You are here: Home / Archives for Misc

Where Are You Going and Where Have You Been

May 13, 2012 By 4 Comments

Wow, I know it’s been awhile since I wrote a blog post but there is so much craziness going on in my life! Hmm…where to even begin?? Well first I guess I’ll start with the fact that I’ve been traveling every week now for the past 2 months to Austin, Texas for my day job. Kinda crazy huh? I leave Monday mornings and get back Thursday nights so that makes my weekends a hectic rush to try to get everything done as quick as I can, still go out with friends and have a life and also try to get some down time  in there.

I gotta tell ya, it’s been a hard adjustment for me!

But the thing is, I really like my job and the project I’m on. The travel is what makes it tough. Since there is no direct flight from STL to Austin, I’m traveling about 12-15 hours a week on top of working 40 hours!! Wow, huh?

The crazy thing I’m learning about living the “traveling consultant” life is that I care zero (that’s right) ZERO about my finances. I know you probably thought you’d never hear me utter those words but now my life is about saving TIME not money. Time is so precious to me that I can’t afford to waste it.

Which is also probably why it’s hard for me to write a blog post, because I’m doing the opposite of what I’ve always said to do!

It’s going to be interesting over the next few months and I”m going to try to blog more regularly about it. I guess I needed to warn you that if your coming here to find new ways to save money, I’m not going to have that for you! You can still look in the archives to find that kind of information. These days for me, it’s all about things that save me time.

It’s sometimes weird the path that life takes us on. I firmly believe that everything happens for a reason and that even things that you might try to fight in the beginning can open your world up to new possibilities if you are open to it and will let it happen :)

Have you had something unexpected happen in life that has completely changed your direction? Feel free to leave a comment below and share your thoughts!

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Main, Misc

3 Productivity Apps to Help you Get More Done

March 5, 2012 By 12 Comments

A couple of weeks ago I dropped my HTC Evo Android phone into water. I really did a number on this phone because it was going through some sort of short circuit thing and I actually had the andriod man dancing across the bottom of the screen! I didn’t even know that was possible!

This happened the night before I was getting ready to go out of town for the weekend so I didn’t have time to mail the phone in under the insurance plan I had so faithfully paid for but was now useless. Since Sprint acquired the iPhone and became all haughty with what they do and do not offer now, I was laughed at when I asked if Sprint still did loaner phones! HA. Apparently that went out with the rotary phone, how outdated was I.

After spending 2 hours in the Sprint store and negotiating with them, I walked away with a brand new iPhone 4S, a second line (in the event this happens again) and a lower phone bill (how I did all that is a different story for another day!).  I was planning to switch to the iPhone in 52 days anyway when my contract was up so I just ended up getting it a little sooner.



Now that I’ve had some time to get used to the iPhone (I love it by the way) I wanted to share 3 productivity apps to help you get more done. These apps have actually been quite life changing for me. They work like they say they do and I don’t have to worry about losing anything (like I did with my Evo that never wanted to sync to gmail even though they are both Google products?)

3 Productivity Apps to Help You Get More Done

Calendar - Yes the standard calendar app that comes with the iPhone is amazing. One thing I could never figure out about my Android phone was why it could not sync appointments I set in my Google calendar with my phone?! The built in calendar with the iPhone works flawlessly. I am able to sync my gmail calendars (yes all calendars) & work calendar in one place. Before having my iPhone, I still kept a paper calendar because the syncing between my calendars was too unreliable. Now that problem is solved! I love having everything in one place.

Seize the Day – I’m a huge fan of lists and I’ve always got scraps of paper everywhere to remind me to do something. Seize the Day has eliminated my lists and now I have everything in one place. One of my favorite features of this app is that I can add items to my list with out a due date and categorize them as “at some point…” that way if I have an idea for something for this blog or think I need to buy something that I probably don’ t need, I can add it to my list to follow up with at some point. Then I can look back at that list after I’ve had more time to think about it and decide if that idea was really as good as I thought or if I really need to buy what I thought I just HAD to have!

This is especially useful when I’m working on my blog. I have tons of ideas and in the past, my ideas have caused me to skip finishing something because I move on to the next “thing” that I want to do. This app lets me capture that idea so I don’t forget but I don’t feel the urgency to drop everything and do it now.



When I used a paper calendar, my to do list was a mile long and I always had to rewrite everything to carry it over to the next day,week or month. Seize the day carries all these items over for you and puts them at the top of your list, so handy!!

