How to Manage Time With 10 Tips That Work

Chances are good that, at some time in your life, you've taken a time management class, read about it in books, and tried to use an electronic or paper-based day planner to organize, prioritize and schedule your day. "Why, with this knowledge and these gadgets," you may ask, "do I still feel like I can't get everything done I need to?"

The answer is simple. Everything you ever learned about managing time is a complete waste of time because it doesn't work.

Before you can even begin to manage time, you must learn what time is. A dictionary defines time as "the point or period at which things occur." Put simply, time is when stuff happens.

There are two types of time: clock time and real time. In clock time, there are 60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour, 24 hours in a day and 365 days in a year. All time passes equally. When someone turns 50, they are exactly 50 years old, no more or no less.

In real time, all time is relative. Time flies or drags depending on what you're doing. Two hours at the Department of Motor Vehicles can feel like 12 years. And yet our 12-year-old children seem to have grown up in only two hours.

Which time describes the world in which you really live, real time or clock time?

The reason time management gadgets and systems don't work is that these systems are designed to manage clock time. Clock time is irrelevant. You don't live in or even have access to clock time. You live in real time, a world in which all time flies when you are having fun or drags when you are doing your taxes.

The good news is that real time is mental. It exists between your ears. You create it. Anything you create, you can manage. It's time to remove any self-sabotage or self-limitation you have around "not having enough time," or today not being "the right time" to start a business or manage your current business properly.

There are only three ways to spend time: thoughts, conversations and actions. Regardless of the type of business you own, your work will be composed of those three items.

As an entrepreneur, you may be frequently interrupted or pulled in different directions. While you cannot eliminate interruptions, you do get a say on how much time you will spend on them and how much time you will spend on the thoughts, conversations and actions that will lead you to success.

Practice the following techniques to become the master of your own time:

Carry a schedule and record all your thoughts, conversations and activities for a week. This will help you understand how much you can get done during the course of a day and where your precious moments are going. You'll see how much time is actually spent producing results and how much time is wasted on unproductive thoughts, conversations and actions.Any activity or conversation that's important to your success should have a time assigned to it. To-do lists get longer and longer to the point where they're unworkable. Appointment books work. Schedule appointments with yourself and create time blocks for high-priority thoughts, conversations, and actions. Schedule when they will begin and end. Have the discipline to keep these appointments.Plan to spend at least 50 percent of your time engaged in the thoughts, activities and conversations that produce most of your results.Schedule time for interruptions. Plan time to be pulled away from what you're doing. Take, for instance, the concept of having "office hours." Isn't "office hours" another way of saying "planned interruptions?"Take the first 30 minutes of every day to plan your day. Don't start your day until you complete your time plan. The most important time of your day is the time you schedule to schedule time.Take five minutes before every call and task to decide what result you want to attain. This will help you know what success looks like before you start. And it will also slow time down. Take five minutes after each call and activity to determine whether your desired result was achieved. If not, what was missing? How do you put what's missing in your next call or activity?Put up a "Do not disturb" sign when you absolutely have to get work done.Practice not answering the phone just because it's ringing and e-mails just because they show up. Disconnect instant messaging. Don't instantly give people your attention unless it's absolutely crucial in your business to offer an immediate human response. Instead, schedule a time to answer email and return phone calls.Block out other distractions like Facebook and other forms of social media unless you use these tools to generate business.Remember that it's impossible to get everything done. Also remember that odds are good that 20 percent of your thoughts, conversations and activities produce 80 percent of your results.

managing time , time management

How to Manage Time With 10 Tips That Work

Adewale Wednesday, 23 August 2017

CAN PHONES DAMAGED ATM CARDS

Fact or Fable? Cell Phones Corrupt Credit Card Magnetic Strips

Key Points

• Demagnetization simply means that one magnet has outperformed, or is stronger than, another magnet.
• It is highly unlikely a credit card can be demagnetized by being close to a cell phone.
• Despite claims of demagnetization, magnetic strips are more often corrupted by scratches and small bends.

