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Bears do it.

Koi fish do it.

So do frogs, squirrels, and several other animals. So why should you allow yourself to feel bad when you feel it’s effects? What I’m talking about here is hibernation.

Of course, humans don’t hibernate fully, but when the cold and short days of winter come around, many of us feel a physical change. We may want to sleep more. We may want to eat more. We may want to be less active and leave our home less frequently. I had a revelation about this recently. Since this is totally normal and most everyone experiences it, then there is absolutely no reason to feel bad about it!

The way to transform your winter blues is simple. Reconsider these winter changes from a new perspective. Here’s how:

Change the labels you put on the physical changes that you feel. Instead of calling these changes the “Winter Blues,” call them what they are: the “Hibernation Effect.” It’s not bad or good. It just is. Just like your hair color. It’s not bad or good. It just is. You decide what label to put on it. You decide how to perceive it.

If you want the “Hibernation Effect” to work for you all you have to do is decide to take a few simple steps, most of which are wrapping your mind around the situation differently.

Making the Hibernation Effect Work to Your Advantage

1. Stop Judging Yourself. If you’ve ever called yourself a loser for not wanting to get out of bed in the morning on a cold day, you can stop right now. Yes, that’s right. You have full permission to stop being critical of yourself. It’s not you! It’s the weather! And everyone else feels the same way you do! The same goes for all the other things you’re feeling. Instead begin to revel in the cozy rejuvenating aspects of the Hibernation Effect. You have the power to make these winter changes work to your advantage!

2. Get More Sleep. Yes, Yes, Yes! I know that many people in today’s frenzied world are looking for ways to do more on less sleep. “How to Sleep Less” type articles are very very popular. Here’s the deal, though. If you are getting less sleep than YOUR body needs, then you will not only be grumpy and tired everyday, you’re also likely to gain weight and die younger than if you got enough sleep. How much is enough? The most recent health guidelines say 7-9 hours per night. Listen to your body to find out what is right for you. If you’re tired every morning, go to sleep a little earlier.

3. Wake Up Slowly. We keep our home on the cooler side at night and I’m rarely excited about putting my feet down on the cold floor in the morning. The way to make it a little easier is to set your alarm so that you have about 15 minutes to wake up slowly. Establish a routine that works for you. Here are some ideas:

• Drink a warm cup of tea in bed. (Keep a hot pot in your room to make the tea in the morning.)
• Read the morning headlines on your cell phone.
• Sit up and write out your plan for the day or journal your waking thoughts.
• Sit up and daydream.
• Sit up and meditate for 10 minutes focusing on a positive mantra for the day.
• Do some deep breathing to bring some fresh air into your lungs and energize you.
• Stretch: up to the ceiling, child’s pose, sun salutations, twists, whatever feels good.

4. Enjoy Indoor Activities. If you don’t feel like leaving your house on a particular day, then don’t. And don’t feel guilty about it or else you may as well go out. Give yourself some “free days” to stay inside when it’s really cold. (I think taking the odd sick day to rejuvenate your mind and soul is a healthy choice probably resulting in less actual sick days.) Enjoy those things you don’t always get around to doing such as watching a movie, reading, practicing music, doing some art or a creative project. Give thanks to the Hibernation Effect as you enjoy a fully deserved lazy day.

5. Getting Out of the House. On the days that you’re feeling some cabin fever, by all means, get out of the house. Bundle up and go for a walk. You will feel so good! Here are some other ways to help get you out of the house:

• Take a class in something fun, interesting or that involves body movement, such as belly dancing!
• Join a gym with a friend. Make dates to meet at the gym and you’ll be more likely to stick with it. Focus on how you’ll feel afterwards for motivation.
• Go for a walk in the mall on cold days.
• Go see a movie, a show, an art gallery opening, etc.
• Reward yourself for getting out.

6. Eating Right. Enjoy a little comfort food each day whether it’s a couple cookies, a muffin, a slice of pizza, or whatever you are craving. Try to save it for the end of the day after eating lots of fruits and veggies during the day. The reason to save it for the end of the day is that if you eat highly nutritional food early on in the day you won’t have such a big craving for bad foods. At any given point during the day, try to make healthy choices. If you do this 80-90% of the day, you’ll be golden and won’t have to worry about gaining weight.

7. How to Handle a Grumpy Day. If you wake up on a particular day and you feel tired and aggravated right from the start and you can’t afford to take a day off, then do the next best thing. Take it slow. Plan your day with lots of transition time and buffer time. Be kind to yourself, to others and take lots of breaks during the day. Take 5-10 minutes to close your eyes, breathe deeply and remind yourself to take things slow today. The world can wait. In most cases the rest of the work can get done tomorrow when you have more energy. Avoid or decrease your intake of caffeine so you can reduce agitation and so you can get to sleep a little earlier tonight.

8. People Power. Be with people. Talk to people. Seek out your good fun friends. Make a call. Send an email. Set a laughing lunch date. (What is that? I don’t know, but it sounds good, right?) We lift each other up. It’s like magic. Go grab some for yourself. Be on a mission to lift someone else up too. If this is hard for you to do, set up electronic reminders via Gmail or Outlook or whatever calendar program you use to get in touch with friends on some periodic basis.

9. Moving & Grooving. You may be feeling more sluggish given all the layers of clothes we need to wear in the winter, but at the very least, ease yourself into some activities at least every other day. Be sure to give yourself credit for things like shoveling, stacking wood, and other winter work. The best way to enjoy exercise is to do it to some music or make it a social activity or both! If you don’t want to go outside to exercise, get yourself a rebounder which is a mini-trampoline. Minute for minute, it’s about the equivalent of jogging although it is easier on the knees. For those icy and snowy days it’s a great replacement for people who normally walk or jog. And they are cheap compared to most exercise equipment.

10. Awaken Your Joy. Check out this very cool course on developing true deep rooted happiness called Awakening Joy. Here is my review of the Awakening Joy course. I highly recommend it!

The Bottom Line

Remember that it is natural, normal, and ok to feel a little different in the winter. Don’t criticize yourself for this. Find ways to enjoy it and make it work for you.

Of course, if you feel like you have a little more than the winter Hibernation Effect going on, check with your doctor for other treatments that may be helpful for you whether it’s talk therapy, light therapy, or medication. This is also nothing to judge yourself about. It just is. Getting some help through it can lead you to finding the silver lining.

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How do keep your spirits up when winter gets you down? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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Easily Transform Your Winter Blues into Winter Joy!

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There’s something for everyone at the “I Want a VolksWagon Bus Contest.” The prizes are: $50 Amazon gift certificate, $25 iTunes gift certificate, and $80 worth of free online advertising that will be in effect for 3 years!

Read more to find out how you can easily enter this contest….

My blogging friend Steve Speirs is having a great contest that I couldn’t resist telling you about.

He’s a great guy (check out his other sites: Run Bulldog Run, 100 Push-Ups ), it’s a neat idea, and the big benefit to you: it’s an easy contest with great prizes!

There are 3 easy steps to enter the contest:

1. Subscribe to the “I Want a VolksWagon Bus” blog.

2. Either:

• Write a blog post linking to the contest
• or
• Vote for the contest on a social media site such as StumbleUpon, Digg or Reddit or other applicable newsgroup or forum.

3. Email Steve the answers to 5 easy questions relating to his site along with confirmation of how you implemented steps 1 and 2.

Pretty simple and easy. You have nothing to lose except a chance to win a $50 Amazon gift cert, a $25 iTunes gift cert, or the grand prize $80 in free online advertising,( which, by the way, is worth way more than $80 considering it will stay in place for at least 3 years!)

So don’t delay. Get signed up right now!

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What would you buy from Amazon with a $50 gift cert? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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Easy Contest, Great Prizes!

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I’ve been watching my 2 year old niece over the last few days while my sister is recovering from giving birth. My niece and my 4 year old son play very nicely together, but at the end of the day I still get a little tired. And on Friday I discovered a great break you can take that involves the kids. So even if you don’t have kids, bookmark this for the next time you have babysitting duty!

The Young Kiddie Yoga Massage Break

Here’s what you do:

1. Stretching. Invite the kids over to join you in some simple stretches on the floor. Show them different stretches and say “Can you do this too?” And then give lots of praise. Do this for 5 minutes or as long as they’ll play along. Try toe touches, child pose, downward dog, upward dog, cat/dog tilts, torso twisting, and arm movements.

2. Play. Next let the kids lead the way with fun stuff like crawling under you, rolling, light wrestling, and lots of laughing. 5-10 minutes.

3. Kiddie Crawling Massage. You lie down on your stomach and invite the kids to walk or crawl all over you. You can rest your eyes while they do this. They will most likely love this opportunity to do something so silly as walk on a grownup. And here’s the best part, you get a little eye rest and a free massage! Feel free to incorporate lots of laughing, sound effects, and even music too.

