Stupid Sucks!

In college I took a Critical Thinking class and boy oh boy did I feel like it was a total waste of time. It really just seemed like common sense to me. I attended less than %60 of the class and still pulled off over a 100% in the class (extra credit).

What I didn’t realize until later in life was that not all people have the correct thought process to be a critical thinker but most definitely have the ability. Thus the reason for the class.

So to start off let me clarify what critical thinking really is. read more…

It seems like lately I’ve been using my cell phone a lot. What would I do without it?! It’s still surprising to see so many people unaware of the nifty little tricks our cell phones are capable of, especially in a business environment.

If you’re still fresh to cell phones take a few minutes in your spare time and check out your manual. I was shocked at how big the manual was for my first cell phone. Of course, I fell prey to the typical guy mentality of disregarding the manual.

I’m pretty tech savvy so I of course figured out the majority of it myself but I was surprised to find a few little features in the manual that I didn’t know about.

Of course, doing a Google search for your phone could clue you in on some other neat things you can do with your cell phone!

Here’s a list of the things I use my cell phone for aside from calling:

An alarm clock – I’ve used my cell phone as my alarm clock for years now. For some reason it’s more effective and easier than a normal alarm clock. Plus, if you’re stuck somewhere and want to take a quick snooze you’ve got your alarm right there with you.

Phonebook – Of course this is the most common use aside from calling but I have addresses, notes for people, etc. that I might need in the future for each contact.

Internet – For about a year I used my cell phone for EVDO because I couldn’t get dsl or cable internet where I lived. EVDO is so much better than dial-up

Entertainment – Pretty much all cell phones have some form of a game…and when I’m utterly bored and stuck somewhere it’s just enough to keep me busy and entertained.

Make shift flash light – I can’t tell you how many times I manage to get stuck in a dark room or something and can’t see anything. My cell phone screen is so bright it will illuminate the room to where I can find even small items.

Texting of course - I don’t text a lot, but I do text every day. It’s my way to keep in touch with my girlfriend while I’m at work and a pretty easy way to get a message to someone quick without having to talk to them. I’m not big on small talk so a short and sweet text message is perfect for the job.

Pictures & Video – Cell phones are great for a quick snapshot or video. Now that phones are getting more and more high tech, this is a feature I may use more often once the quality starts really going up. Now that phones have way more memory it’s not an issue having 50-100 pictures on your phone either.

Music – I don’t really listen to music on my phone but I have a few songs that I really like on it and when I don’t have my iPod or aren’t by a computer and really want something to listen too.

Anyway, those are the majority of uses I have for my phone. I use to have a PDA and used it basically like a micro-computer for email, document editing, etc. but I’ve since downgraded to a sleek and stylish flip phone from LG, the VX8700.

I’m sure there are a ton of other great ways to use cell phones, if you have one share with a comment and I’ll add it to the list

Have you ever had one of those days where you feel like you were insanely busy but you didn’t actually get anything done? Even on the days where I feel like I really accomplished something, I look back and evaluate my work and my day…suddenly realizing that I wasted a significant amount of time.

Earlier this morning I read a post over at JohnChow’s about 5 Online Time Savers. I really felt like they were things that were common knowledge. Unless you’re new to the internet, you most likely already know everything that was posted. So in a sense, the guest blog was preaching to the choir.

I was a little surprised to find out though that some people felt like it was good to have a gentle reminder. I don’t think that could be any more true. We get so caught up in other things we forget about the most useful and simple tools available to us.

Without further ado, Time Management Tips and Helpful Keys – a gentle reminder:

1. Time management is always going to fail you. After everything is said and done, you will have been able to get more done in the time you had but won’t. It’s the nature of life.
2. Set goals, without them, you’re a lost puppy in a caffeinated world going at light speed. When you have something to set your sights on and focus on, you know what has to be done between where you are now, and where you want to be.
3. Use tools available to you to stay organized and on track. Whether it’s a pencil and paper, a PDA, laptop, online tools or something else, there are tons of tools available to keep you and your day organized and focused on your goals.
4. Be aware of where your time is going and prioritize. Knowing where you’re wasting time and knowing when you can waste time is going to help you work and play much more efficiently. Getting your priorities all lined up will help you figure out where and when you can waste time.
5. Get into a routine and stick to it. Routines do suck, I’ll admit that, but they do help you figure out much more efficient ways to do things. When you establish a solid routine you’ll get faster and more efficient the more you do it.
6. Set yourself up to remember the things you forget. I forget things left and right….but I have learned that I will forget those things and how to set myself up to run into those things when I will need them next. For instance, I will forget to call people back by certain times. I know that I check my email as soon as I get home which is at 5:15pm at the latest. So if I email myself a reminder to call those people, I’ll do it and won’t have to worry about remembering anything.
7. Set and Forget….this one goes along with number 6 but I like it. You can spend all day worrying about things, getting things done, calling people, making deadlines, etc. There are notification systems surrounding us. So set a reminder and move on (in a sense forget about it). You have fewer things cluttering your brain while not missing a beat and getting even more done.
8. Stop waiting and start doing (multitasking). I see this one a LOT. So many people say, well I had to wait for this and I had to wait for that…. while you’re waiting you could be doing something else. Get the task started and go get something else started. This is essentially multitasking but a little different (in my opinion).