Have you ever attempted to make a payment with your debit or credit card and been told the transaction could not be completed because your card had been demagnetized? Or, have you been warned by a hotel concierge to “Be sure to keep your cell phone away from your key card” for fear that it may demagnetize it? But, is a cell phone's magnetic force really strong enough to demagnetize your credit, identification or hotel key card?
In order to find the answer to this question, you must first understand how credit cards and other cards with magnetic information strips work.
To start with the basics, many cards - such as bank cards, ATM cards, driver’s licenses, membership cards, hotel key cards, and many arcade and amusement facility cards - use magnetic strips on the back to store identification information. The magnetic strip on a credit card, for example, often contains the cardholder’s name, account number, pin number, expiration date, country of issuance, security code and other pertinent information.
Card scanners “read” the programmed information on magnetic strips, which is encoded on tiny iron particles. These iron particles are aligned on a magnetic field, which means the data contained on the strip may be vulnerable to demagnetization by other items with magnetic fields stronger than that of the card. In laymen’s terms, demagnetization simply means that one magnet has outperformed, or is stronger than, another magnet. When this happens, the stronger magnet scrambles the information encoded onto the magnetic fields on your card’s magnetic strip.
So the question is: Is the magnetic field of a cell phone strong enough to demagnetize your credit card? Simply put, the answer is “no.”
Cards that adhere to industry standards, such as bank cards, are nearly impossible to demagnetize with the magnets available to the public, such as a refrigerator magnet, the magnets inside a wallet or purse, or the magnetic field in a cell phone. Generally, to demagnetize a credit card, it would take a 1,000 gauss magnetic field. For perspective, an MRI machine may have a 15,000 gauss magnetic field while typical magnetic items you come in contact with on a daily basis range from 0 to 100 gauss. For example, a good refrigerator magnet will typically have a magnetic field intensity of 100 gauss but a cell phone's magnetic field intensity ranges from just 1.2 to 10 milligauss. That said, it is highly unlikely that a credit card can be demagnetized from being in close proximity to a cell phone.
Despite claims of demagnetization, however, magnetic strips are more often corrupted by scratches and small bends. Even the faintest scratches can do enough damage to make your card's information unreadable

Technology

CAN PHONES DAMAGED ATM CARDS

Adewale Friday, 18 August 2017

Who is a Leader

What Is Leadership?

Leaders are people who do the right thing; managers are people who do things right.– Professor Warren G. Bennis

Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it.– Dwight D. Eisenhower

The word "leadership" can bring to mind a variety of images, for example:

A political leader, pursuing a passionate, personal cause.An explorer, cutting a path through the jungle for the rest of his group to follow.An executive, developing her company's strategy to beat the competition.

Leaders help themselves and others to do the right things. They set direction, build an inspiring vision, and create something new. Leadership is about mapping out where you need to go to "win" as a team or an organization; and it is dynamic, exciting, and inspiring.

Yet, while leaders set the direction, they must also use management skills to guide their people to the right destination, in a smooth and efficient way.

In this article, we'll focus on the process of leadership. In particular, we'll discuss the "transformational leadership" model, first proposed by James MacGregor Burns and then developed by Bernard Bass. This model highlights visionary thinking and bringing about change, instead of management processes that are designed to maintain and steadily improve current performance.

Note:

Leadership means different things to different people around the world, and different things in different situations. For example, it could relate to community leadership, religious leadership, political leadership, and leadership of campaigning groups.

This article focuses on the Western model of individual leadership, and discusses leadership in the workplace rather than in other areas.

Leadership: a Definition

According to the idea of transformational leadership , an effective leader is a person who does the following:

Creates an inspiring vision of the future.Motivates and inspires people to engage with that vision.Manages delivery of the vision.Coaches and builds a team, so that it is more effective at achieving the vision.

Leadership brings together the skills needed to do these things. We'll look at each element in more detail.

1. Creating an Inspiring Vision of the Future

In business, a vision is a realistic, convincing and attractive depiction of where you want to be in the future. Vision provides direction, sets priorities, and provides a marker, so that you can tell that you've achieved what you wanted to achieve.

To create a vision, leaders focus on an organization's strengths by using tools such as Porter's Five Forces , PEST Analysis , USP Analysis , Core Competence Analysis  and SWOT Analysis  to analyze their current situation. They think about how their industry is likely to evolve, and how their competitors are likely to behave. They look at how they can innovate successfully , and shape their businesses and their strategies to succeed in future marketplaces. And they test their visions with appropriate market research, and by assessing key risks using techniques such as Scenario Analysis .