4. Disclaimer: I’ve only tried this will small kids under 5 years old. Not sure if it would work with older kids, but you can try. Let the kiddies know the ground rules like no pushing, jumping, or walking on your head! Be sure that there is nothing they can hurt themselves on if they fall while walking on your back. Crawling is probably the safest way to do it.

Enjoy!

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What’s your favorite break to take with the kids? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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A Fun Break Involving Small Children

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photo by DavidDennis

So many of us, myself included, get caught up in life. We move from one thing to another, doing all the things we think we “should” do or have to do. And we never stop to think that there might be another, more pleasurable way, to skin that cat in front of us.

What made me think of this is a belly dancing class I signed up for. It’s completely fun and silly and you know what? It tightens your abs! Who knew you didn’t have to do boring sit-ups in order to get your tummy in shape. That little revelation got me thinking of all the other areas of our life where we just keep doing things the same old way even if it is drudgery because we think life has to be hard. But here’s the news flash: Life Doesn’t Have to Be Miserable! You can increase your enjoyment by making some simple changes.

So here is a listing of some areas that might feel like obligatory hardships followed by some alternatives to consider to make your life more enjoyable.

I hope that these ideas prompt you to take a little more enjoyment from life starting today! I’m going to try too! I think I’ll be belly dancing, playing more guitar, and playing with my son some more! How about you?

Please Share!

How do you choose to make life more enjoyable? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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Life Doesn’t Have to Be Miserable!

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Do you ever struggle with finding enough energy to get through your day? Maybe you’re energy is being stolen from you and you don’t even realize it. Check out my latest article at Dumb Little Man and use it to do an energy inventory on yourself.

How to Avoid the 10 Worst Energy Zappers

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What steals your energy? How do you handle that? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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How to Avoid the 10 Worst Energy Zappers

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photo by Heather Garland

Want to show that special someone how much you love him or her? If so, then check out my latest article over at Dumb Little Man that lists 50 fun ideas.

As a side note, I wrote this article on a complete whim and it ended up becoming very popular on Digg. There were lots of comments! Some comments were very funny, some people loved the ideas, and some people took it way too seriously and became amazingly disturbed by the article, which I also thought was funny. The ideas in the article are for fun. Take what you like and leave the rest.

Check it out for yourself and be sure to let me know your comments below!

50 Very Simple Ways to Be Romantic

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What are your favorite and maybe unique ways to show your love? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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50 Very Simple Ways to Be Romantic

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We interrupt your regularly scheduled Life Learning Today programming to bring you a little winter reverie.

I went for a walk today. Cold winter air was biting my cheeks, watering my eyes, and taking my breath away. But I was loving it. You see, that cold crisp air was delivering a steady stream of fond cold weather memories. I’ll share a few fleeting glimpses with you today. I hope it spurs you daydream about your most cherished winter memories the next time you take a step out into the cold.

Cold Air Memories

…running like crazy to be the first one down the hill at the golf course on a snow day when I was 10. And then running back up that hill each time with no thought of it being difficult, but just a singular focus on the next thrill to come.

…a first kiss under the bleachers at a night football game. On that night the cold had no power to touch me.

…finishing a cross-country ski workout in college, the sun long since set, breathing heavily in the completely still and frozen air. The moon was rising over the tops of the trees bigger than I’ve ever seen it. What an incredible sense of peace.

…walking home late at night across campus from a party, the false warmth from alcohol blocking the cold air’s icy fingers from stinging me, reveling in the immense and daunting starry winter sky.

…ringing in the New Year on First Night in Boston with my brother, sisters, and brother-in-law being totally goofy, pretending that we were a dance troupe called “Liquid Emotion.” We gave many impromptu dance shows over the course of the night to keep warm. I don’t know if I’ve ever laughed so much in my life as that night.

There are so many more, but I’m hoping that I can turn the reins over to you now to share your favorite cold weather memories. OK, it’s your turn…click on comments to take the reins!

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It Feels Good

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Don’t just go for the same old, same old on Thanksgiving, vegging on the couch watching football and parades all day. Instead create some treasured memories with these easy and fun things to do with your family on this special day.

Check out these great ideas over at Dumb Little Man:

20 Fun Things You Can Do with Family on Thanksgiving

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What’s your favorite Thanksgiving tradition? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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20 Fun Things You Can Do with Family on Thanksgiving

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Do you keep going back to the same well for creative inspiration? Could you use a new muse to spark your creativity anew?

If so, then please check out this guest article at Dumb Little Man today:

50 Creativity Muses to Court for Fresh Ideas

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What’s your favorite muse for creative inspiration? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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50 Creativity Muses to Court for Fresh Ideas

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Tired of online dating?

There are many good ways to meet new people.

Check out my guest article at Dumb Little Man for 25 ways to find a date.

DumbLittleMan.com: 25 Ways to Find a Date Offline

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Got any good stories on finding a date? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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25 Ways to Find a Date Offline

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Part 1 of this series introduced you to the parts of your brain, how your brain computes, and also how your brain improves. Finally, 3 types of brain workouts you can use to improve your brain were presented. Today Part 2 brings you 3 more brain workouts for you to enjoy as you stretch your brain “muscles.”

Brain Workout #1 – Memory

Create your to-do list for today or tomorrow on a piece of paper or index card. Only write down 6 items on it. Only write down items that you will actually do (tasks, appointments, leisure events.) In other words don’t write down more than is actually possible. Next to each task write down the approximate time you expect to do each item. Read it over and memorize it. Put the paper in your pocket. Go about your day and complete your task list. Each time you complete something write down on a new piece of paper the time and task as you remember writing down on the original list. At the end of the day, compare the two lists to see how you did. You may even want to turn this into a daily habit for working your memory by increasing the complexity by one item each day!

Brain Workout #2 – Drawing + Goals

Think of a goal. It can be a big goal such as starting your own business or it can be a small goal like going to the grocery store this afternoon. Draw the major steps you will take to reach that goal. Use as few words as possible in the picture. If it is for an important goal such as starting a business or losing weight, you can hang the picture somewhere that you will see it every day! Here is a picture of my goal for the weekend: traveling to a friend’s wedding and our safe return.

Brain Workout #3 – Day Dreaming

Set aside at least 30 minutes. Find a comfortable, safe, and quiet place to sit. Close your eyes and imagine a goal that you want to achieve. Picture all the steps that you need to take to reach that goal. Imagine accomplishing all of those steps in a steady and successful progression over time. Imagine reaching your goal. How will that feel? What will it look like? Sound, feel, and taste? Use the full 30 minutes. Now when you “awake” from this day dream instead of merely remembering it like a dream, be the person who has reached that goal today. Do this every once in a while to build confidence, grow enthusiasm, and create energy for implementing your action plan steps day by day.

Please Share!

What are your favorite brain exercises? Tell us how these exercises went for you! All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, perhaps you’ll be kind enough to vote for this with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

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Building a Smarter, Stronger Brain – Part 2

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How to Find Time for Yourself

I have a new guest post over at Lifehack.org today.

If you find difficulty carving out time for yourself, this article will provide you with ideas and inspiration to get it done!

Please take a peak and let me know your thoughts!

Lifehack.org: How to Find Time for Yourself

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How do you find time for yourself? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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How to Find Time for Yourself

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If you’ve been feeling bad about yourself lately, you can turn that around pretty quickly. The key? Be improving. Be improving in some area of your life. When you are improving on something you are moving forward, you are getting better, and you will feel better.

Perhaps you’re experiencing a life crisis, early life, mid-life, or early life crisis. Or maybe you’re simply in a rut. Maybe you’ve noticed how aging is affecting your body. You can break past this! All you have to do is get busy improving on something you enjoy, and you will begin to feel better and better each day.

Just know that it is never too late to start, and today is the perfect day to start!

Things You Could Improve On

• Physical: walking, jogging, biking, tennis, soccer, sailing, windsurfing (if I can do it, you can!), kayaking, skiing, golfing, etc.
• Hobbies: fishing, whittling, model making, pool, quilting, crochet, knitting, arts, gardening, working on a vintage car.
• Parenting: take a class, take an online course, read a book, find a parenting blog.
• Skills: painting, sculpting, public speaking, writing, teaching,
• Learning: take a class on something that interests you such as a foreign language, history, creative writing, art, etc.
• Relationships: find a great book, such as in Follow Your Heart by Andrew Matthews, and apply it a little bit each day. Focus on yourself and what you can do to make a relationship more positive.

How to Be Improving

1. Pick an area that interests you.
2. Plan a start. (example: Plan to walk 20 minutes each day at 7am. Plan to go to bed by 10pm. Lay out shoes and workout clothes night before.)
3. Start slow.
4. Do it everyday.
5. Challenge yourself a little bit more every day. (example: Want to start jogging, but you can only jog for one minute. Do a combination of jog/walk. Each day try to jog a few minutes more within your 20-30 minute session.)
6. Track your progress on a simple calendar.
7. Find a success buddy who will support you and encourage you. Everyone knows someone really positive and enthusiastic. Call that person and ask them to cheer you on via email or via phone calls every once in a while.
8. Plan a special treat for after 30 days of continual improvement.
9. Celebrate, smile and enjoy how it feels to be improving!
10. Start Today!

