Destroy Productivity!

http://blog.ezinearticles.com/2013/10/10-distractions-that-destroy-productivity-the-wrong-advice.html

10 Distractions that Destroy Productivity: The WRONG Advice
This came into my mailbox and I thought I could share it with you all. Please note, this was written with a sensk of humor, so by all means follow this advice unfailingly. Once you have these distractions going on, feel free to invite the neighbors cats and dogs in to proof read your work. Remember Authoring is more than just putting words together, it is capturing others imagination, and interest.

 

writing / multi-tasking

 

Turn On All Electronic Devices

Email/Internet: Maintain a non-stop connection to the Internet while you’re writing for news updates and constant idea generation. Also, avoid scheduling specific times to check your email – it’s far too important to respond to each message straight away. Be the ultimate multitasker, don’t neglect email or the Internet!

Phone Calls/Text Messages: Never risk letting a caller go straight to voicemail. Even if you’re on a great track in your writing, you should make time to chit-chat with friends and brush up on your texting skills while you’re brainstorming. It won’t bust your productivity too much and it’s better to respond to others quickly to keep them engaged in conversation. Keep your phone on at all times.

Television: With so many great shows on TV and streaming media channels, how can you possibly keep up with it all? Tune to your favorite programs and have them play in the background while you’re writing! It will ultimately save time because you’re multi-tasking! Challenge yourself to concentrate on your writing and what’s going on in the show you’re watching. Take a seat on the couch, write, and take in all the drama of the entertainment world at once!

Video Games: Playing video games or apps on your smart phone can be soothing. Take a break from writing by grabbing a controller and get lost in fantasy or the latest app saga with a truly hands-on experience. Your writing can wait. You can get back to work once you complete the next level or the one after that.
Be at the Beck and Call of Relationships

Friends: Your friends need your full attention. Try to make plans with them while you’re thinking about your next set of articles. Do they want to drop by during your scheduled writing session? No problem! It’s good to interact with others when you’re trying to focus. Casually talk about current events and controversial topics to get your mind racing and to make the room more tense.

Neighbors/Surprise Visits: We’ve divorced ourselves so much from face-to-face communication these days due to technology. Encourage your neighbors to visit as they please! You never know when you’re going to have company over, so have the kettle and a few homemade goodies ready. Don’t ignore knocks at the door because you’re busy – you can pick up where you left off with your writing.

Pets: To most pet owners, these loyal and adorable animals are like family. Include your pets in your writing sessions. Isn’t it adorable the way your cat sits on your keyboard? How hilarious is your dog’s latest tail-chasing antics? Never let your pet think your office is off-limits; after all, they want to be near you and get updates on dinner. Take frequent breaks to give them attention.
Let It All Go

Physical Condition: Turn discomfort into opportunity! Being too comfortable while you’re working will put you to sleep. You need to feel agitated, hungry, tired, and shift constantly in your seat if you want to be alert. Let the motivation to relieve the discomfort – eat, sleep, or straighten out your back – drive you to finish your work faster.

Environment: If you’re the type to be distracted by a little dust or coffee stain, by all means – take the time to thoroughly clean your workspace. You need the absolute cleanest environment for any type of writing. When you see an opportunity to organize, dust or vacuum, be sure to take it! Alternately, if your workspace is so messy that you can’t find your outlines or notes, let it go and don’t worry about organizing the space! You can let your memory do it’s work or perform the research over again.

Procrastination: It’s necessary to put things off from time to time. You need to mull over an idea because the longer you put off writing, the more powerful your ideas will become as they mature in your mind. Throw out your calendar and avoid a schedule. Take your time and wait until tomorrow, or the next day. You’ll get around to it!
DISCLAIMER: Do not follow the advice given above – in fact, do the exact opposite! Think about the distractions you specifically struggle with. If you recognize and understand how harmful these can be to your productivity, you will have a chance at success. Remember, you can do things as you’ve always done them and get the same results. Or break the pattern, step it up, and focus on your writing by eliminating distractions. The path you take is up to you! Are you guilty of any of the above self-induced distractions? Do you have solutions to drive away distractions? Let us know – we’d love to hear from you!

Posted by Vanessa, Editorial Manager on October 21, 2013 at 9:00 am | 22,872 views. And of course this was reposted by Squatch for your convenience, so go ahead and get back to work, and stop lollygagging around here. thanks for checking this out, and have a nice day, too, also, as well….