You might have to learn to use a few things you don’t usually use (ie. cell phone, task manager, advanced email functions, google calendar, etc.) but it will save you time and save you stress.

My girlfriend has a tendency to walk in the apartment and start setting things down. Then later she can’t find anything and is scrambling so she won’t be late. Inevitably, she is late, usually can’t find something and is stressed out. Stay consciously organized and aware. Put things where you know you’ll find them (tangibly and digitally).

I happened to come across this tonight and wow! I already love Gmail (except for the recent spam problems that should be solved soon) but this just adds yet another reason why people should be using it.

(credit to MakeUseOf.com for the original post)

Part 1:

You can receive email to youremail@gmail.com with a dot in any part of the “youremail” section. For instance, y.ouremail@gmail.com (or @googlemail.com). You can put the dot anywhere in “youremail” and it will go to youremail@gmail.com. That isn’t anything I got excited about.

Part 2:

Here’s the awesome part. You can add extra information into your address! What you do is add a + and then the extra info. you want. So youremail+website@gmail.com (again, @googlemail.com as well).

This one is particularly nice because you can use that to figure out if you’re getting spam from a particular website by signing up using youremail+website@gmail.com

Additionally, if you use labels and filters you can setup filters with this. So maybe myemail+netflix@gmail.com and have them all filtered into a Netflix label. 

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This has been around for awhile but I know tons of people who don’t know about it. It’s pretty nifty and could be pretty useful. 

While researching some other web technology today I kept running across mentions of Drop.io Now, I actually came across Drop.io about a month ago. I took a peek at it and set it aside for later. ….and then I forgot about it.

Well, now that I’ve come across it again I thought i’d take some extra time to really see what can be done with it and what they have to offer. I have to say that thus far I’m really impressed. It’s simple, it’s easy, and it works…really well.

The first thing you’re going to notice (since it’s the entire point of drop.io) is the file storage/sharing capabilities. It’s simple, name your drop, upload your files, pick your settings (super simple) …and drop it!

They don’t ask for an email, you don’t have to go through any sign-up, and it’s fast. Once you choose your drop name and drop it, you go right into the drop (account). As the front page will tell you, you’ll see in your drop that you can do so much more than upload and download files.

Drop.io sets you up with an email address that you can send notes and files to, a voice mail number, the capability to setup a conference call and faxing. So here’s a breakdown:

• Email Address: You can send text for a note or attachments to upload files
• Voicemail: Simple, call your voice mail number, punch in the extension, and leave yourself a message. It will save the message as an mp3 in your drop that you can listen to, share, etc.
• Conference Call: I haven’t tried this one but you have a number setup as your conference call line.
• Receive a fax: You can have people send you faxes, which show up in your drop. They have to print out a cover letter with a special section at the bottom but thats a minor inconvenience.
• Send a fax: I really like this feature. You can easily just send a fax from a .pdf or .doc to anyone in the US.

So thats the gist of the list of features. There are a couple other minor ones like adding links, notes, etc. The last two things I want to mention are premium and widget.

You only get 100MB for free. I know that is not nearly enough for getting some of the files I handle moved around but thankfully you can upgrade the service to 1GB for $10. That also upgrades the drop life to last 1 year. The point of Drop.io isn’t long term storage or large storage, it’s a quick “drop” space but I have a feeling it will turn into much more than that. One thing they don’t mention anywhere except on the “Custom” page is you can purchase more space.

Now about the widget! I don’t like having to go to the drop site every time I want to upload a file. I don’t like having to tell person after person the drop address either. Thats where the widget comes in. Just get the code snipet for your widget and put it in your site.

You can even customize the widget a little bit (assuming you know a little html and css) which is easy. The image above is an example (the View Drop button was added). You can also have the look customized by Drop.io

So there ya have it! Quite a useful site, even for those old faxing goobers out there. This is definitely something aiding the fight against stupid!