Please Share!

What will you improve on this month? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, perhaps you’ll be kind enough to vote for this with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

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Want to Know a Feel Good Secret?

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It’s That Time of Year

I’m a little late in posting this article, but we’ve still got at least 2 more months of yard sale season left, if not more. This comprehensive guide will give sellers everything you need to know to put on a successful yard sale, and for buyers, everything you need to know to make the most of yard sale shopping.

Buyer Yard Sale Tips: Smart Bargain Shopping

1. Bring ample change. Bring lots of small bills and coins.
2. Go Early if you are looking for antiques or you just want to get the best stuff available.
3. Know what you are looking for. If you will be hitting several yard sales in one day, this can help ensure you get to all of them in a timely manner.
4. Parents of young children: yard sales are a GREAT place to find books, toys, and clothes for kids. Clothing is usually in good condition, and young children really don’t care if a toy is a little worn looking.
5. Call the day before to find out what they have if you are looking for something specific.
6. Plan your route. Map out all the yard sales you’ll attend and pick the most efficient route to save time and gas!
7. Always bargain. You’ve got nothing to lose. You can always pay the full price if they don’t want to come down in price, and who knows you may just get it for less!
8. If you really want something, don’t leave it over a small difference in price because it will probably sell.
9. Go Late. There won’t be as much selection, but you’ll be sure to get a real bargain or even some freebies!

Seller Yard Sale Tips: Hosting a Mega Successful Yard Sale

1. Spread the word. Tell friends, coworkers and family and invite them to spread the word. Email is good for this.
2. List your yard sale in as many places as possible: newspaper, craigslist, penny saver local papers, and posters at community centers such as the Post Office, supermarket, etc.
3. Get Permission. Check to see if you need a license from your town and if you live in a community or condo association, check to see if you need to follow any rules. Ask about where and how you are permitted to put up signs. Ask about rules about parking.
4. Make good posters. Make them ahead of time. Don’t just do a rush job. Make them big and clear. Use poster paint or large markers if you can. Some ideas for posting: nails that can be removed later, wire to hang over fences, wrapping or duct tape, or attach to wooden spike to place in the ground.
5. Set up your sale the night before. Have as much set up as possible so you’ll be ready to go in the morning. Don’t underestimate how long it takes to set up. Depending on how much stuff you have it can take a while.
6. Label prices the day before. Large items should have large labels. Really small things can be sold in groups (i.e. 4 for $1). Make it easy for you and for your buyers.
7. Consider offering an Early Bird time for dealers. Have your collectibles and antiques ready. Research ahead of time to ensure you get a good price for valuable things. If something is really valuable, you can always sell it later. Don’t give things away. Your big ticket items will provide the bulk of your earnings.
8. Have Furniture to sell. Furniture draws a crowd. If you don’t have a lot of furniture to sell, consider asking your friends if they have any that they would like to sell at your yard sale.
9. Merchandise your stuff. Organize items into categories. Display them like you would see in a store. Dust them off. Tidy up your yard. The nicer your stuff looks, the more likely you will be to sell it.
10. Join forces with friends or neighbors. A bigger yard sale will draw more people. If you don’t have a lot of stuff, consider a joint yard sale with others. If you do this make sure you work out ahead of time how you will handle money issues.
11. Parking. As noted above find out ahead of time from the police where people are allowed to park.Be sure to put up signage advising buyers where they can park.
12. Money & Security. It’s best if everyone involved with the money can have a fanny pack with a few different pockets. Don’t leave money out in a money box. Be aware of the security of your home and children. Yard sales are a nice homesy tradition, but don’t let that give you false comfort that everyone who visits is neighborly. Just use common sense. When making change for a large bill, have the buyer hold onto their large bill and then exchange the bill for the change at the same time so there can’t be any dispute over how much they gave you.
13. Weather. Listen to weather forecasts. Try to choose a weekend with good weather, but be prepared for what you will do if it rains. And with the sun don’t forget sunscreen, hats and sunglasses. It’s a long day!
14. Thoroughly search your basement, attack, garage and other storage areas for stuff to sell. You should prepare at least a week or two ahead of time, if not more. At my home, we have a place designated for yard sale stuff. We put things there all year and every year we have a big yard sale.
15. What to charge? Price clothing cheap, especially adult clothing. (i.e. $2 for grocery bag full of clothes) If something is in good shape, you can apply the general rule of 1/3 of the original cost. Another rule of thumb, is to ask yourself “How much would I pay for this?” It the item is valuable, then do some research online on Ebay and Craigslist.org to determine pricing. If it’s very unusual you might want to contact an auction house for advice.
16. In general regular weekends do better than holiday weekends, unless you live in a holiday area.
17. Keep pets in the house. Some people are afraid of dogs.
18. Keep a very close eye on small children. It can’t hurt to repeat this.
19. Have a measuring tape handy so people can measure furniture to see if it will fit in their house.
20. Have an extension cord ready to plug in items if buyers want to see if an item works.
21. Have plastic grocery bags and larger garbage bags for people who purchase many things.
22. Wheel and deal. The goal is to make money, but the other goal is to rid your home of stuff you don’t want or need anymore. Negotiate around the item’s value. Don’t let pride keep you from parting with something you really don’t want to hold onto.
23. Take signs down when it’s all over.
24. Donate clothing and low ticket items. Throw out broken stuff. Hold onto large ticket items that are worth over a certain dollar amount to sell at your next yard sale or to sell online separately via Ebay or Craigslist.
25. Collapse on a nice soft chair, count your money, rest, and enjoy fun memories with friends and family.

Please Share!

What are your best yard sale tips? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, perhaps you’ll be kind enough to vote for this with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

If you want to Support Life Learning Today, you can visit one of my sponsors, make a donation, or make a purchase at Amazon through one of my links. Thank you!

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Ultimate Yard Sale Guide for Buyers and Sellers!

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We All Need Creativity Time

We all need creativity time. Everyone needs time to think about their personal life vision and time to create the daily and weekly plans that will bring that vision into being. People in business need to: think of creative solutions to client problems, strategize creative ways to build business, and dream up the next generation of products and services. Parents need to create routines for the home and their children. And creative people need time for writing, painting, coding, designing and so on.

The Problem

Life is so full, that creativity time gets squeezed out. And our propensity for procrastination doesn’t help. We contribute to squeezing out our creativity time by fettering it away on lower priority tasks first. Why? Because in many ways they are easier to do. Creativity takes a lot of energy and mental gymnastics. So what’s the solution? It’s right there in front of you. And it’s been there all along. Here’s where to find the time and places to make it happen.

Where to Grab Creativity Time

1. Mindless Tasks.

All the things that you need to do on a daily and weekly basis that don’t require thinking are potential opportunities for creativity time. Here are some examples:

• Exercise time
• Laundry – folding, hanging up, etc.
• Driving
• Commuting
• Putting kids to sleep – (if you lay down with your kids while they go to sleep)
• Waiting in Line

Now it’s not ideal creativity time because you won’t always be able to record your thoughts and ideas right away. That’s ok. This will force you to keep it simple. Use that fact to focus on just one idea during any of these opportunities. All creativity requires a certain amount of brainstorming before you can start writing down your ideas or making sketches or laying out plans. In fact, sometimes the act of writing down ideas can halt a certain amount of creativity. So use these small times to brainstorm a bit. After the brainstorming is done, as soon as you are able, write down your ideas or use Jott to send a voice message to yourself which will be converted into text and emailed to you.

2. Air Travel

This is a great place to hunker down to pure creativity time.

1. If there is a TV , leave it off!
2. Leave your computer turned off, too.
3. Put on a set of headphones to give other passengers notice that you’re busy. (Noise canceling head phones are one of the best things you can buy for yourself if you travel frequently at all. Even if you don’t they are great whenever you need to drown out noise.)
4. Start by closing your eyes and brainstorming first.
5. Get out a pad of paper and a pen or pencil.
6. Create!
7. If you need to, make a pact with yourself to “treat” yourself to leisure items (music, reading, TV) once you’ve completed a preset amount of creative work.

