at a clock or a watch do you know what time it is right now, right this second?  Let me tell you.  It’s now.  It always was now and it always will be now.  It’s not tomorrow or next week or next month or even yesterday or last week or last month.” – via The Discomfort Zone
4. Start using RSS! – “RSS stands for “Really Simple Syndication.”  It’s a little piece of technology that allows you to receive up-to-date information from sites in one spot, where you can then read them on your own time.  Many times, a blog’s RSS is simply called a “feed.” – via Simple Mom
5. Focus your attention on one thing at a time. – “Cutting out multitasking (or “multi-slacking” as I call it) leaves you to focus more intently on one task and finish it to completion, rather than having many tasks started and nothing finished.” – via Zen Dad
6. Take a LITTLE time to reflect or you will misallocate ALL your time. – “It is important to occasionally take an inventory of your life.  Ask yourself, are you doing what it takes to get ahead in life?  Answer these questions honestly.  No one else has to know, but if you can’t be honest with yourself about areas for improvement, then you will remain stuck where you are at.” – via My Super-Charged Life
7. Have the kids help you get things done. – “At the minimum, have kids do a quick tidy up 15-30 minutes before bedtime.  This would include picking up toys , laying out tomorrow’s clothes, and collecting anything they’ll need by the door.  For more kiddie help write down a list of all the chores that need to get done, and then assign them on a weekly basis on a family planning chart or white board.” – via Dumb Little Man
8. Look for patterns in information. – “Information becomes easier to organize if you can identify broader patterns that are similar across different topics.” – via Stepcase Lifehack
9. Use time multipliers. – “Effective delegation of lower priority tasks is a time multiplier. Eliminating time wasting activities is a time multiplier. Screening phone calls can be a time multiplier. By practicing creative procrastination on anything that doesn’t propel you toward your goals, you can multiply the amount of time you have to achieve those goals.” – via The Wisdom Journal
10. Backup your data! – How much time would you lose if your hard drive crashed?  “Data loss statistics reveal that more than 22 percent of computer users say backing up information is on their to-do list, but they seldom do it and nine percent admitted they have never backed up their files.” – via My Dollar Plan
11. Just say ‘no’ sometimes! – Learn to say no.  If you say “yes” to every request, you will never have any free time.  Get super protective about your time, and say “no” to everything but the essential requests.” – via Zen Habits
12. Perform tasks with multiple positives. – “The key to finding multiple positives is finding areas where different positive actions intersect.  If I can find a way to get paid to eat delicious food I’ll be golden.” – via Pick The Brain
13. Realize that perfect is the enemy of good. – “Perfection is an illusion. We strive for perfection because we have an image in our minds of what we should be, but what we are not.  Realize that perfection and imperfection are a result of a conflict in your mind, they don’t exist in reality.  You have to make mistakes in order to grow, don’t let perfectionism paralyze you.  If you’re not failing, chances are you’re not trying hard enough.” – via Illuminated Mind
14. Get your priorities straight. – “Understand your priorities.  Don’t over complicate your life.  Especially when you don’t need to.  Don’t take on more than you can handle.  Always make sure that you have enough time to yourself.” – via Think Simple Now
15. Mistakes do not waste time if you learn from them. – “There may be moments or days of weakness, but you should always come back to learning from your mistakes.” – via Work Happy Now
