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why is it so hard for me to work from home?
you can talk about the vast numbers of distractions you have from
phone ringing, laptop email notifications, kids calling, cars horning, etc.
the key is that you are not intrinsically motivated to focus on
your work or a lack of passion.
productivity apps
it's better to work with local desktop apps like microsoft words,
as there is less lag. use grammarly app with microsoft words grammarly add-in
to check for grammar and other english mistakes. the key is to look solely at
the grammarly add in red flags and click to fix the error at a single go then
run through the document from the beginning to check for clarity of
communication.
who do the union protect
the union protects low performing workers
which theory proclaims that 80% of your problems stem from 20% of
the source
the Pareto principle
20% source = 80% happiness
20% of products / customers = 80% of profits
20% of causes = 80% of consequences
which ones are the most interesting sleep habits to acquire, and
why is that?
sleep in sensory deprivation tank
when you are done with your file, save or delete it, don't leave
it hanging and switch to another task cause you waste time going back and
thinking what it is about etc
when you want to implement your ideas, what should you do
implement first, ask for forgiveness instead of permission
when you are very busy, what must you stop and think on
am i being productive or being active?
am i inventing things to do to avoid the important?
when task screen is loading, switch tab or program to do other
things and check back a few mins later
when looking at people, which two things should you identify?
look for similarities in people before looking at differences
what things should you avoid doing?
avoid doing things that you dislike
what should you leverage on? strengths or weaknesses?
strengths
what should you do when things don't improve
if things don’t improve in one year time, jump ship
what is the first thing you need to do to improve your
self-discipline
what is the best time to check your email
never check emails first thing in the morning. do the most
important thing. check email at 11 am & 4pm
what is one way to know the book’s author to gain more knowledge?
email the book author
what is an expert?
an expert is someone who has made all the mistakes in a narrow
field
what is a killer of dreams
someday
what happens when you drive on the wrong road and set the wrong
goal
if you set the wrong goal or driving on the wrong road, driving
very fast will make you look smart to other people, but you will end up a
failure at the wrong destination
what does too much information leads to
poverty of attention
what does spending a lot of time at work mean
it doesn’t mean you are doing work the right way or doing the
right things
what does multitasking leads to?
task scope creep, it affects our memory and well being negatively
what criteria do you use to focus your energy
choose to be selectively ignorant on most things in life
what are the effects of laziness to you?
poverty, immense pain & suffering, abandonment & short
lifespan
use the word doc app program to find and replace all acronym >> eg >> e.g.
use text expander app >> abbreviation; hl
to auto-create horizontal line
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use different windows desktop 1. for anti-virus desktop 2. for
work app. 3. for entertainment
use a second keyboard for hotkeys
too much control is counterproductive and a waste of energy. no
control or no plan is even worse
after work reaches home six-plus work till dinner after dinner
work till sleep at 10, wake up at 3 am to work. then sleep again till 7
be a ruthless taskmaster to impart solid skills to your young
ones.
if a situation happens, you have to deal with it and use whatever
resources you have. if you don't know, cut self-entertainment time and learn
it. pay experts to tell you what you need to know
billionaire use touch button height adjustable office table
pair voice dictating software with a headset that has a microphone
your first attempt will be better than expected
what are your hacks to stay sane during a crazy day at work?
breathe in and out
listen to audiobooks via noise-cancelling earbuds. while walking
on the streets or public transport
instead of reading autobiography. listen to audiobooks.
nurse watch on coat saves you time.
you have something to look forward to doing.
if you are uninterested in your work or personal project, even if
you are a night owl, you will be bored and sleepy.
how do you work in life to cater to your strengths?
talk to everyone, you know. inventory your hard & soft
skills—past & current interests. identify your future goals. find out what
are your ambitions. identify your existing resources. find out how much money
you need to retire and how much you need for surgery bills when you are older.
talk to your family if they are willing to relocate to another country or city
with better job prospects. take everything above with your resume and see
several different career counsellors, human resource experts and professionals
in your desired industry. offer to buy them coffee and pay for their time and
advice.
how do i know when a new habit, that i am working hard to build
up, become a habit (so i start with another new habit)?
it takes around three months for a new habit to stay in place.
even after it stayed in place, it takes maintenance efforts to make sure new
bad habits doesn't replace the good old habits.
what can you do if your energy doesn’t match
your time & obligations?
identify where you see yourself in 5 years—plan from there to your
current point in time. break complex tasks into short, small, simple steps.
eliminate everything, especially if you spend too much time, energy and money
on entertainment. do, review weekly & adjust your behaviour.