3. Closed Spaces
This one is a little different than the first two in that you need to create the time for this one. It also may strike you as a little strange, but therein lies it’s power. The idea is to confine yourself to a small space where you won’t be interrupted by any distractions. Some ideas are:

• Sitting in your Car - Anywhere you can park your car is fine. In your garage, on the street, or in a parking lot. Does your spouse ever ask you to go shopping, but you don’t enjoy it? Well how about coming along for the ride and once at the store, you remain in the car for some distraction free creativity time! This is one of my favorites. My mom loves to shop. I don’t, or at least I can’t afford it. She goes shopping and I wait in the car and do some writing. Being in a different place helps me to think more creatively.
• A large closet with a light or (smallest room in your house) - obviously, make sure you can’t get locked in and that there is enough air to breathe. Small spaces are good because there is not enough room to have distractions.
• The bathroom - sitting on the “throne” with the lid closed, sitting in the tub with or without water in it.
• A dresssing room – I haven’t tried this one, but I bet it could work. If you have a friend who needs to go clothes shopping, but you don’t need anything, you could wait for him/her in the dressing room and do some creative work until they come in. If you feel strange going into one of the the dressing rooms you could just wait on the bench or the floor by the dressing room attendant. This one isn’t for everyone, but it could work for some.
• Nook in library or bookstore – ah, peace and quiet. I don’t know about you, but I get very inspired creatively when I’m in either of these places. Find a small quiet corner away from distractions and let the creativity flow.
• Tent. Do your kids have a tent? If not, consider setting one up. All you need is a blanket and some kind of furniture to place it over. Go inside. Where are you? Pretend you are somewhere other than your living room or back yard. Let this fictitious location inspire you to find new ways of thinking about your project.
• What are your ideas?

Please Share!

What are your most unusual and useful hacks for finding creativity time? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, perhaps you’ll be kind enough to vote for this with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

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Get the Creative Time You Need: 3 Simple Tips

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How Our Brains Compute

Our brains differ from computers in many ways, but the most elemental difference is in how we process information. Computers process information in a logical fashion, computing each step that it is programmed to do.

Our brains, on the other hand, process information via a neural network. This means that many different parts of the brain are working on the processing. The programming comes from the type of brain routines we run most often. Many different parts of your brain can participate. Each part is in communication with the others. Some step up more often, but this can be altered at any time.

How Brains Improve

The most powerful brains are the ones where many parts of the brain are activated and communicating on a regular basis. So how do you achieve this? Exercise! Brain exercise, that is. You need to give all the different parts a workout from time to time so that they will join in on the every day processing to make your brain smarter and stronger.

The more you exercise the different parts of the brain, the more you get all the jets of your brain firing and contributing, creating a symphony of power!

Parts of the Brain

There are two major parts to your brain, the right and left hemisphere. Some of us work with one side more than the other. And some of us only work in limited ways with that one side. Getting both sides flexing and comuunicating from the surface down to deeper levels will power up your brain.

Exercises to Grow Your Brain Smarter and Stronger

Try each of these exercises today to grow your brain. And click here to subscribe for future brain building exercise articles.

Right Brain Exercises

1. First throw out any notion of “I can’t draw.” No one has to see this. Just have fun!
2. Find something to trace such as your hand, a picture from a magazine, a coin, a bottle.
3. Trace the object.
4. Draw in additional detail. Start with obvious major lines, then finer detail, and then finally shading.
5. Do this once a week to work out your right brain and be amazed how you progress! That’s your brain improving!

1. Pick a simple subject like a coffee cup, a glass with water, a bottle, a pencil, whatever!
2. Start drawing lots of lines very quickly.
3. Keep your hand moving, going over and over lines darkning where you “get things right” and leaving behind lines that are off the mark.
4. Have a rhythm of continuous movement and drawing.
5. Start with major outlines.
6. Add large sections.
7. Add smaller sections.
8. Add smaller detail.
9. Keep your hand moving and sketching.
10. Add shading.
11. Then step back and enjoy your masterpiece.
12. If you have time, do a couple more. The more you do this the stronger you build your brain!

Left Brain Exercises

1. Do the crossword puzzle in your local newspaper.
2. Or do the USA Today online crossword puzzle.
3. Or check out BestCrosswords for multiple printable or online crossword puzzles.
4. This deductive thinking exercise uses your brain’s logic synapses heavily.Do this with some frequency and feel your brain grow.

1. Pick an even number of words, say 10-20 words. You can use a theme or not. Try for variety of type of word (noun, verbs, adjectives, etc) as well as length of word.
2. Make up a clue for each word. Clues can be in the form of missing word from a famous quote, “sounds like” word, place where you would find or do this word, or whatever system you want to use. Refer to other crossword puzzles for how they write their clues.
3. Download this crossword template from Microsoft for Word.
4. Or Use graph paper.
5. Take the longest word and put it in the middle.
6. Start adding in words across and down.
7. When done, lay graph paper on top to make the blank puzzle by numbering the squares and blacking out the unused squares.
8. Make copies and give to your friends.

Combo Right/Left Brain Exercises

1. Pick something to read which has the potential to be dramatic such as a poem, story, or inspirational speech.
2. Read it out loud with dramatic flair. Really get into it.
3. This will activate your right brain with reading and left brain interpreting the feelings of the words.
4. Bonus: do this for a child and you’ll be growing two brains! Yours and the child’s! Have fun!
5. Bonus Bonus: create a mini play  with a child to act out (use one of the child’s favorite stories). Do it a few times!

1. Find a song you like.
2. Search for the lyrics on Google: “Song name lyrics”
3. Sing it with drama and flair.
4. Singing with the radio is ok too.
5. Bonus: engage a child to play along! Have fun growing the connections between both sides of your brain!

Subscribe to get the next installment of this series!

Please Share!

What are your favorite left/right brain exercises? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, perhaps you’ll be kind enough to vote for this with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

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Technorati Tags: Brain, brain exercises, exercise, Health, Personal Development, Smarter, stronger

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Building a Smarter, Stronger Brain – Part 1

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Hit the Shuffle Button

I have a new post over at Lifehack.org today.

Do you find yourself living the same routines over and over? Need some variety? Well head on over to this article for some different ideas on how to expand your mind, opportunities, and horizons starting today.

Lifehack.org: Hit the Shuffle Button

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Hope to see you there with some comments! And if you like it please take a moment to give a thumbs up on Stumble Upon or your other favorite social networking site. Thanks!

If you want to Support Life Learning Today, you can visit one of my sponsors, make a donation, or make a purchase at Amazon through one of my links. Thank you!

Important Programming Note: “How to Be a Great Salesperson” will post on Thursday! Stay Tuned by subscribing!

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Hit the Shuffle Button

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One of the best ways to improve and deepen a relationship is mutual understanding. What’s the best way to achieve this? Asking questions, really listening, and then sharing your stories too. I originally developed this idea as a way to grow your relationship with your child, and then it occurred to me that this communication game could benefit all relationships. How well do you really know your child, spouse, mate, or friend? Sometimes we take our closest relationships for granted. This game provides the spark to create a richer relationship!

What follows is a game you can “play” with another person to learn more about each other, have a few laughs and deepen your bonds. It can be “played” one-on-one or in a group. Some examples of where this could be beneficial:

• Parents & Children
• Parent & Child
• Newly Dating Couples
• Married Couples
• 2 Friends or Group of Friends
• Grandparents & Grandchildren
• Parents and their Adult Children

The Game

Take turns asking and answering the questions below. There are no exact rules. The idea is to have fun mostly with just the conversation. You can modify questions for younger children. You can introduce drawing or painting, singing or charades. You could throw a bean bag back and forth each time you do a new question? You can do this standing, sitting, or walking. It can be played inside, outside or over the phone. It’s not a competitive game. It’s a game of fun, warmth, and relationship building.

Print out the questions below. You can either take turns asking questions you like from the list or you can randomly choose numbers, whatever works for you. If other questions follow naturally, all the better. Let the conversation flow! Let us know how you modify the game for more fun!

The Questions (for any age – feel free to modify)

1. What is your favorite color?
2. Who do you admire most?
3. Who is your best friend?
4. What is your funniest habit?
5. What do you dislike/hate?
6. What was your favorite dream ever?
7. What was your scariest dream ever?
8. What famous person would you like to have dinner with? What would you talk about?
9. Have you ever dreamed you could fly?
10. What is your favorite smell?
11. What is your favorite song?
12. What do you like to do when you’re bored?
13. What’s your favorite adventure you’ve been on?
14. What are you most scared of?
15. If you could live anywhere and bring anyone you want, where would you live?
16. What place are you keen to visit? Far away and nearby.
17. What are you most proud of?
18. Did/Do you have an imaginary friend? Tell us more.
19. What is your favorite holiday? Why?
20. What is your favorite holiday memory?
21. What was the best and worst day of your life?
22. What is your favorite food? Least favorite?
23. What is your favorite word? Least favorite?
24. How do you express your creativity?
25. Where do you believe we come from before birth?
26. Where do you believe we go after death?
27. What is something that always makes you laugh?
28. What person always makes you laugh?
29. If you could change one thing in the world, what would it be?
30. What would be the consequences if you got your wish?
31. Do you collect or live simply? Explain.
32. What drives you crazy?
33. What makes you smile?
34. What do you know about your heritage? Grandparents and back.
35. Do you have a favorite story from your family history?
36. What’s the most shocking thing you ever did?
37. What would you like to have a “do-over” on?
38. What is your favorite story to tell?
39. What’s your favorite animal? Why?
40. What is your favorite season? Why?
41. What is your favorite hobby?
42. What is your favorite thing to do on the weekends?
43. What one thing do you want to change in yourself?
44. When did you feel most alone?
45. When did you feel most happy?
46. What do you do to cheer yourself up?
47. With whom would you like to trade places for a day?
48. What makes you mad?
49. Do you want to have children?
50. What’s your favorite thing you own?
51. What do you wish you could do?
52. What are the colors of the numbers 1-10? Letters?
53. What are you afraid of?
54. What would your dream house be like?
55. Do you believe in angels?
56. Are you ticklish?
57. What is your favorite place?
58. What’s your favorite place in nature?
59. Which do you like better: hot or cold?
60. What was your favorite Halloween costume?
61. What was your favorite thing to do as a kid?
62. What is your favorite memory from high school? college? grade school?
63. What makes you sad?
64. What does your name mean? Why did your parents choose it?
65. What are your favorite clothes?
66. Who is your favorite person to talk to? Why?
67. What’s your favorite hiding place?
68. What do you want to be when you grow up?
69. What do you want people to remember you for?
70. What is your most annoying habit (to others)?
71. In your most difficult relationship, what makes it so?
72. How do you show compassion?
73. What are you always curious to learn more about?
74. Whom do you miss?
75. What do you like to teach?
76. What is your favorite gadget?
77. What do you like to write about?
78. What is your favorite “bad” thing to do?
79. What is your favorite movie?
80. Favorite book?
81. Favorite band? Song?
82. Do you like to go camping?
83. What fascinates you?
84. What makes you special?

