by Roger on February 18, 2009
Photo courtesy of rogerwp
Awhile back, the Life Hacker blog posted an articled entitled Reducing Your Bills by Just Asking. The post stated that:
“Negotiating with companies during an economic downturn can be surprisingly effective.”
I couldn’t agree with this more. Simply just asking for a discount is probably the most overlooked way to save money. As a businessman myself, I very often receive requests from prospective customers asking for a discount. I run a small computer courseware company and often, I will receive a request like, “Will you give a discount for a non-profit organization?” or “Do you offer discounts to government employees?”
My response usually is, “Sure. How does 15% sound?”
I think about it this way: which is preferable, an order for $1,020 or no order at all? I had someone call me one day and ask me: “I am checking out several courseware companies. Will you give us a discount?” Without even thinking, I offered my standard 15% discount. The customer placed the order right then and there. Now, he may have placed the order anyway…or he may not have.
During these economic times, I feel that companies will even be more willing to negotiate. Recently, I was contemplating joining a local health club. I made an e-mail inquiry and was quoted a $195 initiation charge and a $78 monthly membership fee. Just for grins, I e-mailed them back and said, “That’s a bit pricey. Do you offer any discounts?” The next day, I received an e-mail with a new quote: no initiation fee and $68 a month. I’m still thinking about it.
A friend of mine recently called her cable company and asked for a discount. They knocked off $20 off of her monthly bill. So don’t be afraid to ask for discounts from your cable company, health club, credit card company (you can often negotiate lower interest rates), local retailers, etc.
The worst thing they can do is to say is no….but they may say yes.
by Roger on February 17, 2009
Image courtesy of david.orban
Yesterday, I posted about the importance of keeping a schedule. I later received an e-mail asking me how specific the schedule should be. My answer: as specific as necessary to make it work for you. If you feel that you need the discipline to plan out every moment of your day, then by all means do so. The important thing is that your schedule succeeds in keeping you on task and helps you to accomplish your goals. While I do have a set time for my daily goals, I keep my schedule flexible enough so that I can rearrange things and times if need be.
Below is my schedule at the current moment in time. It is continuously open for review and modification:
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by Roger on February 16, 2009
Image courtesy of silent-penguin
One of the most important things that you can do to be more productive is to create a daily schedule. When I first started working for myself, I had a standard “To-Do List” – a list that included all of the things that I wanted to accomplish during the day. For some reason however, I was never able to get through my list. Some days I did fairly well and got through the majority of the items on my list. Other days, I was only able to get through one or two items. At this time in my life, I felt that since I worked for myself, I didn’t have to follow a set schedule. I wanted to be free, spontaneous and not feel that I had to structure my life.
I enjoyed the ability to do whatever I wanted but still became frustrated by the fact that I just wasn’t able to accomplish my daily goals. This was when I realized that in order for me to manage my time effectively, I would need to create and follow a schedule. I came to understand that there are different types of freedom and that if I did not learn to discipline myself to follow a schedule, I would not have the freedom to accomplish my goals. Eventually, this would mean that I would have to go back to working for someone else and adhere to someone else’s schedule – something I definitely did not want to do. While working at home meant I could set my own schedule, it did not mean that I could abandon a schedule all together.
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by Roger on February 15, 2009
Image courtesy of modomatic
For many of us, we do not like to be interrupted when we’re working and on a roll. I am one who is guilty of this and could easily sit for hours at a time at my computer without a break. This type of a routine however, can cause all types of problems: burnout, headache, extra stress, muscle problems (carpal tunnel anyone?), eye strain and more. By the end of my workday, my eyes used to sting terribly, my back would ache and I would often get shooting pain up and down my right arm (my “mouse-clicking arm”). I would also find myself extremely irritable with a very low patience level.
I then read an article about how vitally important it is to give yourself breaks away from the computer at regular intervals. I now set a timer for 45 minutes after which I take a 5 minute break (okay…sometimes it’s 10 minutes) during which I walk away from the computer, stretch, get a glass of water, have a snack, etc. It has made a world of difference and the symptoms I mentioned above seemed to disappear overnight.
I have a little timer program for the Mac called TTimer, which I set for 45 minute intervals while I’m working. The application also allows me to set multiple timers (so I can time my laundry and the pie in the oven at the same time). This type of application is ideal for those who get so focused on their work that they lose track of time. I’m sure there are many such programs available for Windows users as well.
So give your eyes, muscles and stress level a break – by taking a break!
by Roger on February 14, 2009
Photo courtesy of mikebaird
“If we keep everything in balance, we are in harmony with ourselves and are at peace.”
Fools Crow, LAKOTA
In order to have a well-balanced life, we need to have an outside life other than our work. This may be especially true if you work for yourself as it is not at all difficult to put all of your free time into your work. I was guilty of this when I first went into business for myself. Once, a friend of mine asked me, “How do you find the discipline to work at home?” It wasn’t finding the discipline to work that was the issue – it was finding the discipline to STOP WORKING that was a challenge.
Here are some questions you can ask yourself, to see if your work life and social/home life are out of balance:
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by Roger on February 12, 2009
Photo courtesy of Nickstone333
Awhile back I posted about book trading sites such as Bookmooch and Paperbackswap. A couple of days ago, I read a Lifehacker post talking about DVD Borrowing networks, such as Zunafisih and Lendaround (Paperbackswap also allows you to trade DVD’s). While I am unfamiliar with such networks, Lendaround did look interesting as it is more of a social site and only allows you to share DVDs with friends. Some of these networks also allow you to trade video games, CDs and audiobooks.