16. Write stuff down or you will waste time trying to remember it. – “You’ll have your ideas safely saved away instead of having them lost somewhere in the depths of your mind.  If you don’t write things down you’ll forget many good and some great ideas.” – via The Positivity Blog
17. Relocate closer to your place of employment. – “In every major city in the world there are people traveling over an hour to reach their work destination from home.  Huge waste of time that could be used working or spent with family.  Huge waste of money on gas and cars.  Huge impact on environment by emitting green-house gases and other pollutants.” – via Alex Shalman
18. Batch process less important tasks. – “There are a lot of little tasks you need to do throughout the day.  Don’t let them interrupt the more important stuff.  To be more productive, batch them up and do them all at once, preferably towards the end of the day.  Batch like things together — do all your email once a day, at 4 p.m., instead of throughout the day.  Do all your paperwork at once.  Process your physical inbox to empty.  Don’t do them throughout the day.” – via LifeDev
19. Simplify your workspace. – “The third major benefit of the one pencil philosophy is that you’ll spend less time searching and more time doing.  The few seconds spent choosing between the umpteen writing instruments in my cup weren’t a big, but little things to add up.  I was losing seconds each time.  If having everything within reach was supposed to make work easier and more productive, I was finding the exact opposite to be true: I was wasting time hunting down disposable pens for no good reason.” – via On Simplicity
20. Be frugal with your time. – “I have had to get my finances in order by being frugal with my money and putting thought into what I spend that money on. I need to use those same principles in getting my day more organized in terms of what I spend my time doing and how long I allow myself to do each thing.” – via Remodeling This Life
21. Use automated tools. – “I’ve been evaluating various web tools for reminder systems.  One of the more creative ones I discovered was IWantSandy.com, where “Sandy” is your executive assistant.  Once you’ve signed up, you get a special e-mail which you use to communicate with Sandy.  You simply e-mail her messages with something like “Remember to read blogs in 5 minutes” and sure enough you’ll get an e-mail reminder in 5 minutes.” – via Mrs. Micah
22. Don’t mindlessly browse online [or watch TV] ad infinitum. – “Web browsing is one of the “black holes” in time spending.  Before you realize it, you may have spent hours browsing while generating very little value.” – via Life Optimizer
23. If you aren’t enjoying yourself, you ARE wasting your time. – “Do you ever stop and think… Why am I doing all this stuff?  Do you ever feel like your sole purpose in life is crossing things off lists and maintaining your calendar?  Maybe if you aren’t enjoying yourself, all your time is wasted.  All that time we spend bored, frightened, angry, in a hurry, or unhappy, isn’t that the real waste of time?” – via Steve Olson
24. Live by the 80/20 rule. – “Tim Ferris of ‘The 4-Hour Workweek’ credited the Pareto Principle for significantly improving his business and personal life. He looked at everything based on these two questions:  Which 20% of sources are causing 80% of my problems and unhappiness?  Which 20% of sources are resulting in 80% of my desired outcomes and happiness?” – via 7P Productions
25. Work smarter, not harder! – “With the right combination of skills, tactics and tools, you can work less and still impress.  It requires thinking outside of the box… and then implementing strategies that directly increase the visibility, impact and “wow-factor” of your labors.  Here’s how…” – via Marc and Angel Hack Life 