Questions Especially (but not exclusively) for Young Children

1. Do you remember being born?
2. What’s your favorite story about when you were a baby?
3. What’s your favorite game?
4. Who is your favorite hero?
5. Who is the worst villain?
6. What can you do better than mommy, daddy or sibling?
7. What are you really good at?
8. If you could have any pet, which one would you choose?
9. If you have a child someday, what would you like to give to him/her?
10. What’s your favorite thing to cook with mommy/daddy?
11. What color are your eyes?
12. What color are you inside?
13. What word do you think is really funny?
14. What do you like to draw/paint?
15. What songs do you like to sing?
16. What is your favorite book/story?
17. Can you play music? How?
18. Where were you before you were born?
19. Why is the sky blue?
20. Why is there day and night?
21. What is mommy/daddy really good at?
22. Whom do you like to cuddle and kiss?
23. Where do fruits and vegetables come from? How?
24. If you were King/Queen of the house, what would you change? Rules, things, etc?
25. What wish would you ask of the wishing star?
26. How do you make people smile?
27. How do you make people laugh?
28. Is there anything special you can do with your body? (jumping, dancing, funny faces, etc)
29. What do you hope never happens?
30. What do you think is scary?
31. What do you notice when you go outside your house?
32. Which do you like better, sand or snow? Why?
33. What’s the scariest animal?
34. If you could be any animal, which would you choose? Why? What would you do?
35. Do you have any secrets to tell?
36. What is something you do every day?
37. Can you name all the people in your family? Extended family too.
38. What toy would you like to make?
39. What color is a smile?
40. What’s your favorite bug?
41. How do you know when you are tired?
42. How do you know when you are hungry?
43. What games do like to play when you’re alone?
44. Can you tell if an apple is good by how it looks on the outside?
45. What’s the funniest looking fruit or vegetable?
46. What are the morning sounds you hear?
47. What are the night sounds you hear?
48. What is your favorite park?
49. What do you like to do at the park?
50. What’s your favorite thing to do at the beach?
51. Can you see underwater?
52. How does a fish breathe?
53. Can you make a rhyme? Can you add a tune to it?
54. Which do you like better: the woods, the beach, mountains, field, etc?
55. What’s your favorite thing to do in summer? Winter?
56. What was life like in the old days?
57. Tell me about the dinosaurs.
58. Tell me about your brothers/sisters/cousins/friends?
59. What’s your favorite baby animal?
60. Do you ever fight? With whom? Why? How?
61. How do you show love?
62. How do you help someone who is sad/hurt/sick?
63. What ways do you help out with chores?
64. What does mommy/daddy/grandpa/grandma always tell you not to do?
65. Did you ever have a hard day? Why?
66. What is the most fun?
67. What is sooo funny?
68. What is your favorite thing to feel?
69. What rules do you get to make?
70. What is a star?
71. What is the moon? Why is it there?
72. What mysteries do you want to know?
73. What mysteries have you solved?
74. Did you ever track an animals footprints? Tell me more.
75. What’s your favorite game?
76. What do you always do before bed?
77. Describe yourself. Looks, type of person.

Further Resources:

Are you looking to change your life for the better? Your relationships, finances, career, health – could they be improved? Check out this highly recommended program to help you finally realize your dreams:

• Quantum Cookbook - Having a plan and taking actions are the way to reach our goals. However that’s not the whole story. When you add the power of intention to your goals, that’s when you’ll see your results skyrocket. This course trains you to focus your mind on your goals on a daily basis. This ensures that you follow through on all those goals that have been rolling around in your mind for years. And it has a 200% money back guarantee. (Basically if you don’t find value in the course for any reason they will refund you double what you paid! You have nothing to lose!)

Please Share!

What are your favorite questions? What’s your favorite modification for this game? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

Technorati Tags: children, Creativity, Family, Friends, Fun, Kids, Love, Parenting, Relationships, Game

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A Game That Will Improve Any Relationship

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If you haven’t already heard of them, PocketMods are an origami-like 8 page mini booklet that is constructed by folding 1 sheet of paper. PocketMod was developed to be a customizable calendar, todo list, and more that you can carry in your purse or pocket. Click here to see their cool free online customization tool. Now they also offer the free PocketMod Converter which will convert any 8 page PDF document into a one page PocketMod format ready for printing and folding.

This guide will show you how to create your own mini booklet with your own content whether that be text, photos or graphics.

Offer Your Content in PocketMod Format

Click over to some of the PocketMods I’ve created to get an example how you could use this booklet format.

• PocketMod: Daily Guide to Getting Things Done
• Groovy New Pocket Mods: GTD and More!

Some ideas that would make great PocketMods:

• Blog posts
• How to manuals
• Guides
• Photos
• Motivational information
• Reference information: i.e. calories, daily checklists, etc.

How to Convert Word Document to PocketMod Format

1. Create your Word Document. Needs to be 8 pages, of which any number can be blank.
2. Text Size: Arial size 24 or larger works best.
3. Insert pictures if desired.
4. Convert Word document to PDF. I use this free online PDF converter service which emails the PDF to you.
5. Save PDF file to your computer.
6. Download PocketMod Converter.
7. Open PocketMod Converter.
8. Click “Open PDF” and open your PDF file you just saved.
9. Choose “Output Page Size” from the dropdown menu on the converter. The default is letter size.
10. Click “Save as PocketMod.”
11. Name and save the file.

Printing and Sharing

Now you’re ready to:

12. Print and Fold. Click on “Learn to Fold the PocketMod” link on the converter for instructions.
13. Sharing: Upload to a file sharing host. I use MediaFire which is free and allows me to track the number of downloads on each file they host for me.
14. Post link to your website, blog or share via email with friends.

Enjoy!

Click Here to Download These Instructions in PocketMod Format!

Please Share!

Please share links to the PocketMods you create here in the comments! All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, please SHARE THIS below with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

If you want to Support Life Learning Today, you can visit one of my sponsors, make a donation, or make a purchase at Amazon through one of my links. Thank you!

Technorati Tags: Applications, Blogging, Cool, Cool, Cool, Fun, Fun, Fun, How To, Pocket Mod, PocketMod, Publishing, HowTo, Writing

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How To: Your Content in PocketMod Format!

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The iPhone launched just over a week ago, and the dust is starting to settle. This article will present a look behind the hype curtain to help you make a decision about whether or not to buy an iPhone. This guide will give you the features that the iPhone has and the ones it is missing.

iPhone: What It’s Got and What It’s Not!
Below are the main menu items from the iPhone detailing what is useful and what is missing.

Phone 
GOT:

• AT&T is the carrier. You can check AT&T’s coverage level is in your area. In my area it is good and better than Verizon which I was pleasantly surprised about.
• Sound clarity is excellent.
• The headphones that come with the phone are excellent too. They have a little toggle switch on the mic that allows you to switch between calls and music.
• The phone has bluetooth for a use with a wireless headset which I haven’t tried.
• Visual Voicemail allow you to see a list of all your recent voicemails. You can go to anyone by just tapping on it. It works very nicely.
• Add Call feature is handy because it is so easy to use.
• Cost is not bad. Basic package is $59.99 for 450 monthly rollover minutes, 5000 weekend/night minutes, unlimited web data, and 200 text messages.

NOT:

• Not available with other wireless phone carriers, and this will hold true for at least the next 2 years.
• $36 non-refundable activation fee.
• You can return your iPhone to the original point of purchase within 14 days for a full refund, but there is a 10% restocking fee if the box has been opened.
• Not Cheap: $499 for 4GB version and $599 for 8GB version.