11 Pictures That Compare Life Today With How It Used To Be

• http://www.idealistrevolution.org/11-pictures-that-compare-life-today-with-how-it-used-to-be/ 

  The recent decades have seen many changes in our lifestyle and culture. You’ll laugh at the difference.

  1. Playing With Friends

  

  2. Pulling An All-Nighter

  

  3. Working Out

  

  4. Going To The Doctor

  

  

  5. Using Phones

  

  

  6. Sharing Vacation Pictures

  

  7. Playing Video Games

  

  8. Celebrating Birthdays

  

  

  9. Sharing

  

  

  10. How Many Devices We Needed

  

  11. How Things Size Up

  

  h/t: whydontyoutrythis

   

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The waiting game | rgcorros

via The waiting game | rgcorros.

It’s never convenient to be without something one really needs, or wants.  We are so accustomed, to being able to go, do, live, act, and be, whatever, however, whenever, or where ever, for whatever reason we choose.  We have no patience for inconvenience.  If something doesn’t work right,and we don’t know how to fix it, we’ll call for support.

We’ll relate all of the particulars involving our problem, and the person, or recording offers various ways to get to the next step.  We hope this will be the resolution to our dilemma.  It’s such a bother, why  do such simple things give us so much trouble?  All a person can do is fret about not being able to do that thing, that caused all the inconvenience in the first place, only causing more of the same.

Today is the next day, of the waiting game.  Nothing really matters, except the minor irritation of not solving the issue of the previous day.  Still waiting….

Ok, this is ridiculous, something has to happen.  The tech guy should be along sometime, to verify the details I’ve given.  Just my luck, my task requires an engineer, not just a tech, and no one can confirm when my number will come up.  Why are we so impatient? Why are we so addicted to our own convenience? What we prefer is everything to work right, without interruption.  What we’re given is Murphy’s law….

So it’s of little consequence to anyone if I get back in the game or not.  Day I’m not sure when, almost over the withdrawal feelings, almost…Still waiting.  If I’m not here to meet the person,that may or may not show up, to deal with this thing, will they do whatever is required to provide a cure? I want to think ” they’re professionals, they’ll take care of everything”.  But I know if I miss them, I’ll be informed , I missed them, and yes they would have seen the note, but due to possible liability la ti dah…So it’s all on hold again, waiting…..

At last, the engineer, my problem will be solved now.  The relief.  Finally someone to get me back in the game. Then the bad news.  The details I reported were, in fact correct. ” So what’s the problem?”  The engineer will assist a technician.  “Ok, so what’s the hangup?”  This will be a new installation.  The current system for the distribution of the service, is about to be not current, so an updated system is essential.  ” Whatever just do it, right?”   Well the new system wont be implemented yet until all the bugs are worked out.  ” Why not just hook up my stuff, the way the neighbors stuff is hooked up?”   That’s the old way, and the provider doesn’t want to be responsible, for providing a failing service.

Not just Murphy, now I have a genuine catch 22.  All this for a little inconvenience, what is the price of a great one?

3 hours worth of phone calls, now my phone is useless, but another van has arrived.  Great joy, I’ll see this through yet.

It’s 2 days later again, and I’m fairly positive, today will be the one.  Two vans, full of every kind of hook-up gear ever manufactured, sitting in the drive, with a sporty looking Buick.  I began to feel, I definitely rate, as I’ve got an engineer and two technicians.  I heard one of the techs, say something about a supervisor on his way.  4 hours later, I got the latest intel on the project.

I should be elated, the project looks like it might work, if I knew what I was looking at.  The new system transmits at a different frequency….The muffler bearings….the framstat, on the diagnostic…No signal match….To dark to try to figure out today.  Monday, no Monday is a holiday…

3 vans, a Buick, a Bucket truck, and a new Lincoln, plus a couple extra techs.  The extras were there to learn how to do this type of new install.  I was told the guys brought whatever it might take, to get me back in my game.  I wonder if it’s just a waiting game…

6 hours and counting, the guys are all busy, and we’re all on a first name basis now.  The impedance is correct and the frequency matches, but the code doesn’t recognize the system, and overloads the…

It’s getting frustrating, but today is the day.  I can hardly wait, but I’ll have to, as that is the name of the game.  3 more hours passed by, and I get another update about the work being performed.  There seems to be a phase variance, coming through the sequencer, affecting the modulated pulse transducer, causing a feedback loop in the core’s primary inverter.  It’s getting dark again, and no one will be able to figure any of this out today….