Photo by: Caucas

“What could you accomplish if you stopped watching TV?  What would you do with all the extra time?”  My wife asked me these questions two weeks ago.  After a short discussion, we decided to find out for ourselves.  We completely eliminated television from our lives last week.  It turned out to be an incredibly rewarding experience.  We now have a plan to drastically reduce our future viewing habits.

Here are 40 positive effects from our week without television.

1. Wrote 4 blog posts. – I usually only have time to write 2 articles a week.
2. Made it to the gym 5 times. – I went Monday through Friday for about 45 minutes, hitting every major muscle group.
3. Increased household communication. – TV kills the flow of household communication.  We both noticed that we had a lot more time to talk.
4. Read a novel cover to cover. – I read the short novel “Siddhartha” by Herman Hesse.  It’s a powerful story about the importance of life experiences as they relate to approaching an understanding of reality and attaining enlightenment.  I highly recommend it.
5. Caught up on current events twice as fast. – I typically waste a good hour everyday watching CNN.  This week I grabbed my news off the web.  It took me significantly less time to scan CNN.com.
6. Enhanced focus on everything. – TV is a huge distraction, even when you hear it from the other room.  It’s so much easier to concentrate when you don’t have a TV yapping at you.  I had no idea how much if affected my ability to concentrate until it was gone.
7. Learned a few new skills. – I took my own advice and learned how to change the oil in my truck… pretty darn easy.
8. Spent more time with friends and family. – We invited Angel’s sister and some friends over for a mid-week dinner party.
9. Cleaned the house. – Something Angel and I habitually evade by watching TV instead.
10. Learned new recipes and prepared 5 home cooked meals. – We cooked large portions so we could have leftovers for lunch every day.
11. Spent more time enjoying simple pleasures. – Deep conversations, long walks, telling jokes, etc.
12. Finally trimmed the hedges in our front yard. – I always put this off because I am tired after mowing the lawn.  This time, however, I did it on a totally separate evening.  It only took me 30 minutes.
13. Cleaned out the garage and sold 2 old dehumidifiers on eBay. – We setup a 5-day eBay auction and got $65 for each one of them!
14. Took 2 evening strolls around a local park. – We hadn’t been to this park in years… there’s only 1 reason why.
15. Saved money on our electric bill. – Our power company’s website allows you to check your daily usage.  Sure enough, less TV equals less electricity usage.
16. Burned more calories. – We were off the couch moving around.
17. Backed-up critical files on both of our laptops. – Transferred them all over to our Iomega 500 GB external drive.
18. I played my guitar. – …for the first time in a year.  I’m hooked again!
19. Found 2 news bands I like. – I used online music comparison services to find 2 awesome bands with similar music styles to my favorite band, Counting Crows.
20. Listened to more music. – In addition to finding new bands, I had more time to listen to my favorite music.
21. We stargazed in our backyard. – …for the first time since Angel and I first started dating.  It was blissful.
22. Caught up on times with an old friend. – I hadn’t spoken to my buddy Jon since my wedding a year and a half ago.  We had a pleasant 30 minute conversation on the phone.
23. Handled basic household maintenance. – Replaced the AC filter, applied pest control spay, replaced fire alarm batteries, etc.
24. Took Angel out on a romantic date. – I took her to one of our favorite Italian restaurants and then out to a local pub where we slow danced to a live music.
25. Finished up a little DIY project. – I’ve been stalling on staining, sanding and hanging a certain wooden shelf for nearly 6 months.
26. Updated the photo frames throughout the house. – Sometimes it’s nice to mix things up.  We spent some time sorting through our digital photos and replaced a few photos in various photo frames throughout the house.
27. Played racquetball. – Great 2-person sport!
28. Organized my monthly planner. – Entered all my known commitments into my planner and did a little time planning each night.
29. Reviewed our long-term goals. – Angel and I had an open discussion last Tuesday night about our goals for the next 3 – 5 years.
30. Setup recurring automatic payments for most of our bills. – Now our electricity, phone, insurance and cable bills are automatically withdrawn from our account each month.  This basically buys me 30 additional minutes of free time every month.
31. Updated my resume. – It only took me 45 minutes.
32. Quiet relaxation. – Instead of clicking on the TV, I spent some quiet time gathering my thoughts each day when I returned home from work.
33. Intelligent conversations at suppertime. – Quite frequently we eat supper in front of the TV.  Since there was no TV watching this week, Angel and I had some really interesting conversations instead.
34. Hit it off with our new neighbors.  – We spent more time outside and ended up running into our new neighbors.  They seem like pretty cool people.  There’s certainly the potential for friendship here.
35. Exchanged back massages. – It sure beats canned laughter.
36. There was more time for “quality time”. – You know… just me and her and some classical music in the background.
37. More real life experiences. – Because we were off of the couch, actually doing something.
38. Watched 1 quality movie. – Instead of watching whatever was on, we went to Blockbuster and selected 1 quality movie to rent.
39. Ironed my clothes each weeknight before bedtime. – …since I had more free time in the evenings.  It made my mornings less stressful.
40. We got more done. – Because we had so much more time to do it all.

I strongly recommend a week without television to everyone.  You’ll be amazed…

Photo by: Zyphichore

At the cusp of new beginnings many of us take time to reflect on our lives by looking back over the past and ahead into the future.  We ponder the successes, failures and standout events that are slowly scripting our life’s story.  This process of self reflection helps maintain a conscious awareness of where we’ve been and where we intend to go.  It is pertinent to the organization and preservation of our dreams, goals and desires. 

If you would like to maximize the benefits of self reflection, I have 20 questions for you.  These questions should be reviewed every Sunday morning or sometime during the weekend when you have some quiet time to think.  Remember, reflection is the key to progression.  