Mail
GOT:

• Automatically add Yahoo, Gmail, .mac, AOL mail. You can add other email too such as Earthlink, that falls into either IMAP, POP, or Exhange categories.
• Push email. Email is delivered to your iPhone at your chosen frequency.
• Email viewing: very easy to read.

NOT:

• Can only delete one email at a time. If you get a lot of junk email this is a pain.
• No corporate email.

Web
GOT:

• WiFi and EDGE network. WiFi is fast. You can view almost any web page.
• Safari browser. You can view full web pages which you can zoom in on by “pinching” the screen with two fingers and move around with one finger. Works very well.
• Bookmarks sync with those on your computer (for windows, only I.E., not Firefox)

NOT:

• EDGE is not fast, however in my opinion it’s not as bad as has been reported. I used web via wireless connection before, and it seems about the same speed as Verizon.
• Some websites can’t be viewed on Safari, either they don’t format well or can’t view them at all. This doesn’t happen that often.

Music
GOT:

• All the iPod functionality including music videos.
• New Album browsing functionality. While listening to a playlist you can turn the iPhone horizontally and see the album. Tap on the album and you can see all the other songs from that album that you have whether they are in the current playlist or not. From there you can jump to any song on that album.

NOT:

• There is no headphone that allows you to control your music from the headset say when you’re exercising.
• If you have a lot of music you will need to pick and choose playlists as the memory fills up fast!

SMS
GOT:

• Text messages.
• Display is easy to read and use

NOT:

• Can’t include photos. Have to send via email. This stinks if you like to share photos with friends this way.

Calendar
GOT:

• Syncs Calendar and Contacts with Outlook in Windows and iCal for Macs.
• Easy to read display especially compared with Windows mobile.

NOT:

• Can’t snooze your calendar alarms. Need to go to the event to change the time or reminder.
• Difficulty syncing multiple calendars from iCal with iPhone.
• Does not sync Notes or To-Do Tasks. Workaround: sync your Notes and Tasks with Plaxo for free and then you will have access to both via the web. You can also sync with Yahoo, Gmail, AOL, .mac, MSN, Hotmail and more.
• Tasks Workaround: Try Ta-Da Lists, and online to-do list application.

Camera & Photos
GOT:

• 2 megapixel camera that works nicely.
• Enlarging feature by “un-pinching” the image on the touch screen.
• Move picture around with finger touch.
• Scroll through album pictures with finger touch.
• Can sync photos from your computer to the iPhone.
• Can upload photos from iPhone to computer.

NOT:

• No Video capture! Bummer. Not sure if this functionality can be added with software upgrade or you’ll have to wait for next generation of iPhone.
• Sending pictures via email can be a problem. If you have two email accounts set up and the first one is turned off, it won’t automatically use the second email account.
• Emailing pictures: problem choosing from your contacts. It only shows the contact’s name. It doesn’t let you see the email addresses if the contact only has one email address.
• Can only delete one photo at a time.

You Tube
GOT:

• Built in You Tube application. Works great.

NOT:

• Can’t upload videos, but the camera doesn’t take videos so this is not really a problem.

Stocks
GOT:

• Unlimited(?) stock and mutual fund watch list.
• Graph. Choose between 1d, 1w, 1m, 3m, 6m, 1y, 2y views.

NOT:

• No complaints, except that there are many things I’d rather have than this. (memo notes that sync, voice dial, voice memo, video camera

Maps
GOT:

• Can view by Map, Satellite, or for directions, by the list of driving steps.
• Directions will take you step by step along your route with pictures and text. Very useful.
• Visual Traffic reporting via color coding on the map. Nice feature.

NOT:

• No GPS functionality.

Weather
GOT:

• Can have multiple cities. Displays today and next 5 days of weather: high, low and picture of sun, clouds, etc. Can view in Celsius or Fahrenheit.
• Quick link to Yahoo! for more information on that location including weather, events, city guide, and more.

NOT:

• No real complaints.

Clock
GOT:

• As many World Clocks as you want. Once set up, you can see them all in a list.
• Alarm that you can choose the alarm sound from your ringtone list. Snooze feature available.
• Stopwatch with multiple lap times.
• Countdown Timer. Easy to set the time with scroll wheel for setting hours, minutes, seconds.

NOT:

• No complaints.

Calculator
GOT:

• Basic

NOT:

• Can’t add other higher functionality calculators. Workaround:
• Calculator bugs. Not a big deal, but something to be aware of.

Notes
GOT:

• Cute notes. Yellow legal pad look. Comic Sans type font.
• To share you must email it. No syncing. 

NOT:

• No Syncing with anything! Workaround: Use Plaxo to sync your notes (and tasks, contacts, and/or calendars) from Outlook, Yahoo and more to Plaxo’s online service. This is free and you’ll be able to see your memo notes. You won’t be able to sync them into iPhone notes.
• No Clipboard, No Copy & Paste.

Keyboard:
GOT:

• Virtual keyboard that shows up when input fields are tapped on. I think it’s fine, but this is a personal preference thing that you should try out at an Apple store or AT&T store if you think it will be a problem for you.

NOT:

• No actual keys on the keyboard.
• No Stylus, but you don’t really need one.
• No graffiti capabilities. Not really a problem, but it could be a nice option for those who don’t like the virtual keyboard.

Other:
GOT:

• 4GB or 8GB of memory.
• Wallpaper: 19 built in choices, but you can use any of your own photos.
• Airplane safe mode turns off unapproved features for use when in the air.

NOT:

• There is no general search feature for finding information on your whole iPhone database.
• No memory expansion. 8GB is a lot for a phone, but not for a phone with music, photos, videos, email and more.
• No Games. Workaround: several web based games that cater to iPhone: macmost, iPhoneAppsManager, iWhack, iGiki.

• No Voice Dialing.
• No Voice Memos.
• No Switching of SIM cards.
• No Clipboard, No Copy & Paste.
• No GPS.
• Battery Replacement will cost $86 plus 3 day turnaround. Will this be improved? I think so.
• iTunes can eat some or all of your music when you upgrade to iTunes 7. Solution: if you still have your songs on your iPod, you can use iPod Access for recovering songs from your iPod back into iTunes. I used it and it works. Free trial. Purchase is $19.99.
• No application add-ons. Workaround: keep an eye on iPhoneAppsManager for links to online iphone applications. You can bookmark this on your iPhone.
• No sketching tool.
• No internal back-up in the case that you are traveling without your computer.

Hopeful

Hopefully many of the features, accessories and capabilities it is missing will be added soon in the next firmware upgrade. There are some workarounds for games and applications via web based solutions, but what if coverage is low or out? It would be nice to have these right on your phone. Can video, voice memos, and voice dialing be added with a software upgrade? If you know, please share in  the comments below!

References and Other Information to Check Out
Engadget Article on iSwitchers and iReturners. There are multiple comments on this post regarding readers’ opinions on the iPhone.
iPhone Hacks. Blog on latest on iPhone.

Cool Web Sites for Your iPhone

Plaxo for syncing your notes and tasks to view online. (Can also sync calendar and contacts from multiple sources.)
Google Calendar – if you use this calendar instead of Outlook reminders will come to you via SMS text message.
Google Notebook – Can view, but can’t update.
Google Docs – Can view, but can’t update.
Zoho Suite mini – Can view, but can’t update.
Ta-Da Lists – free online To-Do list application.

Please Share!

What features do you like about the iPhone? Which features do you wish it had? What is your decision on the iPhone and how do you feel about it? Any regrets? All comments big and small are very welcomed!

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The Ultimate iPhone Decision Tool

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Feeling Overwhelmed?

Do you ever find yourself in this scenario: you have many things to get done around the house, the kids are restless, and you feel overwhelmed? You feel like you have to be in two places at once. You need to get the kids occupied and do all the household chores. Then there’s the guilt of letting the TV be the babysitter. And to top it off, at the end of the day, when it’s bedtime for the kids you feel bad because you didn’t really spend any time with them. Well there’s a solution.

Involve the Kids!

If you involve your children in some household chores you and your children will reap many benefits:

• spending time together
• learning life skills
• learning that work can be fun
• training to be lifelong helpers around the house
• work builds character, self-confidence, and self-esteem
• laugh and talk time
• housework completed
• everyone will feel good at the end of the day

Ideas for Involving the Kids

1) Start Young. It’s never too early to start. And it’s never too late either. Just start small. Don’t expect perfection. Don’t expect speed. Expect to take your time and enjoy the time together. Add some music. Foster an fun environment. Let the goal be small successes and then build on them.

2) Cooking. Kids really love to help with cooking. It’s good to do a lot of talking and explaining. Even young babies and toddlers understand a lot more than we give them credit for. Ask them questions to let them show you how much they are learning. And give lots of praise. You’re looking for effort not perfection. Bonus: Kids who cook, will eat more healthy and varied foods!