what else is necessary if hard work alone is not
enough to advance your career?
apart from a plan, journal daily on your progress, obstacles and
goals to take immediate readjustment steps. reference hard work won't make you
successful -- but doing this will
personally, ask for brutally honest feedback from family, friends,
colleagues and bosses every three months.
why am i more productive in the evening and at
night?
treat everything tiny thing you do in life is meaningful and put
in 100% effort to avoid wasting time doing it
noise level slow engineer productivity
engineering war room
if being mean and uncouth is proper training to the victim, why do
boss fire employees who are mean to him and love flatterers that eventually
bankrupt him? repeat. humans, all too human.
when you sms text mates you don't say hi, why not eliminate hi
from your email to mates to save precious time per touchpoint over you and your
circle of influence lifespan
filter google s search results sort by distance near me
don't add number row & symbols to the first level of keyboard
app. more things to look at reducing speed. if your typing notes and thoughts
you rarely use numbers and symbols
add your routine tasks as repeated events on google calendar in
the second google account
use night time to get your stuff, bag, clothing ready for next
day, so you can maximise your time to do $$$ thinking and work when your
mind is fresh in the morning
use waiting times to plan your schedule and assess your life’s
goals and eliminate things you don't need to do
never accept low quality work or apps or anything from others.
report error. fix it to eliminate
look at calendar in month view so you can balance your energy for
your work and events
set daily alarm reminder to charge gadgets at night.
pay for your food first while waiting for your food. to save time.
pen cap with the hole to attached to the lanyard. remove pen to
write freely
spread the entertainment events over the months rather than
everything in one month
check and do emails at home computer. turn off email notification
on your phone. if it's important people will call you. don't double up.
you become effective by being selective.
android phone widget direct sms. type non-urgent messages but
don't send. batch all messages into a single draft. then send before the urgent
message or before the end of the day.
eliminating time pressure gives our teams the freedom and
flexibility they need to try new ideas, follow creative rabbit trails and find
solutions that work. as former you.s. president dwight d. eisenhower famously
said, "what is important is seldom urgent, and what is urgent is seldom
important."
by forcing and striving, we might get the job done but with
collateral damage, but by gentleness or the flow, we approach the task
intelligently and find the sweet spot between action and non-action.
the result isn't equal to the amount of energy we spend but from a
series of our actions that we set in motion intelligently after deliberation
how many hours is it recommended to sit on the
computer per day?
stand up & stroll for 10 mins each 50 mins of sitting.
are you a hard worker, or do you just get by?
i work hard, but take frequent short mindfulness breaks throughout
the day to recharge so i can work longer errors free.
text your partner a short two alphabet acronym to tell her that
you have completed daily task
you can motivate by fear, or you can motivate by reward, these are
only temporary - the only thing lasting is self-motivation.
organise backpack, so small items are at the front pocket, and big
things are at the back.
this googling method ups your efficiency
when searching for a common type of “variable" information
online, place the “variable" data behind the “category” of the search term
in the search box:
e. g. i need to continually look for the clinic's fax number in my
line of work.
i would enter the below search term in the google search box.
“fax (category information) + clinic name(variable info)”
or
"fax + lim and yeo clinic."
or
"fax + tim and joe clinic."
bookmark the webpage with the search term "fax + " in
#google on your bookmarks bar.
how to quickly unlock your phone?
listen to audiobooks during boring housework time to get smart
set email using iphone text replacement shortcuts
don’t have a heavy meal for your three meals. eat 50% portion and
have smaller snacks in between main meals. this will distribute your energy
more evenly throughout the day, and you won’t feel sleepy from digesting the
meals = your more focused to work effectively and productively longer.
turn off the notification of your email app on your phone and
check your emails at night on your laptop.
so microsoft words to find and replace your acronym quick entered
words
e.g. u, ur, urs, dont, cant, y, n to proper english words then use
grammarly to fix sentence structure and grammar
should you read the news?
no, you waste your time on watching news filled with advertisement
and non-personalised communication where you can use the time to read
information from textbooks or books from trusted, vetted professionals, doctors
and phd from harvard, yale and stanford university
you won’t remember anything or most of the news you read this
morning, how much of the story you read in the past 40 years, i mean past month
do you remember or how that information profoundly impact your life? how much
time have you wasted?
why not ask your trusted family and friends to tell you categories
of news that they have read that will interest or impact you like safety in
your local suburban or neighbourhood. why read the story about serial killer or
murder in the usa when you are living in another country = wasting your time
which you won’t get back.
