There are few household chores that I enjoy less than moving clothes from the washer to the dryer.
Well, okay that’s an exaggeration. I don’t like cleaning toilets, I hate sweeping (why sweep, you’re just going to mop it up anyway) and dusting causes me to have allergy attacks that leave me incapacitated for 30 minutes to an hour afterward.
Be that as it may, doing laundry’s never going to be one of those things that makes me jump for joy. (Except when it’s really cold out and the sheets are fresh from the dryer and I can nap in them. You don’t even need a bed, just roll out on the floor.)
I hang dry a fair amount of my clothes so they won’t shrink. Yes, I’ve thought about getting a size larger, but it just doesn’t fit the same afterward. So sorting through my clothes makes laundry a bit more of a project. Worse, Jon’s taken to doing the same – one of the perks of living with someone is that you’re weird quirks rub off.
Today, yet again, I thought to myself, you know, if I marked these clothes with a laundry marker, sorting them would be faster and more efficient. This is true. But have I ever taken the time to pick up a laundry marker? (Which may, in fact, just be a fancy word for Sharpie, I’m unclear on that.) It’s just never a priority.
So, when does a pain point become so unbearable that you decide to act on it? What things in your life do you just put off and put off until you are forced into action? And how bad does something have to get before you change it?
It might be worth trying to change this by devoting a day to accomplishing all the life-changing tasks that you can reasonably manage in one day. How much would this change your life? Besides the small satisfaction that comes from making little positive changes that directly benefit your daily life, what would the benefits be? Try it, and post how well it went.
I used to think networking was like serial-dating.
You walk into a room full of ready-to-connect (or at least, mildly hopeful) people, and walk out with as many business cards as you can carry comfortably in one of those huge business-style purses, which is to say about fifty or sixty thousand.
After attempting this a few times, I realized that this is not the way to go. I’d leave with the cards, but I’d have only vague ideas of who these people were, and probably made even less of an impression myself. Also, my purse was heavy.
A 2 minute chat is unlikely to lead to a meaningful connection. Especially if you’re just covering the basics, and aren’t really listening to each other.
Ask more specific questions. For example, instead of asking what someone does for a living, ask them what they’re currently working on, what they’re reading, or their thoughts on the infamous Shetland Pony Massacre of ‘73, then wipe a tear from your eye and blow your nose loudly. This last one tends to scare people, but at least you’ll be memorable.
The point is, delve into your conversation a bit more, and see if you have any common ground. You won’t always, but extend to people the courtesy of spending more than 30 seconds to find out. Unless they’re dead boring. Then, covertly set your suit sleeve on fire, pretend to panic, and make your escape.
Leanne’s Perspective on Networking Online
This applies to social networking, too. Ask yourself these questions – Who are my connections? Why are I connected with them? If I was trapped in a room with all of them for 72 hours, which of them would move me to attempt self-immolation?
There are good and bad reasons to add people to your network. Some people like to add everyone who reaches out them. Some people go hunting for connections, and add dozens of random people, just to be connected. With so many directories out there (“The Top 50 most connected people out of 26 million+ LinkedIn members!”, Twitter’s Top Followed, Plurkmania), it’s easy to decide that EVERYONE is your friend, or should be.
But how much time do you take to devote to these friendships?
Alternatively, some people only add people they know in real life. This turns me off more than soggy beets soaked in bleu cheese dressing. Making new connections is part of the beauty of social networking – not only can you find or form communities with others with common interests, but you can connect with people completely out of your everyday arena as well.
My goal is to strive for a happy medium. This is tough for me, because I tend to do things to excess. To keep myself in check, I go by this system: I add real life personal and professional contacts if they use the same networks as I do, and after that I only add people who seem particular witty, kind, or informative. And yes, I have my share of gurus whom I add because I want to learn from them.
Questions for You (Yes, You, You Sexy Beast.)
Those are my guidelines, what are yours?
How meaningful are your connections? How would you define a meaningful connection?
Are you a good connection (do you offer others time, your services, your advice or connections)?
And most importantly, what are your thoughts on the infamous Shetland Pony Massacre of ‘73?
I have to take a moment here and do a tribute post. Don’t worry, it won’t be boring, it won’t consist solely of links, and there is a definite reason that you should do what it says.
Recently, someone sent me a link to howmuchisyoursoulworth.com. We were discussing online quizzes, and he brought this up as an example. He had originally found it on JohnChow.com, and John Chow, I have to hand it to you – thanks for posting about this. And, thanks to the co-worker, who directed me to it.