I personally do not belong to any DVD borrowing/trading networks as I either get my DVD’s from Netflix or from the library. There are people however, who prefer to own movies rather than rent. In such a case, a DVD exchange program might be a good idea. That is one of the reasons that I belong to Bookmooch and Paperbackswap – while most of the books that I read come from the library, there are a few for which I would like to find a permanent place on my bookshelf. In such a case, I log onto Bookmooch or Paperbackswap, put it on my wishlist and wait until it becomes available.
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by Roger on February 11, 2009
Image courtesy of kittenishkitten
Awhile back at a party, a friend of mine was involved in a conversation with another person, let’s call him Mr. Uppity. My friend happened to mention that he hung out his laundry and Mr. Uppity acted like he was shocked, appalled and mortified by the very idea. “You have to be kidding!” he exclaimed, a look of sheer horror on his face. “You really, truly hang out your wash? Good lord, do you have any idea what an eyesore that is?”
My friend’s face turned red and he then changed the subject. I myself was amazed at Mr. Uppity’s reaction as I too hang out my wash – and do so all year round (in the winter I hang the wash in the basement). At what point did air-drying your laundry outside become socially unacceptable? Growing up, my mother hung out our laundry on a clothesline behind our house, as did all the neighbors. I was probably well in my teens before I ever even laid my eyes on a clothes dryer. My parents never owned a dryer and the concept of it seemed foreign to me.
It has been only the past couple of years, however, that I have been hearing how hanging out one’s wash should be outlawed as it is offensive and an eyesore. I am aware of condominium associations banning the hanging out of wash, but recently I have been hearing about neighborhood attempting to ban this practice and residents are fighting for their right to hang out their clean wash on clotheslines. I was quite horrified that neighborhoods and homeowner associations are trying to ban the use of clotheslines. I have never considered a clotheslines an eyesore – in fact, I think there’s a quaintness in walking through a neighborhood and seeing sheets blowing in the breeze. [click to continue…]
by Roger on February 10, 2009
Photo courtesy of Prakhar
It was Elaine St. James, author of Simplify your Life, who gave me the idea of the Wish List. That is – rather than purchasing something on sight, I wait a minimum 30 days. I was extremely guilty of regularly making impulse purchases and then regretting it afterwards. I had many of those “what the eyes see, the heart desires” moments, only to be followed later by “what was I thinking?”
Awhile back, I started using the wish list concept. I do not allow myself any impulse purchases whatsoever. If I decide I want to buy something, I put it on a list where it has to remain for at least 30 days. Quite often, I completely forget about the item or decide later upon reviewing my list that I really didn’t want/need the item after all. I couldn’t begin to tell you how much money I’ve saved doing this or how much less clutter I have brought into the house.
When I am at a physical store, I carry a little notebook that fits into my pocket and if I should happen to see something that I want to purchase, I write it in my notebook. It is then added to my main wish list on my computer when I get home. In order to make this work, you have to be strict in adhering to the rule of “No impulse purchases of any kind, under any circumstances, for any reason.” [click to continue…]
by Roger on February 9, 2009
Today, Amazon announced that the “Kindle 2 ” – the second generation of its popular e-book reader – will ship beginning on February 24. I admit that I am the proud owner of a Kindle 1 and actually purchased mine shortly after they came out. I agonized for weeks about spending that kind of money, but I’m glad I did. I probably read 3-5 books a week on it and rarely travel anywhere wihtout it (I’ve been meaning to post my review of the Kindle for awhile but haven’t gotten around to it yet – so stay tuned).
According to Amazon’s site, the Kindle 2 is much slimmer than its predecessor, about the thickness of a magazine (.36″) . The Next and Previous buttons are smaller, which is a welcome change. It was too darn easy to hit one of the buttons every time you picked up the device. Other enhancements include 25% longer battery life, the ability to charge the device on your computer using a USB connection, and faster page turns. [click to continue…]
by Roger on February 8, 2009
Image courtesy of Julianne Hide
You have put together your goal list. You are excited, motivated and your blood is boiling. Diligently, you work on your goals, making daily regular progress. Then one day – about a month or so later – you decide that you don’t feel like working on your goals today. Or perhaps you think, “This idea is stupid! What was I thinking?” and that is the end of the goal list.
This funk is not unusual – I used to go through this sort of thing every year. I’d start something, build up excitement over it and then discard it, feeling foolish that I ever thought it was a good idea in the first place. This may be one of the reasons that there are so many unfinished novels in the world. It is almost as if we try to sabotage ourselves. I personally call this annoying phase my “dark night of the soul.”
Below are a few ways that I have found to help get out of this funk:
1. Recognizing the funk
One of the first steps you can take to get out of the funk is simply recognizing it when it hits. After many years of going through the same thing and abandoning my projects or goals, one year I thought “Oh, you again!” At last I recognized this foul mood occurs regularly – and usually has nothing to do with my choice of projects or goals. Once you recognize it for what it is, it becomes much easier to say, “Ah – it’s only my yearly funk setting in.”
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