should you pay money to enhance your efficiency?
don't pay more money for a little bit of efficiency gains
should you do the easy or hard thing first in
the morning?
do the important thing first in the morning
save the time from your lifetime by having a clock on your table
as its quicker to tell the time instead of squinting at the small-time on your
laptop
rather than focusing on materialistic goals, one should focus
on...
put your apps on the taskbar to be sorted from left to right from
most frequented used to least frequently used
provide one phonetic sound of your name for takeaway coffee/tea
instead of your
provide one phonetic sound of your name for takeaway coffee/tea
instead of your full name to save time, e.g. "c."
instead of wasting time staring at the screen to wait for printing
job to finish, open another browser tab and start working
skip typing www. when typing url address.
save time by not typing 04 when entering australia mobile phone
no. into form. eliminate entering the digit 0 just type 4 123 45 678
sit down and read a book rather than stand in the queue
make heading unique for search within a note by adding @ in front
of heading name.
type ctrl + end key to jump to the bottom of the note to cut note,
then use ctrl + f to search for keyword note header to jump there and paste.
use the separate notebook for different things in the evernote app
prioritising
ref. decide by steve mcclatchy - wiley (book)
prioritise by categorising into
*
a: gain tasks - tasks that give you a benefit.
*
b: recorded prevent pain tasks - if you don’t do these tasks, you
lose your job as its tracked
*
c: prevent pain tasks - your hate who have too much time on their
hands will track how well you take out your trash or check your emails.
organise tasks app productively
recurring tasks for home put in microsoft to-do app. recurring
tasks for work or one-off events put in the calendar
not removing belts from your pants when you wash it saves time.
not removing belts from your pants when you wash it saves time.
save years off your life by double tapping on the same digits to
start the microwave. e.g. you usually enter 1:00 min - you can save time by
entering 1:11 min
what is an efficient and comfortable workstation?
listen to the audio version of the chinese drama on youtube while
doing your work
extract the lessons from chinese or other language or genre of tv
dramas by watching on youtube, use mice pointer to move the red line to preview
screen the scene with the male or female leads to watch them talk on the show
to learn useful pointers.
lean six sigma
www.vative.com.au
keep an always-on gmail chrome tab on to send email to family
quickly
is it procrastination or something else that keeps you from doing
certain things in your life?
it may be procrastination; it may be fate - broadly classified
into controllable & uncontrollable variables in life.
instead of asking people "how are you" when you meet
them, what must you do
ask people “what can i do for you”`
in times of rapid change, what could be your worst enemy
your experience
if you want to delete a block of the highlighted text, instead of
think, eyeball to
if you want to delete a block of the highlighted text, instead of
think, eyeball to find the delete key, may press the wrong key, press the big
spacebar key nearest to you with low risk of hitting the wrong key and reduce
movement waste from moving your finger too much compared to moving to the
delete key
if your message response is more than five characters consider
copy and paste the previous responder message
if inactivity is not the goal, what is the purpose?
do things that excite you
hunt down the day's big task
"only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die
having left undone." - pablo picasso
how to turn off notifications for google news. every minute you
spend reading notifications takes time away from acquiring professional
technical knowledge or networking with blokes with booze, drug and whores to
build career & make real money
how to send a photo as an attachment to email quickly?
drag and drop photo onto email mac app icon on the dock
how to remove paragraph symbols for every line in word - microsoft
word 2016
word 2016
often when you paste a formatted text to your document word, it
can be pasted with two or more paragraph symbols in every line. you can easily
remove these paragraph symbols.
to remove the extra paragraph symbols, do the following:
1. select the text in which you want to
remove the symbols, by default; they will be extracted from the whole document.
2. on the home tab, in the editing group,
click replace:
or click ctrl+h.
3. in the find and replace dialogue box:
*
in the find what field enter two paragraph marks (^p^p) or select
paragraph mark two times from the special list:
*
leave the field replace with empty.
after clicking replace all, all extra paragraph symbols will be
removed:
see more about replacing special characters.
see also this tip in french: comment
supprimer des symboles de paragraphe pour chaque ligne.
how to efficiently copy
efficiently complete forms by copying the info/data from the
current location on the browser to the next nearest spot and then to the next
closest spot - avoid jumping here and there and to and fro to copy data
how to develop extreme productivity
how to develop extreme productivity
desire
2. grit
3. looped feedback on your performance
4. google & borrow library books on kaizen, six sigma, eat
that frog
5. ask for brutally honest feedback from family, friends,
colleagues, bosses
6. a purpose greater than yourself - god & country
how to change uppercase and lowercase text in microsoft word
1.
highlight all the text you want to change.