Seize the Day Home Screen

There are two things this app is missing. The ability to add pictures to a task (sometimes I’d rather take a picture of something I’ve written down to remind me) and to be able to use the voice to text option. But even without these two things, this app was still life changing for me.

There are many other features to this app which including viewing your tasks on your calendar, syncing with gmail tasks, adding notes, & tagging your tasks. If your an organizing junkie like me, it’s worth exploring! The app is free to use or $3.99 if you want to remove the ads.

Seize the Day list view (with ads)

Note Master – In addition to having an ongoing to do list, sometimes I need more organization with my to do list (yes I know, this is probably taking organization to the next level!). Note master  has that missing element from Seize the Day of being able to add pictures, but it is also so much more! Here’s a screenshot of my Note  Master homepage:

My Note Master Homepage

 

I keep a running list of my meal plan ideas, my weekly menu, my shopping list (grocery store, costco etc), blog ideas and just general things I want to remember like good quotes or other ideas I want to have in one place. This is so handy to use when I’m in a hurry because I can add check box lists, images, & drawings. It’s a pretty cool app! Here are some more screenshots:

Note Master Example 1

 

Note Master Example 2

 

These three apps have allowed me to get my thoughts better organized and is allowing me to get so much more done. I find that if I sit down for a “power hour” I can work through my list quickly and efficiently and I don’t carry a lot of “to-do’s” over to the next day!

What are your favorite productivity apps & why? Feel free to share them in the comment section!

 

Image Credit

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Main, Misc, Personal Finance

5 Ways To Survive Valentines Without A Valentine

February 13, 2012 By 3 Comments

Today’s post is a guest post from Alysa at ImpulseSave. You can read more about Alysa at the end of this post.

If you are single this Valentine’s, it seems you only have two options:

1. Date some random person so that you don’t have to face being alone
2. Go out onto your balcony and throw water balloons at every couple you see

Although angry water-pegging seems very fun – let me assure you from experience that it almost always hits the innocent bystander you don’t intend, causing increasing enjoyment for the twitterpated duo. So this V-day let me suggest option number three: face it and embrace it.

To prevent you from twisting my words and waking up in a kiddie pool with an empty bottle of tequila and a fresh tattoo reading “single and loving it!!!!!!!!” – I’ve outlined 5 dos and don’t for February 14:

1. Do treat yourself to something you’ve had your eye on. A good friend recently bought a pair of expensive leather boots while she was unemployed. Why? Because she loves fashion and knows the impact that dressing well has on her self-presentation.  She had applied to 30 jobs in the last month – and hadn’t heard back from a single one. To keep her spirits up while interviewing she bought the boots and – two weeks later she had a cubicle with her name on it.

Now I’m not saying that if you buy yourself something nice that you’ll get the desired result – whether that be a romantic or otherwise. But she did know that to make it through the rough patch she needed to treat herself. In a similar way whether you are recently single, going on your third year or have never had a significant other – it’s important to give yourself a little something, especially on a day that can get us down like none other.

2. Don’t go out with 5 girlfriends in a dress your mother would cry to see you in. There is seriously nothing more degrading than watching girls with low self-esteem drink lots and pretend to have fun together because they didn’t want to be alone. Now you may think I’m terribly rude but I’m only saying this because I’ve done this – I’ve been there and the extra sugar and calories in an attempt to forget that I’m alone and I don’t want you to do this. You’re worth far too much to put yourself (let alone your poor liver) through this! Besides, if you wear a dress that would scandalize your mother you’re asking for trouble: too many bad decisions are made on this night of idealized romance.

3. Don’t be afraid to stay in: while the world dawns their petty coats and heads out for a required evening of romance (how romantic!) I have found it best for me to stay inside. I’ve had one to many urges to strangle young love as it stared me in the face and I hated sitting at a table by myself or even with girlfriends.You don’t have to prove anything by going out. There are many fun, inexpensive ways to have fun in the safety of your own home or that of a friend. Play games, bake cookies, catch up on Downton Abbey, clean out your closet and your friend’s closet for a little clothing swap :)

4. Don’t be hard on yourself: There is nothing wrong with being single and there is nothing wrong with you. I mean it – well, I mean it in the sense that we’re all messed up and have baggage and the important part is to keep working through it – not to wallow in mistakes of the past. Besides – you’re great and as great as it would feel to have someone else’s arms around you, learning to love yourself for who you are is the foundation of being able to love someone else: parent, child, boyfriend, husband, girlfriend or otherwise. You are who you are and whether that’s in a couple or flying solo, who you are really won’t change.