I love this quiz. I want to seek out the writer behind it, and hire them as a copywriter for my World Domination propaganda pamphlets. And all my World Domination marketing campaign landing pages. You go, Satanically-inspired writers of the world, get your freak on.
I’ll tell you one thing. I set that #($*#) line on fire. And, I wish I could apply that to lines in traffic, too.
In conclusion, I have no idea what a soul dollar is, but I suddenly have a burning desire to know the soul dollar worth of everyone I know.
Take the quiz! Post your worth! Force your friends to doubt (or be impressed by) their self-worth by making them take this, solely for my amusement. It’s fun, and it’s what a good friend would do.
Last Saturday, my friend Kate asked me if I was CDO. That is, OCD, but alphabetized.
I certainly am. If you know me, you know what I mean.
If you don’t, here’s a hint: this is a picture of my bookshelf. It is alphabetized by author. If I have multiple books by one author, they are further alphabetized by title, the exception being a series, which is (of course) in numerical order.
Now, this particular bit of obsessiveness comes from my time working at the library. It’s a great system – I love being able to go into almost any library and to immediately know which section a book will be in. If I really thought about it, I would probably be tempted to label & sort my books by the same system. And don’t even go there, Library of Congress classification trumps Dewey Decimal anytime.
There’s a certain beauty to order. And, I know I’m a lot less stressed when things are in place in my life. Sure, sometimes I induce madness in those around me, because of my insistence on procedure & ironing out all the details ahead of time. But, I firmly believe that you should have a plan, even if you end up deviating from it. (Please note that is part of the plan, under the heading “Contingencies” in Section 3B.)
From experience, a project will go more smoothly if everyone is informed & on schedule. And how will they know they’re on schedule if there is no schedule? Even if it means more initial legwork, it saves time and (I think more importantly) frustration in the end. Additionally, your project has a greater chance of actually succeeding, which will help keep your team from becoming demoralized and acting jaded when the next project rolls around.
That being said, organization should be balanced with innovation and creativity. It’s easy to get so caught up in the minutiae that you forget the larger goals. If you know you lean towards one end of the spectrum, work on developing balance. A great way to do this is place yourself in situations where you need to work together with someone who is on the opposite end of your spectrum. This can be hard to do, but communicating clearly and often is a good way to stay on track.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go alphabetize my spice rack. (The balance comes later, when I toss spices into things at random as I cook.)
I like to sit in our balcony garden, because it’s good exercise and you meet nice people.
Let me explain. One of my massage therapist instructors once told me a story about her mother needing an oxygen machine for a brief period of time. After the time was up, her mother held on to it, because she’d discovered the wonderful fact that – if she took frequent hits of O2 – she no longer needed to exercise to stay in shape.
I forget why this works, and I don’t recommend it (although I’d certainly try it), but I hope you can see what I’m getting at: Lots of Plants = Lots of Oxygen = so long, elliptical machine, don’t forget to write.
Anyway, while I was engaging in my morning calisthenics (sipping iced tea and rereading A Prayer for Owen Meany), I had some visitors. They were the best kind – they didn’t require small talk and they made themselves right at home, but not so much at home that they ate any of my candy. I’m actually fueled by a combination of solar power and candy, which is why I have dark hair (built in solar panel) and don’t like to share my sugar supply (GTFO). These visitors were also great because although I’m on the third floor, I didn’t have to let them in – most of them just flew themselves up.
No, all that oxygen isn’t getting to me. Nor was I visited by aliens, angels, or pilots with excruciatingly exact landing skills. (Our balcony is a good size, but as a landing field, it leaves much to be desired.)
My first visitor was a ladybug. You remember, we’ve talked about ladybugs. They are cute little aphid-eating destroyers, and I recommend them as mercenaries. It was delightful to see one. If those pestilential aphids ever come back, they’re lunch meat. She’s free to invite her friends as well, but hopefully they won’t all move in, as ladybugs like to winter indoors.
Second, a pair of dragonflies dropped by. One was a beautiful flaming red, and I regret that I didn’t get a picture of it. Dragonflies are fast. The other was green, and didn’t stick around very long either (see blurry photo to the left.)
I suggest using dragonflies like they do in the Golden Compass series – namely, as steeds for your army of (very) small independent assassins – it worked pretty well in the books, and they’ve got to be cheaper to maintain than horses or SUVs.
Finally, my cats decided to sack out in the sunshine. No one can relax like a cat. I’m beginning to suspect that mine don’t even have bones.