2.
hold down the shift key and press f3.
3.
when you hold shift and press f3, the text toggles from sentence
case (first-letter uppercase and the rest lowercase) to all uppercase (all
capital letters), and then all lowercase.
how to avoid being accused of not acting after colleague or boss
sent you an email in the wee hours (sleeping)
set an email auto-response that turns on between, e.g. 10 pm to 9
am every day with the auto-response message that says “your email has been
received. please contact me via phone 04 1234 5678 on urgent matters, if not i
will be checking my email at 9 am weekdays.”
how should you structure your goals, timelines and dreams?
clearly defined and specific
how should you handle criticism
avoid destructive criticism. appreciate constructive criticism
how should you control your communication channels to you
avoid and ignore unimportant phone calls, meetings, and emails
how much effort should you put into work?
work the minimum amount of effort for the maximum effect
how does parkinson's law affect productivity
the task will swell in importance and complexity if there is more
time allocated to it
how do you remember long numbers when you need to transfer the no.
from one device to another?
how do you remember long numbers when you need to transfer the no.
from one device to another?
how do you test urself to eliminate unnecessary things from your
life
if someone points a gun at your head to eliminate 85% of the most
time and energy-wasting tasks in your life, what will you eliminate on?
eliminate those tasks now.
how do you structure your time and energy
eliminate information/interruptions that are irrelevant,
unimportant and unactionable
eliminate activities that waste time
delegate tasks to others
automate business systems`
how do you respond to voicemail messages
respond to voice mail message via email
how do you prioritise your work
using the urgent/important matrix
how do you plan for job loss?
what will happen to me emotionally, financially and physically for
losing my job? plan a, b, c
how do you manage your email alerts
turn off your email alert notifications across your devices
check email once a day after you have completed your day’s work.
or don’t check at all as if it's important, people will call you.
how do you know which friends, family & colleagues to
eliminate from your life?
reflect on who are the 20% of the people who produce 80% of my
happiness that help me move towards success and who are the 20% of the people
who are responsible for 80% of my unhappiness, depression, stress,
second-guessing and anger
how do you get in the zone to double your productivity at work?
put headphones on even with no music, or pretend to be in a phone
call. ask the interrupter to give a 5-second summary and send you an email
how do you focus on your work?
switch off all distractions
how do you find out what is new in the world
through small talk
how do you eliminate most follow up questions?
use “ if ”, “ then “ structure in the email to direction action
steps to avoid two separate dialogues.
how do you communicate with on urgent issues
steer away from meetings and communicate via emails, phone calls
how do you become indispensable to the company?
become indispensable by having the company invest in you. you
attend the training, become the expert the company can’t afford to lose. when
you become indispensable, sell to your boss on the idea of remote work. suggest
a test period & expand the amount of remote work step by step
how do people ideal selves hurt them?
how do employees make the boss think they are productive
by filling their time to talk to colleagues, and filling their
time at the office as long as possible and only go home after the boss went
home
highlight where you left off on the note by using the one-click
highlight marker
highlight where you left off on the note by using the one-click
highlight marker note button at the top to find your note quickly.
a more conspicuous way is to change the font colour to red
handwriting
group taskbar tabs based on colour to max productivity
google drive
offline file shortcut to the android home screen
good work ideas to increase productivity:
client thermometer at the end of all staff signature to measure
satisfaction and arrest complaints at its root
changed mouse speed to max speed to increase productivity
use of grammarly app to eliminate grammar errors company-wide
set desktop background as black colour & access files via
folder method to eliminate micro distractions
rejected the future purchase of physical calculators with the
introduction of in-built computer-based calculator software
to move sent emails from the posted box to the primary inbox for
active monitoring as the receiver may forget to reply to the sender
to have smoking area relocated away from front entrance of
building
your website or software search textbox to have mice cursor blinking
inside textbox when website load
move frequently used email folder/spreadsheet tab to the leftmost/
uppermost
resurrect accidentally closed browser tab with “ctrl/ cmd + shift
+ t” (works for more than one tab)
shared on hiding windows explorer folder - tabs - “file types” and
“file sizes” to reduce clutter
add external stakeholders via a speed dial on the company phone to
improve efficiency
use green ticks instead of bullet points in sales presentation to
invoke the client’s positive childhood memory
implemented chrome browser tabs setting “continue where you left
off.”