Therefore, leadership is proactive – problem solving, looking ahead, and not being satisfied with things as they are.

Once they have developed their visions, leaders must make them compelling and convincing. A compelling vision  is one that people can see, feel, understand, and embrace. Effective leaders provide a rich picture of what the future will look like when their visions have been realized. They tell inspiring stories , and explain their visions in ways that everyone can relate to.

Here, leadership combines the analytical side of vision creation with the passion of shared values, creating something that's really meaningful to the people being led.

2. Motivating and Inspiring People

A compelling vision provides the foundation for leadership. But it's leaders' ability to motivate and inspire people that helps them deliver that vision.

For example, when you start a new project, you will probably have lots of enthusiasm for it, so it's often easy to win support for it at the beginning. However, it can be difficult to find ways to keep your vision inspiring after the initial enthusiasm fades, especially if the team or organization needs to make significant changes in the way that it does things. Leaders recognize this, and they work hard throughout the project to connect their vision with people's individual needs, goals and aspirations.

One of the key ways they do this is through Expectancy Theory . Effective leaders link together two different expectations:

The expectation that hard work leads to good results.The expectation that good results lead to attractive rewards or incentives.

This motivates people to work hard to achieve success, because they expect to enjoy rewards – both intrinsic and extrinsic – as a result.

Other approaches include restating the vision in terms of the benefits it will bring to the team's customers, and taking frequent opportunities to communicate the vision in an attractive and engaging way.

What's particularly helpful here is when leaders have expert power . People admire and believe in these leaders because they are expert in what they do. They have credibility, and they've earned the right to ask people to listen to them and follow them. This makes it much easier for these leaders to motivate and inspire the people they lead.

Leaders can also motivate and influence people through their natural charisma and appeal, and through other sources of power , such as the power to pay bonuses or assign tasks to people. However, good leaders don't rely too much on these types of power to motivate and inspire others.

3. Managing Delivery of the Vision

This is the area of leadership that relates to management .

Leaders must ensure that the work needed to deliver the vision is properly managed – either by themselves, or by a dedicated manager or team of managers to whom the leader delegates this responsibility – and they need to ensure that their vision is delivered successfully.

To do this, team members need performance goals that are linked to the team's overall vision. Our article on Performance Management and KPIs  (Key Performance Indicators) explains one way of doing this, and our Project Management section explains another. And, for day-to-day management of delivering the vision, the Management By Wandering Around  (MBWA) approach helps to ensure that what should happen, really happens.

Leaders also need to make sure they manage change  effectively. This helps to ensure that the changes needed to deliver the vision are implemented smoothly and thoroughly, with the support and backing of the people affected.

4. Coaching and Building a Team to Achieve the Vision

Individual and team development are important activities carried out by transformational leaders. To develop a team, leaders must first understand team dynamics. Several well-established and popular models describe this, such as Belbin's Team Roles  approach, and Bruce Tuckman's Forming, Storming, Norming, and Performing theory .

A leader will then ensure that team members have the necessary skills and abilities to do their job and achieve the vision. They do this by giving and receiving feedback  regularly, and by training and coaching  people to improve individual and team performance.

Leadership also includes looking for leadership potential  in others. By developing leadership skills within your team, you create an environment where you can continue success in the long term. And that's a true measure of great leadership.

Note:

The words "leader" and "leadership" are often used incorrectly to describe people who are actually managing. These individuals may be highly skilled, good at their jobs, and valuable to their organizations – but that just makes them excellent managers, not leaders.

So, be careful how you use the terms, and don't assume that people with "leader" in their job titles, people who describe themselves as "leaders," or even groups called "leadership teams" are actually creating and delivering transformational change.

A particular danger in these situations is that people or organizations that are being managed by such an individual or group think they're being led; but they're not. There may actually be no leadership at all, with no one setting a vision and no one being inspired. This can cause serious problems in the long term.

Key Points

Leadership can be hard to define and it means different things to different people.

In the transformational leadership model, leaders set direction and help themselves and others to do the right thing to move forward. To do this they create an inspiring vision, and then motivate and inspire others to reach that vision. They also manage delivery of the vision, either directly or indirectly, and build and coach their teams to make them ever stronger.