3) Cleaning, Tidying, and Gardening.

4) Laundry

5) Groceries and Errands

Compensation?
Should you pay children for helping? That’s up to you and you may choose different methods for different circumstances. This is what I do and it works for me. I try to develop a desire in my child to be “mommy’s helper” by encouraging and praising for this. I reinforce this a lot. The reward is the praise.

For other tasks that are harder to get my child to do, I put together a reward chart where he’ll get stars or stickers for completing the task. He gets very excited about that. Once he has gotten a certain amount of stars then he’ll get a reward. I leave the “reward” open and vague. Rewards can be going to the park, going to the library, going to a favorite place, maybe a special treat from the grocery store or whatever fits in easily with what we’re doing. The main idea is that it doesn’t have to be a toy, cost money, or be big.

End of the Day

Rest together and talk about the all the great things you accomplished together. Tell them how proud you are, how grateful you are, and ask them how they feel? Are they proud of themselves? Did they have fun? Are they glad they helped mommy and/or daddy who works so hard for them all week? How about you? Be proud of yourself and smile!

Good luck!

Please Share!

Please share how you involve your kids around the house! All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, please SHARE THIS below with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

If you want to Support Life Learning Today, you can visit one of my sponsors, make a donation, or make a purchase at Amazon through one of my links. Thank you!

Technorati Tags: children, Chores, Housework, Parenting, problem solving, Kids

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Involve Your Kids in Housework for Major Benefits

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Friday Is A Good Day To….

• Tap into Your Maximum Energy

• Play Hooky

• Think About Your Goals

• Start Writing that Book

• Pay It Forward

• Forgive Someone

• Be Happy

• Really Have Fun with Your Kids

• Travel! – which is what I’ll be doing today. Please enjoy one of my past posts that you haven’t read yet. See you tomorrow with a new post.

• Say Thank You! Thank you Life Learning Today subscribers!! I’m so honored to have the privilege of writing for you! If you’ve made a comment recently, thank you! I will respond as soon as my move is over, this weekend. Wishing everyone a great Friday! 

Please Share!

Please share how you’ll be spending your Friday! All comments big and small are very welcomed!

If you found this post valuable, please SHARE THIS below with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always appreciated!

If you want to Support Life Learning Today, you can visit one of my sponsors, make a donation, or make a purchase at Amazon through one of my links. Thank you!

Technorati Tags: Creativity, Fun, Goal Setting, Happiness, Play, play hooky, Smile

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Friday Is A Good Day To….

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Pocket Mods

Many of you may already be familiar with Pocket Mods. For those who aren’t Pocket Mods are cool little 8 page booklets that you can create with one sheet of paper. You can go to PocketMod.com to create a modular paper calendar and to-do’s to your liking. The Pocket Mod folks have also made it possible to convert any pdf document into a pocket mod. Subscribe here to stay tuned for how to make your own!

Below are 5 Free PocketMods that I created for you to download. They help with Goals, New Habits, and 2 have condensed versions of my top posts for handy reference!

Shrek says “You know you want one! What are ya waiting for? They’re Free!”

5 Pre-Made Pocket Mods: Free Downloads

1) My New Habits
This booklet has one page to list your next 7 new habits you want to adopt this year, plus 7 monthly calendars for tracking the implementation of each habit. Simply put an X in each day of the month that you successfully do your new habit. When one month is done and your new habit is in place, add the next habit and track it in the next month. To read more about implementing one habit at a time read my guest post at ZenHabits.net, The Amazing Power of One.

2) My Life Goals – Simple
One page for listing your life goals, category (personal, work, home, etc) and target date for completion. Then there are 7 Goal Action Steps tracking pages.

3) My Life Goals – Near, Short, and Long Term
Pages for: Mission Statement, This Month Goals, 6-month Goals, 3-5 Year Goals, and 4 Action Steps tracking pages for 4 Goals.

4) Best of Life Learning Today 1
Keep these top posts at hand in your wallet or purse:

1. Meditation Naps – How To
2. 10 Steps for Maximum Energy
3. You Can Do It!
4. Do It Anyway!

5) Best of Life LearningToday 2
Keep these top posts at hand in your wallet or purse:

• Action Creates Energy – Make progress on your goals today!
• 5 Keys to Happiness
• Effective Networking Tips
• Top 10 Sales Concepts

Folding Instructions Download
Download this document for instructions on how to fold these pocket mods!

Please Share!

If you found this post valuable, please SHARE THIS with your friends or with a Stumble or Delicious bookmark! Thank you!

If you want to Support Life Learning Today, you can visit one of my sponsors, make a donation, or make a purchase at Amazon through one of my links. Thank you!

Technorati Tags: Getting Things Done, Getting Things Done, Getting Things Done, Goals, Goals, Goals, Goals, GTD, GTD, Pocket Mod, PocketMod, Paper

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Groovy New Pocket Mods: GTD and More!

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Almighty Google – It’s All About YOU!

If you don’t already have an account with Google, you should get one by clicking here. Why? Because Google has developed a powerhouse of technology applications that can benefit you in so many ways. And just about all of them are free. Presented here is a guide to the most useful applications Google offers and how YOU can use them everyday to improve your life.

Let’s Dive into the Google Juice!

The Basic Productivity Tools

Gmail Fast, searchable email with less spam. If all the techies love it, it must be the best! One of the nicest features is being able to label each email under multiple categories, which is essentially like being able to file it into multiple folders. And then you simply “Archive” all email that you are done processing. Searching for any email couldn’t be easier with the power of Google search. Here are some great articles on making the most of Gmail: 20 Ways to Use Gmail’s Filters, Turn Gmail Into Your Personal Nerve Center, and Better Gmail with Greasemonkey. And you can also  add “Getting Things Done” functionality with GTDMail.
Calendar Organize your schedule and share events with friends. Sharing with friends, integration with Gmail, invitations, reminders (including to your mobile phone) and more. Here’s one open source application that allows some cell phones to sync with Gcal. I haven’t used it so I can’t vouch for its effectiveness, but I found it at WebWorkerDaily and they may have more information on it there. However if you have web on your phone, you won’t need this. Google Mobile (see below) allows you to see your calendar right on your phone!
Talk Instant Message (IM) and call your friends through your computer. Works great and it is integrated with Gmail. IM conversations automatically archived in Gmail.
Reader RSS news and feed aggregator. All your news and blog feeds in one place. Many reviews rate this the #1 reader including Lifehacker.com. Click here if you need to know what a Reader is.
iGoogle (Google Homepage) – I have written a review of iGoogle (Google Homepage) and I highly recommend this cool dashboard where you can have all kinds of gadgets, news and RSS feeds all in one place. Similar to MyYahoo, but better because it integrates with all Google tools as well as many many many others made by other vendors.
Notebook “Clip and collect information as you surf the web.” Notebook has really great functionality: it’s simple, easy to use, searchable, and more.  I use it in place of yellow stickies. I can type in a piece of code or email response that I use frequently and label it so I can find it easily anytime I need it. You could use it as a journal, recipe book, a goal list,or whatever you can dream up.
Desktop “Search and personalize your computer.” I totally love this. Google indexes your WHOLE computer and when you need something you type it into the search box at the bottom of your task bar and voila! Google finds any document, image, folder or application Instantly! And this is Free!
Pack (Google Pack ) A free collection of essential software. You can see my review of this awesome package here. It has since been updated to include even more goodies. I have this myself, I love it, and I highly recommend getting this FREE package! If you decide to get this please click on the link in the right hand sidebar. Thanks!

Google Bookmarks - Online bookmarking.

Creation Tools

Docs & Spreadsheets “Create and share your projects online and access them from anywhere.” I am creating this article right now using Google Docs. It’s simple and Google Docs makes blog publishing a breeze. No more funky Microsoft formatting when I copy and paste into my blogging editor. I can access my documents from any computer and I don’t have to use up my hard drive space storing the documents. Check this out! I love Google Docs!
Blogger “Share your life online with a blog — it’s fast, easy, and free” Simplest way to start a quick blog. For more information check out my other articles on blogging.
Picasa “Find, edit and share your photos.” Makes photo management so easy. You didn’t realize how difficult managing your photos were until you use this and feel the relief! This comes with the Google Pack. I highly recommend it!
Page Creator – This is part of Google Labs which means it is in development.  But it is 100% up and running. Need to put up a page or two on the web quickly and for free? Look no further. No hosting, no costs, no difficulty figuring out how to use it. Maybe you’re hosting an event and want a place to send people to. If so, you could use this. There are many potential uses. And it’s FREE.

Google Bookmarks – (Update) oops, left this one out originally. Online bookmarking.