add a line break after each sentence to avoid a cluttered feel and
ease of reading for the email recipient
when task assignee completes his task, the assignee needs to
notify the next person to begin the next step/ task to reduce unnecessary
touchpoints interactions
tag all emails by forwarding emails to yourself with added
client’s first & last name
no files in cloud drive can be deleted unless by admin - if there
is a file that is accidentally uploaded; the user is to rename the file as
“old.”
management/ staff to move raw files to be uploaded to cloud drive
into cloud folder x. outsource renaming/ uploading/ categorising of data for
the entire company to offshore to redirect low-value task to business creation
activities
add “due date”, e.g. due 12/3/2018 - important > in email
subject line company-wide to significantly increase response rates/ time
use of “sign here” pdf stickers to eliminate the client’s
confusion on what do they need to do
save time by double-tapping on the same digit when colleagues
reheat their food in the microwave, e.g. instead of 50 seconds, press 55
seconds. imagine 0.4 seconds per microwave usage time saved over their own and
circle of influence lifespan at zero cost
eliminate post-it notes expense by getting all staff to use free
instant message software to each other
team to work on the server and no access to all management/ staff
to the local drive on the computer to eliminate data loss
computer auto load frequently used programs/ files upon boot up
use of “textexpander” app for productivity, so you only need to
type 2 to 4 characters to auto turn text to your frequently used sentences
suggestion implemented by crm provider on locating client’s
profile efficiently based on the client’s email instead of first/last name
reduced lift lobby congestion in the morning by suggesting to
stagger temp staff working hours with permanent staff
shared information on how to reach work earlier through boarding
the train cabin which opens directly at the destination's escalator with the
shortest route to the workplace
archive all emails that do not require any action - never delete
name your frequently used bookmarks with a single alphabet for
quick access
good work ideas to increase productivity:
client thermometer at the end of all staff signature to measure
satisfaction and arrest complaints at its root
changed mouse speed to max speed to increase productivity
use of grammarly app to eliminate grammar errors company-wide
set desktop background as black colour & access files via
folder method to eliminate micro distractions
rejected the future purchase of physical calculators with the
introduction of in-built computer-based calculator software
to move sent emails from the sent box to the primary inbox for
active monitoring as the receiver may forget to reply to the sender
to have smoking area relocated away from front entrance of
building
your website or software search textbox to have mice cursor
blinking inside textbox when website load
move frequently used email folder/spreadsheet tab to the leftmost/
uppermost
resurrect accidentally closed browser tab with “ctrl/ cmd + shift
+ t” (works for more than one tab)
shared on hiding windows explorer folder - tabs - “file types” and
“file sizes” to reduce clutter
add external stakeholders via a speed dial on the company phone to
improve efficiency
use green ticks instead of bullet points in sales presentation to
invoke the client’s positive childhood memory
implemented chrome browser tabs setting “continue where you left
off.”
add a line break after each sentence to avoid a cluttered feel and
ease of reading for the email recipient
when task assignee completes his task, the assignee needs to
notify the next person to begin the next step/ task to reduce unnecessary
touchpoints interactions
tag all emails by forwarding emails to yourself with added
client’s first & last name
no files in cloud drive can be deleted unless by admin - if there
is a file that is accidentally uploaded; the user is to rename the file as
“old.”
management/ staff to move raw files to be uploaded to cloud drive
into cloud folder x. outsource renaming/ uploading/ categorising of data for
the entire company to offshore to redirect low-value task to business creation
activities
add “due date”, e.g. due 12/3/2018 - important > in email
subject line company-wide to significantly increase response rates/ time
use of “sign here” pdf stickers to eliminate the client’s
confusion on what do they need to do
save time by double-tapping on the same digit when colleagues
reheat their food in the microwave, e.g. instead of 50 seconds, press 55
seconds. imagine 0.4 seconds per microwave usage time saved over their own and
circle of influence lifespan at zero cost
eliminate post-it notes expense by getting all staff to use free
instant message software to each other
team to work on the server and no access to all management/ staff
to a local drive on the computer to eliminate data loss
computer auto load frequently used programs/ files upon boot up
use of “textexpander” app for productivity, so you only need to
type 2 to 4 characters to auto turn text to your frequently used sentences
suggestion implemented by crm provider on locating client’s
profile efficiently based on the client’s email instead of first/last name
reduced lift lobby congestion in the morning by suggesting to
stagger temp staff working hours with permanent staff
shared information on how to reach work earlier through boarding
the train cabin which opens directly at the destination's escalator with the
shortest route to the workplace
archive all emails that do not require any action - never delete
name your frequently used bookmarks with a single alphabet for
quick access
go to the food court 30 mins before peak lunch hour and sit there
to play with your phone until lunchtime then order your food
double tap on the trackpad, the second tap don't lift a finger and
drag your finger to the right so you can highlight the paragraph
don't use bullet points in your communication its clutter use
indent and bold and square brackets
don't study or work on your laptop in the dark, so you won't feel
sleepy leading to loss of productivity
don't lift your fingers too high so you can type faster
don’t eat too heavy carbs like white rice/pasta during lunch as it
makes you tired which affects your productivity and high rates of errors.