Effective leadership is about all of this – and it's exciting to be part of this journey!

Leadership

Who is a Leader

Adewale Sunday, 13 August 2017

Surprising Benefits of COCONUT WATER

Does coconut water have a magical effect as everyone claims? You have probably heard about coconut oil and the numerous benefits it offers. Now, you will read about the biggest advantages of coconut water of which you have probably not heard before.
You probably did not know that coconut water has a practical compatible structure with the blood plasma in human bloodstream. Moreover, coconut water was used in armed conflicts in the past as a replacement for blood and numerous lives were saved in long and exhausting battles.
Nowadays, coconut water is used all around the globe. You can find it in numerous markets which offer you the chance to use the beneficial advantages of this unbelievable fruit. Coconut water does not taste very pleasantly, but this should not be the reason to avoid one of the best detoxification waters in the world.
What happens when you drink this water?
When you consume coconut water you strengthen your immune system and you eliminate the bacteria which cause urinary tract infections, gonorrhea, gum diseases and viruses which cause cold, infection diseases and typhus.
It will not only increase your energy, but it will also increase the production of thyroid gland hormones. This water is also very good for people who suffer from kidney diseases since it reacts as a natural diuretic. It will cleanse the urinary tract and the bladder canals. It will remove the toxins from the body and ‘’crash’’ the kidney stones. Coconut water is good for digestion due to the high level of fibber which it contains. If you drink it regularly it will eliminate the gastric acid. You can drink it in big amounts, since it has low levels of fat. You will lose weight, thanks to water’s ability for keeping you sated and meanwhile it lowers the appetite.
If you have acne, oily or dry skin, all you need to do is to soak a cotton wool in the coconut water and apply it to the skin. It will clean and freshen up the skin, and most importantly, it will keep the pores open. If you mix the water with olive oil, you can cleanse your organism. This mixture can remove bowel parasites.
According to experts, you can solve several health problems during pregnancy with the help of coconut water. Drink one cup of coconut water every morning and you will balance the electrolytes whose misbalance can lead to hypertension, also known as high blood pressure.
If you drink alcohol during the night you will probably have headache in the morning. So, the next time when you exaggerate with alcohol, you will remember this ‘’savior’’ if you want to get rid of the headache. Additionally, it will also compensate for the lost fluids and you will overcome the nausea which is often related with hangover.
If you want your skin to be hydrated and radiant during the entire day, one cup of coconut water will be enough. Also, after several exhausting physical activities, you can drink coconut water and you will regain energy. It will refresh you and leave a positive influence on each body part.
Increase of energy, strong immune system, protection from bacteria and infections, weight loss… What more can you wish for?
Source: Diet Of Life

Health

Surprising Benefits of COCONUT WATER

Adewale Sunday, 6 August 2017

Surface Laptop THE LATEST

Surface Laptop

Starting from $999.00

Description

• Four tone-on-tone color combinations¹ and sleek, elegant design • Luxurious Alcantara material-covered keyboard • Ultra-thin and light laptop fits easily in your bag • Breeze through tasks with a powerful Intel Core processor • Up to 14.5 hours battery life⁶ for all-day power on the go • Discreetly hidden Omnisonic speakers with Dolby Audio Premium sound • Designed for Windows 10 S² streamlined for security and superior performance • 1 year of Office³ 365 Personal included Burgundy and Graphite Gold Laptop Ships by 9/30 

Performance made personal

Go beyond the traditional laptop with Surface Laptop. It's backed by the best of Microsoft, including Windows and Office³, and delivers a natural typing experience enhanced by our signature Alcantara material-covered keyboard. Thin, light, and powerful, it fits easily in your bag.

The best of Windows and Office

Surface Laptop is designed for Windows 10 S²—streamlined for security and superior performance. By exclusively using Microsoft-verified apps from the Windows Store, Windows 10 S keeps you running fast and secure day in and day out. Enjoy the Windows you know, Microsoft-verified apps delivered via the Windows Store, and the convenience of the cloud.

Discover Windows 10 S >

Need to install professional tools or run non-Windows Store apps? Switch to Windows 10 Pro for free. Go to the Windows Store, search Windows 10 Pro.