1. What did I learn last week? – If you have trouble answering this question, it’s time for a change.  It doesn’t matter how old you are, you should learn something new every week.
2. What was my greatest accomplishment over the past week? – Reflecting on your accomplishments is a healthy way to raise self confidence and contentment.  It’s also an effective way to track your progress.
3. Which moment from last week was the most memorable and why? – It may open up your mind to new passions and goals, or simple pastimes worth revisiting.
4. What’s the #1 thing I need to accomplish this week? – Everything else is secondary, and should be treated as such.  Nevertheless, this question will also shine light on other noteworthy tasks.
5. What can I do right now to make the week less stressful? – Set reminders in your calendar, get your laundry done, fill the car with gas… organize yourself.
6. What have I struggled with in the past that might also affect the upcoming week? – The idea here is to learn from your struggles and better equip yourself for future encounters.
7. What was last week’s biggest time sink? – Steer clear of this in the future.  Setup physical barriers against distractions if you have to.
8. Am I carrying any excess baggage into the week that can be dropped? – Physical clutter, mental clutter… eliminate the unnecessary so the necessary may shine bright.
9. What have I been avoiding that needs to get done? – Pencil in a time to get these things done.  For any 2-minute or less tasks, consider scheduling them first thing Monday morning.
10. What opportunities are still on the table? – If it’s still available and you want it, make a concrete plan to go after it this week.
11. Is there anyone I’ve been meaning to talk to? – Regular communication can solve problems before they fester.  Always keep an open line of communication to those around you.
12. Is there anyone that deserves a big ‘Thank You’? – Take time each week to thank the people who have helped you.  Your kind gesture will not go unnoticed.
13. How can I help someone else this coming week? – The easiest way to get what you want is to help others get what they want.  If you help them, they will remember you when you need help.
14. What are my top 3 goals for the next 3 years? – You’ll never make any progress in life if you don’t setup realistic goals for yourself.
15. Have any of my recent actions moved me closer to my goals? – If the answer is no, something needs to change.
16. What’s the next step for each goal? – Knowing the next step is the key to accomplishing the whole.
17. What am I looking forward to during the upcoming week? – The answer can act as a great source of motivation.  If nothing exists, schedule something to look forward to.
18. What are my fears? – Consciously address your fears each week and slowly work on resolving them.  It’s all about taking baby steps.
19. What am I most grateful for? – It’s a smart way to keep things in perspective, and something you should never lose sight of. 
20. If I knew I only had one week to live, who would I spend my time with? – Another helpful reminder… Life is short.  Spend more time with the people you care about.

Take 30 minutes every Sunday and give yourself the gift of self reflection.  It has worked wonders for me, and I am confident it will do the same for you.

Photo by: Cesar R.

“Cutting to the chase”…  Strictly selling hours of your life for dollars is the inverse of a practical and profitable business plan.  The word “selling” is very important here because that’s what happens in every business transaction.  A product is sold and purchased at an agreed upon price.  The corporate exchange of hours for dollars is no different; it just has a different twist.

Everyone is the CEO of Their Own Corporation

What most people don’t realize is that you never really work for anyone but yourself.  The only question is: What are you selling, and to whom?  Even when you have a full time, salaried, “Corporate America” position, you are still running your own business.  You are selling one unit of your existence (an hour of your life) at a set price (the associated fraction of your salary) to a customer (your employer). 

Good Business vs. Bad Business

Selling hours for dollars is a flawed business plan.  Let’s take a quick look at the components of a good business plan vs. that of the standard hours for dollars routine.

A good business plan:

• Multiple Products – Providing multiple options to your customers.
• Product Development Growth – Innovating and expanding the core capabilities of your product.
• Multiple Customers – Your total income revenue is acquired from several sources.  The loss of a single customer will not jeopardize your sustainability.
• Scalable – Your business can grow naturally without disproportionately increasing costs.  Also, it cannot be shutdown by the absence of a single worker.
• Inventory Expansion – Inventory can be expanded to meet increasing customer demands.

The business of strictly selling hours for dollars:

• One Product – A single hour of your life.
• Static Product Growth – You can change your level of productivity within an hour, but you can’t change the dynamics of the hour itself (which is the metric you are being paid by).
• One Customer – Your employer.  If you lose your one customer, you lose your business.
• Single Point of Failure – If something happens to you (injured, ill, etc.), your business suffers.
• Ever Declining Inventory – Life has a limited inventory of hours.  They cannot be reproduced.