Now that I’ve worked out (boy, am I beat), I think I’ll go get some work done (i.e. see how close to my cats’ relaxation poses I can get without spraining anything). Hope that you all enjoy the rest of your Sunday, and please feel free to drop by if you have wings, your own candy, and/or an appetite for garden pests.
Barring that, shoot me an email or post a comment letting me know what you’re doing with your weekend, or how I’ve totally wrecked your motivation to work out and replaced it with a compulsion to garden.
I’m a little late on this internet phenomenon, but I just saw this video today, and it’s fantastic.
Here is the story as I heard it:
Basically, this guy had a goofy dance that people made fun of. Instead of hiding in under a rock for the rest of his life, he took his dance on the road. Matt Harding, originally from Connecticut, has visited a whole slew of countries, taped himself doing the dance in each country, and put together this video:
Think about all of the new experiences that must have come with making this video. Think of traveling to all those places and gathering up all those random people and getting them excited about your silly dance. Imagine standing in completely new surroundings, completely comfortable. I am amazed at this person’s creative response.
Similarly, tonight’s 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremonies are currently blowing my mind. The creativity in choreographing all of this is astounding. Yes, it’s extravagant, and yes, there are political problems under that sparkly (on fire!) surface. But celebration is also important, and as celebrations go, this is pretty over-the-top fantastic.
The sheer number of bodies working together in some of these performances is daunting. The timing on the drum number was stunning, and the use of the entire stadium as a canvas makes an incredible impression. Ooh, Tai-chi.
Well, they’ve done it. I’m invested in the Summer Olympics. I want to watch more than the gymnastic floor routines (my usual level of involvement). Sing, adorable, flag-carrying children! Sing! Grow up to be incredibly coordinated dancers like those people in those boxes over there! And don’t stand near that fire, please, your outfits look flammable.
Seth Godin’s semi-recent post “Complicit” argues that we perpetuate poor quality by choosing crap vendors out of convenience or the desire to pay less. He also calls us to account for not using social media to constructively (not just complaining) to spread the word. This is a good reminder that social media finally gives the consumer the power to make businesses change.
But, there are many posts on how social media works for the consumer before, so although power is a fun thing to write about, I’m not going to rehash the details. If you’re not familiar with this idea, just google “social media gives consumers power” to find related articles.
Instead, I find I’m inspired to use today’s blog space to write about three services that I do like, since social media is also effective for promoting the good stuff, as well as dressing down the bad.
1. I like apple stores. I’ve found the staff to be knowledgeable, friendly, and efficient. You can check out anywhere in the store and have your receipt printed or emailed to you. The moment you walk in, someone asks what you want, and figures out the fastest way to get it to you.
If you want to buy something, you are put in a queue electronically, and then you’re free to browse (and pick up more neat, expensive toys) until the associate is free and then they find you.
If you have a question, it’s answered. If you need tech support, you can make an appointment and get help right in the store, not over some crackly phone line overseas. It’s a bloody miracle and a great retail model, and it’s gone a long way towards convincing me that I want to do business with them in the future.
2. I like Market Basket. This is a relatively new flirtation, and yes, I like it largely because it’s cheap, but you don’t sacrifice much because of this. Sure, the store’s not as bright & shiny, and the carts can lead to mayhem and traffic jams, but the staff is friendly, they bag your groceries correctly (the eggs are wrapped separately, cold goes with cold, and nothing gets crushed) and their selection is great, at least for my needs.
3. I like Netflix. I am watching a movie from Netflix right now. I don’t like going to the movies because I have a low tolerance for noisy theaters and also, around here they’re $10 a pop. I like the convenience of ordering & tracking online, I like having a queue so I can pick movies when I’m in the mood, and I like that there’s only ever been one movie I haven’t been able to find.
Now it’s time to watch the rest of this movie with pre-Newsies Christian Bale (Empire of the Sun). I liked Newsies better, because I saw first saw it at a young & impressionable age, and almost the entire cast consisted of boys who could ride ponies, sing songs, and beat each other up. But I’ll give this a try as well.
What businesses do you like? Why? Have you ever used social media to promote a business or to warn other consumers?
There are few household chores that I enjoy less than moving clothes from the washer to the dryer. 
I hang dry a fair amount of my clothes so they won’t shrink. Yes, I’ve thought about getting a size larger, but it just doesn’t fit the same afterward. So sorting through my clothes makes laundry a bit more of a project. Worse, Jon’s taken to doing the same – one of the perks of living with someone is that you’re weird quirks rub off. 