Beautifully designed and crafted

Surface Laptop complements your personal style with the blend of texture, subtle details, and clean lines. Feel the luxurious touch of our Alcantara covered keyboard. The soft, durable material is created to easily wipe clean and offers a comfortable typing experience.

Four rich tone-on-tone color combinations

Clean and elegant, Surface Laptop complements your style with a choice of four rich tone-on-tone color combinations¹—Platinum, Burgundy, Cobalt Blue, and Graphite Gold.

The perfect balance of portability and performance

At just 2.76 pounds, Surface Laptop fits easily in your bag, provides all-day battery life⁶, and has a powerful Intel Core processor to handle demanding desktop programs. Enjoy Dolby Audio Premium sound without added bulk or speaker grills thanks to built-in Omnisonic speakers.

A stunning screen that responds to your touch

Experience faster, easier, more natural navigation—with razor-sharp resolution for photographs, videos, and presentations—on the vibrant 13.5-inch PixelSense Display with touchscreen. Enjoy more space for your ideas with an edge-to-edge display and ultra-thin bezel.

Best care and support at Microsoft Stores

When you buy a Surface from Microsoft Store, you'll receive unrivaled customer service and personalized care, including a 30-day return policy, 90 days of free technical phone support, 12 months in-store support and technical assistance, 1 complimentary training session, and more.

Tech specs

Software	Windows 10 S Prefer to run non-Store apps? Easily switch to Windows 10 Pro for free until Dec 31, 2017.2 Introductory offer: Includes 1 year of Office 365 Personal3
Display	Screen: 13.5 in PixelSense Display Resolution: 2256 x 1504 (201 PPI) Aspect ratio 3:2 3.4 million pixels Surface Pen5 enabled Touch: 10-point multi-touch Corning Gorilla Glass
Processor	7th Gen Intel Core i5 or i7
Memory	4GB, 8GB, or 16GB RAM
Storage	Solid state drive (SSD) options: 128GB, 256GB, or 512GB4
Graphics	Intel HD 620 (i5) Intel Iris Plus Graphics 640 (i7)
Camera, video and audio	Windows Hello face sign-in camera 720p HD camera (front-facing) Stereo microphones Omnisonic speakers with Dolby Audio Premium 3.5mm headphone jack
Ports	USB 3.0 3.5mm Headset jack mini DisplayPort Surface Connect
Wireless	Wi-Fi: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n compatible Bluetooth: Bluetooth 4.0 LE
Battery life	Up to 14.5 hours video playback6
Security	TPM chip Enterprise-grade protection with Windows Hello face sign-in
Dimensions	12.13” x 8.79” x .57” (308.02 mm x 223.20 mm x 14.47 mm)
Weight	i5: 2.76 lbs (1.25 kg) i7: 2.83 lbs (1.28 kg)
Exterior	Casing: Aluminum Color: Platinum, Burgundy, Cobalt Blue, Graphite Gold1
Sensors	Ambient light sensor
Warranty	1-year limited hardware warranty
What's in the box	Surface Laptop Power Supply Quick Start Guide Safety and warranty documents

FAQ

What operating system does Surface Laptop run?

Windows 10 S.

What is Windows 10 S?

Windows 10 S is a specific configuration of Windows 10 Pro that offers a familiar, productive Windows experience that’s streamlined for security and performance. By exclusively using apps in the Windows Store and ensuring that you browse safely with Microsoft Edge, Windows 10 S keeps you running fast and secure day in and day out.

Who is Windows 10 S designed for?

Windows 10 S was inspired by students and teachers and it’s the best Windows ever for schools. It’s also a great choice for any Windows user looking for consistent performance and advanced security. By limiting apps to those in the Windows Store, Windows 10 S is ideal for people who have everything they need in the Windows Store and prefer the peace of mind that comes with removing the risk of downloading apps from other places.

Can I switch to Windows 10 Pro?

Switching to Windows 10 Pro is easy. If you want to do more, like run non-Store apps or use advanced features like remote desktop and BitLocker, you can easily switch at any time.

• Simply go to the Settings Menu on your device, or visit the Windows Store to get started.

• Making the switch is free until December 31, 2017. After December 31, the cost for Windows 10 Pro will be $49.

Surface Laptop THE LATEST

Adewale Thursday, 3 August 2017