The Silver Lining: You Must Find Your Passion

There is, however, a silver lining.  When you are passionate about your work, even in an “hours for dollars” environment, you open the floodgates to a world of accelerated personal growth and contentment.  Suddenly, you are working to learn, mindfully indulging in the task at hand.  This passion is the byproduct of interest.  You have to be genuinely interested in the subject matter of your profession.  In other words, dollars cannot be the primary source of motivation.  Once you find your passion, here are some ideas for maximizing your career growth potential:

• Learn as Much as You Can – This becomes a natural process when you are truly passionate about your work.  Obviously, the more you know the more valuable your time will be to others.
• Pursue Unpaid Growth Opportunities – Get out of the “hours for dollars” mindset.  See if you can barter your skill set with others in your industry.  You educate them as they educate you.  Knowledge is worth far more than money.
• Provide Value from Within a Black Box – This is how you increase your level of impressiveness.  Your efforts must make someone think, “Wow! How does he/she do that?”  They can easily see your inputs and your results, but aren’t 100% sure how you got from point A to point B.
• Innovate – If you think there might be a better way, try it.  The worst case scenario is you’ll have to revert back to the way things are now.
• Help Other People – The best way to get what you want is to help others get what they want.  This will also aid you in establishing strong professional relationships.
• Market Your Visibility – Don’t be bashful.  Take credit where credit is due.

Avoid the “Hours for Dollars” Mentality

Even when working in an “hours for dollars” environment, you can avoid the “hours for dollars” mentality.  Find something you’re passionate about and take it to the next level.  Become a guru.  This should help you to strategically position yourself as a “go to guy/gal”, someone your superiors (and industry insiders) see as a vital asset.

Doing so will ultimately free you from the bounds of an arbitrary hourly rate, because you (your business) will become entwined with the future objectives of your employer (and maybe even the industry as a whole).  This typically translates into big raises, bonuses, etc.  You’ll start getting paid based on the tangible value you provide.  Eventually, this position of power can be leveraged to start a company of your own.

Photo by: Antonio Martinez

Financial wisdom is not intrinsic to the mind, it’s learned.  Most people who are brilliant with their finances received at least some third-party guidance.  Maybe they absorbed the knowledge from a parent or grandparent.  Or perhaps they pursued it on their own by reading personal finance books, blogs and magazines.

Either way, if you’re not doing well financially, you’re probably ready for some advice that makes sense.  Here are 28 unique bits of financial brilliance from around the web, each linking back to a source article containing further instruction and insight.  Enjoy.

I have enough money to last me the rest of my life, unless I buy something.
- Jackie Mason