do tasks that require thinking in the day and manual tasks at
night
do all the steps in a task at one go to eliminate going to and fro
to rethink where you left off
cook your packed lunch and breakfast for the next day on the night
before to be more productivity as night time is when your mental energy and
focus runs out. first thing you wake up in the morning is for reading books.
browser favourite organisation
always name bookmarks in the full english word, eliminate time
wasted in thinking about acronyms.
group bookmarks, e.g. youtube playlist next to each other.
between the important and the trivial, where should you focus your
energy on
focus your energy only on the important and ignore the trivial
between the owner or employee, which position should you want to
be?
always use keyboard shortcuts to do things in the laptop
after you have assigned a task for your family, friends or
colleagues to complete, as part of the instruction with the deadline to them,
tell them to let you know once they have completed the task to avoid you keep
checking if the job has been completed again and again. "hi xyz, please
let me know before 18 jan when you have transferred $1000 to my account
abc."
after you are done with a file, delete it or archive it
don't make multiple copies everywhere where you have to rethink
and wonder what to do with this copy
lots of time wasted searching
20 productive hobbies that will make you smarter and happier
last updated on july 24, 201820 productive hobbies that will make
you smarter and happier
chris haigh
read full profile
everyone needs a hobby, as the old saying goes. hobbies help
develop our tastes and our passions in life – they can be as diverse as
gardening, cooking, writing, skydiving, stand up comedy and sewing to name but
a few.
however, very few hobbies are ever considered productive ones,
unless you happen to belong to one of those rare few lucky people who manage to
turn their hobby into a second job… or who manage to utilise the skills they
built in their hobby in their work to become more productive, efficient, and
happier.
so, if you’re looking to pick up a new hobby and develop some
skills that will help you enhance your proficiency and productivity, then check
out this list of productive hobbies you could consider picking up, and their
benefits:1. cooking
cooking is one of the most productive hobbies out there, and
something everyone should consider trying their hand at.
cooking forces you to be in the moment, focusing entirely on the
product and processes at hand. it also forces you to plan.
as a bonus, with practice, you’ll get good at preparing and making
food in advance for the days ahead, meaning you’re even more productive than
you realized.
this article is excellent for anyone who’s trying to start
cooking:
cooking 101: 20 lessons to kick start your cooking skill2. hiking
hiking is one of those quintessential ‘weekend’ hobbies, for
people with a passion for long treks and experiencing the beauty of nature.
studies have shown how hiking can benefit our brains. they can
also have a beneficial effect upon your productivity, as hiking allows you to
clear your mind of all worries and focus on the present, as well as to provide
you with exercise to improve physical fitness and stamina.3. painting
painting may not seem like a particularly productive hobby, but it
can lend some excellent perspective on your life and can help unleash your
creative side.
art allows you to tap into the thoughts, desires, and feelings
swimming around in your head and can help translate them into something
physical.
your painting might even inspire you to be more productive in the
workplace, so go ahead and pick up a paintbrush.
4. sculpture
while few of us may be at the standard of sculptors such as michelangelo
or rodin, sculpture, even in its most basic forms, can be a productive hobby
and tool.
sculpture at its very nature behooves you to create with the
materials you have and to be mindful of what you’re creating, even if it takes
many tiny steps at a time.
the sculpture also gives you something at the very end of it – it
might not be the kind of art or sculpture created by masters, but it’s still
tangible, and it’s yours, and genuinely authentic because of that very fact.5.
writing
one of the most productive hobbies to have is to write in your
spare time. writing is an incredibly powerful and essential form of
self-expression, and it can help to channel your energies into something which
you feel passionate about and in which you can pour your thoughts, dreams, and
desires.
whether it’s writing articles, plays, radio scripts or diary
entries, writing helps unlock your creative side and enables you to be as
productive and healthy as possible.
to kickstart writing, you don’t need to write a lot of words, try
writing journal, or just write 750 words a day:
kickstart your creativity by writing 750 words a day
6. running
running is the go-to relaxation-slash-exercise sports activity for
a significant amount of the population. however, it also allows productive
benefits and is one of the most productive hobbies out there.