Little Apps – Big Power

Translate Translate text or whole web pages into another language. Couldn’t be simpler or easier.
Maps for mobile “View maps and get directions on your phone.” Works great on my phone. Love it!
Mobile “Use Google on your mobile phone.” It doesn’t get much cooler than this. Or easier. You get full access to GMail, GCal, Reader, Maps, Search, News, SMS, and Blogger! Talk about integration!
SMS Use text messaging to search for quick info. Just send a text message to 466453. A message with your search result will be sent back to your phone in a matter of seconds. Very powerful, useful, and quick. There is nothing easier for getting information quickly when you’re on the go. Some example searches:

Toolbar This one is pretty self explanatory: Add a search box to your browser. It is very helpful. I can start a search from whatever page I’m on without having to go to a search page first. Handy.

Fun Tools

SketchUp “3D modeling software tool that’s easy to learn, simple to use, and lets you place your models in Google Earth. Are you remodeling a kitchen, landscaping your back yard or adding a deck to your home? Google SketchUp makes it faster, easier and a lot more fun. From simple to complex, from conceptual to realistic, Google SketchUp helps you see your vision before you build it.” Haven’t tried it yet. I want to though. Sounds cool. And the basic version is free. The Pro version is $495.
Earth Explore planet earth from your PC. Part of Google Pack. Very fun cool tool. Gotta try it!
Images Want to see a picture related to a news story you’re interested in? Whatever image you need, search for it directly with image search on Google. So easy!
YouTube^New! You know this one! Find some cool videos!
Video I’m sure this will be integrated with YouTube at some point. They’re essentially the same thing. With both you can share them via email with friend or embed them into your website.

Search Tools

Alerts Get email updates on the topics of your choice. You can choose which medium you want the info from such as “blogs” or “news” or “Web.” You can get them daily, weekly or as they occur. Excellent way to stay on top of news in your particular field.
Blog Search Find blogs on your favorite topics. Technorati isn’t the only way to find cool blogs. What I like about Google Blog Search is that it is lightning fast and there are not a lot of distractions in the search results.
Book Search Search the full text of books if available. Results include links to purchasing sites, library, reviews, scholarly references, and more!
Patent Search^New! Got an idea or new invention? Search the full text of US Patents to research if your idea is original.
Scholar Search solely in scholarly papers to ensure you find what you’re looking for.
Directory Browse the web by topic, kind of like what you would find over at Yahoo.com, but powered by Google!
Specialized Searches Search within specific topics. Includes: Public Service Search, University Search, U.S. Government, Linux, BSD, Apple Macintosh, and Microsoft.
Web Search Features Find movies, music, stocks, books, and more- Many specific areas to help you pinpoint what you’re searching for. Includes:

Search Tricks: try these quick searches on regular Google.com:
“Weather + your zipcode” – will give you weather for the next few days.
“Movies + your zipcode” – all the movie listings in your area. Click to drill down and buy tickets. Quick links to reviews too.
“address + zip code” – instant Google Map. One more click to “get directions to this destination.”

For Techies

Analytics Track your web logs stats for any website for free. Very comprehensive!
Code “Download APIs and open source code.”
Co-op – now with Custom Search Engine^New! “Contribute your expertise and customize the web search experience.”
Labs “Explore Google’s technology playground.” Includes many applications including Reader, Experimental Search, Music Trends, Code Search, Google Mars, Google Sets, and more. If you like technology, swing by and check out some of these newbie projects.
Webmaster Tools - For getting your site indexed by Google.com. Helps with setting up a site index. Visit to learn more.

News & Information

Finance “Business info, news, and interactive charts.” You can set up portfolios of stocks and you can drill down for quite a bit of information on individual stocks.
News – now with archive search^New! Search thousands of news stories. Pretty self explanatory. You can choose from many categories, and you can personalize it. Of course you can take the best from here and add it to your iGoogle (homepage.)
Local  Find local businesses and get directions. This is a Map featured search.
Web History If you choose to enable this, Google will allow you to go back to every website you visited indexed by date and time. This way, if you are trying to remember that cool site you visited but forgot to bookmark, you’ll be able to find it. I like it. If you share a computer, your information will be private because you need to enter your password to view the information.

Communities

Groups Create mailing lists and discussion groups. The possible uses are endless. Swing by to see some examples: user groups, hobby groups, mommy groups, social groups, etc.
Orkut – “is an online community that connects people through a network of trusted friends.We are committed to providing an online meeting place for people to socialize, make new acquaintances and find others who share their interests. Join orkut now to create and connect with your own social circle.”
Consumer

Catalogs Search or browse mail-order catalogs. I’m not a big shopper so I don’t have a lot of use for this. I took a peek and wasn’t too impressed. Let me know if you find something good about this one. Otherwise I recommend Product Search instead.
Checkout Complete online purchases more quickly and securely. The idea here is you buy from many places using one account to pay and track it all.
Product Search (formerly Froogle) Search for stuff to buy. This is for if you only want products in your search results. If you like to shop and browse, you should take a look. It allows you compare prices from multiple vendors.

Sellers & eCommerce

Base – Best way I can describe this is it’s like a cross between Craigslist (as in Free), Ebay (as in sell your stuff), and Groups (as in you can share anything here.) It’s also high tech so that you can upload multiple items at a time. Worth taking a look.
AdWords – Advertise with Google to find buyers searching for what you sell. There are a gazillion resources on how to use this best. Here is the link to Google’s guides on Adwords. And here is a commercial guide that comes highly recommended by The Snowflake Method Guy. and is free is the 5 day email course by Perry Marshall. He has a book to sell too, but I’ve heard that the email course is enough to get you started.
AdSense – Generate revenue by placing Google contextual ads on your website or blog. Pays per click. Again, there are many sources of guidance for how best to use Adsense. Here is Google’s online webinar. And here are a few more guides: The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Effective Adsense Link Units …(Dosh,Dosh), and Ultimate Adsense Guide – Video: Google AdSense Secrets (Joel Comm).

Big Brother?

I’d like to address the concern about privacy. Google must abide by all the same privacy laws that any online provider must follow. If you use email or if you process transactions online, then you are putting a certain amount of trust in the vendors who provide those services. If you don’t trust Google, then you probably shouldn’t trust any vendor, and probably shouldn’t transact any business online. This is how I personally look at it: so much of our information is already out there in cyberspace and even in analog form, that this is something I’m not going to worry about unless I need to. This is how I look at it personally. I respect that others may have different feelings. If you have thoughts on this, please feel free to share them.

Please Share!

Are there any new Google apps that I’ve missed? Do you have any special uses for Google apps that you love? What are they? Please share!

If you found this post valuable, please SHARE THIS below with a Digg, Stumble or Delicious bookmark. Votes are always noticed and always appreciated!

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Google Power – The Complete Guide to Google-ize Your Life!

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You’ve been a good boy or girl, working very hard at your career, your side business, your home, your relationships, and then it happens. You hit a rainy day and you feel the mental and physical sludge of low motivation flow over you. What’s the cure? Why, “Play Hooky” of course!

Play Hooky!

Yes, you heard right! Those golden magical words that give you goosebumps at the mere thought of skipping out on school, work, worries and all responsibilities. You know when it’s OK to play hooky. You know when you need it. So if today is that day, go ahead and give yourself a “snow day” or a “hurricane day.” You know you want to! Yes, I am here to tempt you because sometimes, especially for you hardworking boys and girls, it is GOOD FOR YOU!

More Energy!

Remember those cold early mornings when you would wake up to an eerie quiet that comes from tons of snow? You’d know it was out there before even looking out the window. You would suddenly have enormous amounts of energy to get out of bed. Why? Because you knew that when you turned on the radio in your room that you would hear those beautiful words “Lincolntown regional schools closed today.” Yahooooo!!!! You’d wake up your brother or sister or call your friends. It’s play time! “No need for breakfast, mom. I just want to get my boots on and get out there!!!”

It’s Good For You!

What happened to your usual morning grogginess? It was replaced by overwhelming energy and enthusiasm for something fun. When you’ve been working hard, you need to give yourself little rewards like this every so often. It will give your working brain time to really turn off and rest.

The prospect of doing something “naughty” will give you a tickle and a perma-grin for the rest of the day. Don’t worry. The world will wait for you for one day. When you look back at your life, don’t you think you’ll be glad you took that day to play?

That enthusiasm and energy will most likely be just the boost you need. The next day you will be more rejuvenated and ready to tackle your responsibilities again. And you’ll have that smile inside of you every time you think about how you escaped for a day.

If you can’t do it today, promise it to yourself soon, and do it! Don’t schedule it. The spontaneous nature of playing hooky is part of its charm!

What Will You Do?

There’s so many great things to do today besides working: go to the beach, go sailing, go golfing, go see a movie, hang out in the bookstore and drink expensive coffee, go shopping, go to an art museum, go to a waterpark or indoor pool, watch Oprah, watch 5 DVD’s in a row, read a book, take a nap, whatever you want. Go have some fun. If it’s the afternoon, and you’re reading this, it’s never too late to skip out. Go ahead and be a real delinquent and ask a friend to join you on your “naughty” adventure!

Let us know how you played hooky today!

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The Cure for Overworked, Overtired YOU!

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