1. Stop buying “stuff” you do not need! – “Purchases of a few hundred dollars add up quickly to thousands of dollars.  On top of that, if you carry a balance on your credit card, you will pay on average 12% to 14% interest.  These rates can skyrocket quickly if you are late on even one payment.  In addition, you may become subject to late fees and penalties.  All this to get something that isn’t even used or enjoyed.  No thank you!” – via My Super-Charged Life
2. Start rolling an income snowball. – “Most people know how they’d make money in an ideal world. The problem is that most of these “ideal” schemes require lots of time, planning, risk taking, etc. On the other hand, most of us have skills that we could implement tomorrow to make money independent of an employer (this could be anything from doing landscape to hiring ourselves out as a consultant).  So the first step in creating an income snowball is to write a list of things you can do to make money in ascending order of difficulty and speed of implementation.” – via The Growing Life
3. A car lasts longer than 5 years.  Stop wasting your money! – “Cars are simply a method of basic transportation…that’s all they are. They are assembled hunks of metal sitting on four tires designed for the purpose of transporting us safely from point A to point B. I doubt Henry Ford ever envisioned the kind of luxuries we see in today’s automobile - voice activated radio controls, heated leather seats, heads up displays, and backup cameras installed in bumpers. If families invested the $400 a month wasted on new cars into a good, growth stock mutual fund for 30 years they could easily retire millionaires. Hope you like the car!” – via Frugal Dad
4. Live within your means. – “When you spend less than you make, you are buying flexibility and freedom. You gain the ability to change jobs or move to another area of the country. You are buying the ability to say yes to the things that matter because you save on the areas that aren’t as important to you.” – via Productivity501
5. Debt can make you money.  It’s called good debt. – “Would you take a million dollar loan at 1% interest? I would. I’d immediately put it in a few interest baring accounts that are FDIC insured (I say a few because FDIC insurance doesn’t cover a whole million). At today’s rates, which are historically pretty low, you can make a guaranteed 3% on that money. That means the debt naysayers would be missing out on 2% of a million dollars, $20,000 a year.” – via Lazy Man and Money
6. Money management can have many positive side effects. – “My husband and I both work out our finances together. I’m still the budget maker and bill payer in the family, but since we make the decisions on how the money is allotted, we have to make the time to communicate, come to an agreement, and project our monthly financial plans. We’re more unified in our marriage than we’ve ever been.” – via simple mom
7. If you don’t have an emergency fund, start one now! – “It’s better to be safe than sorry.   Nobody can anticipate when the roof will have to be repaired or an appliance will need to be replaced.  The idea is to try to find ways to live below your means so that you can save for retirement and other long-term goals but at the same time make it a priority to set money aside in the event an urgent need arises.” – via Everything Finance
8. Financial freedom only solves small problems. – “You know what really determines our happiness levels? Not money, but how optimistic we are and how often we have monogamous sex. Money cannot solve big problems, like cancer or world hunger or happiness. Money solves small problems, like, can you have a big wedding, can you go on a good trip. Small problems are what people talk about when they talk about financial freedom.” – via Brazen Careerist
9. Financial calculators are your friend.  Use them! – “In various posts I have referenced financial calculators that I like.  I’m going to put them all in one post so they are easy to find for reference.  As I find more, I’ll add them to this list.” – via My Dollar Plan
10. There is no specific template for business success. – “Living a life that’s not based on a template and being true to yourself may not mean paving a road in the sky like the Wright Brothers. However, if you tell everyone you want to start your own business, you will be doubted. They’ll tell you everything that’s wrong with your idea and why it won’t work: You have no experience. You’ve never run a business before, what do you know about sales? It takes money to make money. Almost no one starting their first business knows exactly what they are doing.” – via Illuminated Mind  Keep reading →

Sometimes we just need to kick back and enjoy ourselves.  What follows is a list of 101 simple pleasures and enjoyable activities to explore without breaking the bank.  This list only skims the surface… the possibilities are endless.

Enjoy yourself.
These are the good old days you’re going to miss in the years ahead.
- Author Unknown

1. Check out a book from the library and read the afternoon away.
2. Break out the old mix-tapes and mix-CDs of yesteryear… soak up the memories and sing your heart out.
3. Picnic in secluded areas.
4. Bake and eat homemade cookies.
5. Start a blog. 
6. Hike outdoors and explore Mother Nature.
7. Head downtown with a friend and two digital cameras.  Shoot as many funny and interesting photos as you can.  Then go home and sort through them all.
8. Find old stuff in your attic, put it up on eBay and watch the bids role in.
9. Play old-school board games like Monopoly and Scrabble.
10. Read interesting articles online… Reddit, StumbleUpon, Digg, Metafilter, etc.
11. Brew a fresh pot of coffee (or tea) and share it with someone over an interesting conversation.
12. Take a candlelight bubble bath.
13. Learn to play guitar (or any musical instrument) online.
14. Go swimming.
15. Crank up the tunes, break out the Wii and invite some friends over.
16. Fly a kite.
17. Research and discover new bands and musicians similar to the music you already like.
18. Stargaze.
19. Re-watch a great movie you haven’t seen in years.
20. Host a long night of $10 Texas Hold’em Poker with 9 of your friends.  Make sure you understand poker odds.
21. Learn to play other card games too… especially Spades!
22. Find and pick beautiful wild flowers.
23. Test-drive a really expensive car.
24. Drink cheap beer and share funny stories with your friends.
25. Fire up the backyard BBQ. Keep reading →