running not only improves your fitness levels, but it can also
help with any kind of mental block by teaching you how to push through those
same kinds of psychological barriers and obstructions, that are causing you
delay.
download one of these running apps to help you keep track of your
running progress. for running beginners, this is an excellent guide to check
out:
running for beginners7. dancing
dancing isn’t really considered to be a hugely important hobby in
terms of productivity. however, when you examine the hard work and dedication
that is undeniable in the art of dance, it starts to become more apparent in
terms of productivity merit.
dancing forces you to learn routines obsessively, training your
focus into a series of practised movements, and using that as a template for
achieving productivity in the minutiae of your daily life is something well
worth considering.8. yoga
yoga is one of the most productive hobbies you can fit into your
schedule, as it allows you to close off all external thoughts and focus
entirely on your bodily practice.
you focus strongly and single-mindedly on improving your body and
physical fitness, as well as emotional and spiritual wellbeing, and you’ll be
well prepared and more productive for the future.
find out more about the relationship between yoga and
productivity:
what yoga can teach us about productivity9. cosplaying
while cosplaying might not be a particularly mainstream hobby for
most, it is nothing more than the celebration of the love and emotion for a
particular character or media form (a television show, a film, etc.).
cosplaying can be a beneficial hobby and a way of allowing you to
accurately express your creative side, particularly if you’re in a rigid or
strenuous job; it can inspire you to work harder, and achieve higher, even
drawing upon your fictional heroes as role models.
writing journal for a better and more productive self (the how-to
guide)
science says knitting makes humans warmer and happier, mentally
doctors tell us how hiking can change our brains
scroll down to continue reading article10. reading
reading is one of the world’s most popular pursuits and past
times, and with good reason. there’re many benefits of reading.
it is also an extremely productive hobby as it can be done easily
during your downtime and ’empty time’ in which you are doing nothing.
reading research and studies about productivity, can, in turn,
make you learn new habits, behaviours, and patterns that will make you more
productive with your time.
in short: reading can be productive by allowing you to read up on
how to be productive.11. playing video games
sure, playing video games might seem like a waste of time, but the
roles and rules inherent within video games can make you more productive.
video games encourage focus, determination, trying again and again
even if you fail the first time around, teamwork, and cooperation. these are
all useful and admirable traits that will make anyone more driven and
productive at work.
12. gardening
is there anything more inherently relaxing, at least in theory,
than gardening?
gardening is not only a pleasant and relaxing pastime, but it’s
also a fantastic way to boost your productivity.
how?
gardening allows you to relax and unwind, conserving your energies
for the frantic days ahead you might have. it also teaches you about managing
different projects (or in this case plants) all at the same time.13. knitting
knitting is usually considered to be something that the elderly
and the niche of hollywood celebrities like doing, but knitters circle the
world – and for a good reason.
knitting is, aside from an enjoyable pastime and a way to craft a
perfect gift for someone you love, a fantastic tool for enhancing productivity.
it uses the same multi-tasking and planning skills that a modern-day workplace
will utilise, and it promises a physical, tangible end product to your
endeavours.
what’s more, science says knitting makes you mentally happier and
warmer.14. woodwork
woodwork is a surprisingly productive hobby because you have to
focus hard on your singular vision of what you wish to build.
constructing something of your own out of wood – whether it’s a
shelf, a spice rack, or even something more complex or beautiful – can be a
wonderful boost to your self-esteem, and building yourself the materials you
need to help make your life easier, will, in turn, make you more productive and
happier as a result.15. playing poker
playing poker may not seem like a particularly productive hobby,
but it’s undoubtedly one of the most challenging and mind-stretching card games
to play.
poker allows your mind to both unwind and practice its logical and
strategic muscles in a way that can help you make those critical decisions and
focus on those all-important goals on your workplace.16. acting
treading the boards at your local dramatic venue might not seem
like the sure-fire way to enhance your productivity muscles, but acting as a
productive hobby is not to be sniffed at.
acting forces you to reawaken those memorization abilities you
might have previously otherwise forgotten and awakens creative talents such as
improvisation and the ability to think on your feet in a crisis, making you
calmer under pressure, and more productive and competent as a result.