5.  Do remember that it’s just a day. 24 little hours: 1 day out of 366 this year. So don’t exaggerate the importance of it. Life goes on (thank goodness) and who knows what February 15th will hold?

 

Alysa (a-lee-sah) is a bit of a mixed bag. She’s interested in people which leads her to study everything from socio-linguistics to behavioral economics, to ad campaigns (you should see her copies of Vogue). When she’s not on the train, she’s in Beverly, MA probably walking on the beach. Her favorite thing to do is take pictures with her film camera and write screenplays for her husband, The Great Filmmaker.  Alysa serves as Marketing Director at ImpulseSave, which in Start-Up means she’s spearheading everything from social media engagement, writing and managing content on the blog, developing relationships with channel partners and getting people in to test the product: You should try it! ;)

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Bar, Misc

Too Busy to Exercise? How to Fit Fitness Into Your Busy Schedule

January 11, 2012 By 10 Comments

Yes it’s January and that means most of us start to think about exercise and what we can do to finally lose those last 10 pounds. In the past, I’ve actually had to get creative with my workout times because the facilities I went to were just too crowded with all the January newbies!

As busy women, we may be making the excuse that we are just too busy to exercise. While some days that may seem true, we still need to find ways to fit our workouts into our busy schedule.  Exercise can help with your general overall being by reducing stress and making you feel better overall. Then add in the bonus of weight loss and it makes exercise even better!

Exercise isn’t something you should just do in January, it is something that needs to be done consistenly over time to feel better overall. If you find you are too busy to exercise, here are six tips to fit exercise in your busy schedule:

1. Decide the best time to work out – Are you an early bird or a night owl? Knowing that can help you determine the best time for you to work out. If you get up early, this may be the best time for you to workout. If you are up later, you might find working out after work is better for you. There are pros and cons to both so you will probably have to test it out to see what works best for you. I’m generally a night owl but I was still able to train myself to get up for early (5:30 am!) workouts.

2. Location- Once you know the best time for you to work out, you can decide the location. If you are working out in the morning, you will probably want to choose a facility that is close to you. The last thing you will want to do is have to drive 20 or 30 minutes to workout early in the morning because this will take away from your workout time.If you are going to work out in the evening, you may pick a facility close to your work so you can avoid sitting in commuter traffic. You will get your workout out of the way and have a smooth ride home.

If you plan to work out at home, you will want to make sure you have an area in your home that can accomodate the type of workouts you plan to do.



3. Pick Your Workouts – The facility you choose is going to have different types of programs to choose from. You may be in favor of group exercise classes or you may prefer to use the free weights. What ever you decide your work out to be, make sure you have an idea of what you are planning to do ahead of time so you don’t waste time while you are there.

If you are working out at home, what will you be doing? You can borrow exercise dvd’s from the library or stream an online program like The Gym Box (free for 15 days then $10 a month) to mix up your routine.

4. Number of Weekly Workouts – How often do you plan to workout each week? It’s a good idea to shoot for 5-6 hours of some form of exercise each week. But don’t over do it! If you are just starting out, aim for 3 hours and work your way up.



5. Set Appointments with Yourself (& keep them!) – If you are planning to utilize group exercise classes, you can pick the classes you want to do and then enter them into your calendar like a regular appointment. I like to do this on Sunday when I’m planning my week. I pick the classes I’m going to do and fit them in around my schedule.

If you workout at home, you still need to set appointments with yourself to make sure you fit your exercise in! One of the downfalls of working out at home is its easy to say you will do it later. I don’t think 11 p.m. is an optimal time to workout for most people so when you set appointments you can ensure you fit your workout in.

6. Set 2 Extra Extra Appointments Each Week – This helps you to have “catch-up” classes in the event you are not able to make one of your scheduled appointments. It also gives you a backup plan so your week doesn’t get off track if you miss one of your workouts.

You may need to adjust your schedule weekly or monthly, depending on what your lifestyle is like. The trick is to find ways to work exercise in with what you are already doing. If you got up a few minutes earlier, what type of exercise could you do each day? Instead of watching tv after you get home from work, can you go for a walk with a friend or walk the neighbors dog? The lasting changes are made when we take small and steady steps instead of trying to make sweeping changes at once.

What is one small change you can make today to fit exercise into your schedule?

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Bar, Misc Tagged With: ,
« Older Posts