17. amateur radio
amateur radio isn’t a very popular pastime; otherwise, everyone would
have their radio show or podcast on itunes. however, aside from being a great
way to express your opinions and develop some public speaking chops, amateur
radio can be extremely productive.
when writing, performing, editing and producing amateur radio, you
learn about working with deadlines, developing creative ideas and storylines,
and how to do your best work in a sharp, creative burst of time – all talents
and skills that will help you be at your productive best.18. bodybuilding
bodybuilding might not seem like a particularly mainstream or
productive hobby; after all, unless you’re a particularly enthusiastic gym
bunny, you might have had little to no contact with the practice.
however, bodybuilding focuses on building up core strength,
control, self-discipline and concentrate on a key, singular vision – all key
practices which could prove to be extremely relevant and transferable in terms
of productivity in other areas of your life.
for bodybuilding beginners, here’re some tips for you:
15 bodybuilding tips for beginners19. swimming
swimming is relaxing, strengthening and an extremely positive and
healthy way of exercising. it’s also a beneficial way of becoming more
productive.
swimming can help channel all worries into something productive,
clear the mind for more positive action and thoughts, and can make you feel
more energized leaving the pool after a hearty workout.
swimming has been shown to have numerous physiological and
psychological health benefits, so there’s no reason not to head to your local
pool.20. daydreaming
okay, so maybe this last one isn’t what is technically considered
to be a ‘hobby’, but it still has benefits when practised regularly and will
make you more productive if used correctly.
daydreaming awaken your creative side and allows you to explore
ideas that you never even considered – even ideas that might just prove to be
the solution you’ve been after.
if daydreaming leads to napping, that’s even better – studies have
shown that a quick 20-minute nap in the afternoon can help provide clarity,
memory retention, and help make you even more focused and productive with your
batteries recharged.
who said there weren’t benefits to daydreaming?
7 things you should be asking google home
anthony caruana
apr 14, 2020, 5:45pm⋅ filed to:
australian stories
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useful best cool ways google home
now that google home, or google nest, has been around for a while,
an ecosystem is building around the platform. that means the number of apps and
hardware that work with google's digital concierge keeps growing every day.
what are some of the things you can ask google to do for you?
we've looked at some of the cool things you can ask google home,
but google keeps making their home-based ai smarter.
google home can multitask
you can combine questions to google home. so, rather than asking
google to play some music and then set the volume to 50 per cent in two
actions, you can say "hey google, play my 80s playlist from spotify at 50
per cent volume".
help the kids 'cheat' on maths homework
"google, what're 26 times 32".
as well as arithmetic, google can help with probabilities as you
can ask it to roll a die or flip a coin.
that's probably easier than stealing a die from the monopoly box
that's likely hiding in a cupboard somewhere.
everything your google home can do is now listed on one incredibly
useful website
if you picked up a google home recently, you might be wondering
what it's good for besides checking the weather and playing music. google's
smart speakers may not boast as many third-party skills as amazon's alexa, but
there's still a ton you can do.
role-playing games
we're about to start playing a family game of dungeons and
dragons, to indoctrinate the youngest members of the family. while we already
have a massive stash of dice for playing, we can also use google home.
i suspect there will be many calls like "hey google, roll
3d20". the home says okay, we hear a device roll and it replies "it's
13 13 12 for a total of 38".
if you're into traditional games, then simply rolling a normal die
or dice is also available.
universal translator
i grew up watching star trek and was fascinated when, during star
trek: enterprise, we saw the evolution and development of the universal translator.
and while we're not quite there yet for real-time systems, you can ask your
google home to translate a phrase from english to other languages and back.
ten google assistant tricks you should be using
google assistant is everywhere. from android handsets to hundreds
of smart home accessories, including google home, it's becoming embedded in our
workplaces and abodes. but how do you get the most from google assistant? here
are our top ten tips, hacks and tricks for a better experience with google
assistant.
time to chill
google home works with several health and relaxation apps like
headspace
you can say "hey google, talk to headspace" and you'll
be guided through a meditation so you can refresh your mind and get back to
maximum productivity or help you relax before you hit the sack.
around the house
of course, google home integrates with your entertainment,
assuming you're using compatible gear.
you can ask a google home to find and play clips from youtube and
music from spotify, google music and others.
if you've got set up your gear to work with logitech's harmony
remotes, you can ask google to turn those devices on and off as well as just
volume, change channels or run sequences of events you've programmed such as
firing up the blu-ray player and setting the inputs and outputs appropriately.
and if you've installed some smart lighting and switching gear,
you can control your lights and other devices but issuing a command starting
with "hey google".
easter eggs
not everything about google home is serious. there are a few fun
things you can try.
"hey google, set phasers to stun."
"hey google, are you skynet."
"hey google, make me a sandwich"there are heaps of
others, and it's a fair bet you'll discover your own by trying some ridiculous
phrases.