2 more days, and countless trucks, vans, Buicks and Lincolns, techs, and supervisors, and more engineers.  The original problem, has been fixed and the service should be up and running soon.  Yes, I see the main man coming now…

Can you believe it?  All that hoop de lah for this.  The new installation, done in the near new way, since the new way hasn’t been implemented yet, will have to be updated when the new system is ready to be brought up to bear the load….And the cost is only 60% higher than the highest estimate, due to being a new install, on an old system, in the process of being updated.

Obviously I want the service, or I wouldn’t have called.  I am disappointed at the price but what does one do?  I give them my card, and wince at the price tag, and smile in my mind.  I’m getting back into the game.  My anticipation is paramount.  I almost can’t wait for all those engineers and techs and supervisors and whoever else to leave.

The dust gently settles in the driveway as the procession leaves my neighborhood, and I rush inside to get back into the game.  Why is it, when a person is bent on doing something, they’ve been anticipating, Murphy jumps into the mix?  What now?  What code?  I don’t get the code until the payment has cleared the bank.  Well, what do you expect from a multi-billion dollar company.  Guess I will have to wait until tomorrow, what’s one more day now?

It’s extremely difficult waiting…In another hour the bank will be open, and I will get everything wrapped up, and be able to get back in the game.  Fourty nine minutes, boy time sure doesn’t move at all when you really want it to. 37 minutes….

What a load of crap.  A dollar short, and the whole world just stops.  Because the new install costed more than planned, the bank can’t cover the dollar, and sets my account back even farther.  Overdraft fees.  Sometimes it seems like the whole universe is against me.  I’ll have to wait for payday, then I’m getting back in the game.

11 days later, it’s payday again and it’s not a holiday.  The bank should be open, and the company paying my wages is sound, so there shouldn’t be any problem getting all this taken care of.  Wonderful news.  The bank admitted the previous error on my account was a glitch with their system.  All wrongly charged fees have been refunded and my account is in good standing.  Yes!  I’m getting back in the game.

Pawing through a pile of paperwork, I located the number to call, to finally activate the system.  What is this?  That number was a working number just days ago.  At least there was another number to call if I wasn’t able to reach anyone at the main office.  What was that?  The multi-billion dollar company, with whom I had been dealing, has gone bankrupt.  No, so what now?

It seems the dollar the bank wouldn’t front me, was the straw that broke the camel’s back.  But, before closing it’s doors, all the pending accounts were forwarded to another company.  Yes I do have the number, please be the end of all this waiting game.  This company is on the ball.  They know who I am, and all of the particulars in regard to my account status.

“Why can’t I activate the system?  Yes, I knew I had to wait until the payment was processed, but that should have been days ago”.  “What?  I have a statement from the bank showing the payment had been paid”.  “What do you mean, it wasn’t recorded in your system, it’s recorded everywhere else”.  “Ok if that’s what it takes, open another account”.  “Yes all of that information is current and correct.  How long until proper verification”?

“Support”?  “Yes it’s me again”.  “No, the stupid code will not work”.  “Yes, I’ve tried it that way too”…”no”…  “I do know how to enter a security code”.  “No, I’m not being snippy.  I’m just frustrated”, “no, I’m not blaming you, I just don’t understand what the hangup is”…. “Yes that will be fine, I’ll wait for your guys to get here to take care of this minor glitch, thanks”…..

The new company must really be new.  All of their vehicles are new also.  Black with gold, great colors and logo, they look to be professional.  What’s this?  “That was put together by the other company.  It’s a new install on an old system, in the process of being updated.  That’s what they had explained to me”.  “No, I don’t know anything about the new system”.  The tech doesn’t know how this was put together either.  Hopefully I’ll see him on Monday.

At last, Monday morning, and a whole yard full of the shiny black and gold trucks.  More techs and supervisors, and a couple more engineers.  It’s strange not one of them has ever seen a system quite like mine.  How could things get so complicated?  I’ve been reassured, these guys are all professionals, and I should be back in the game by the end of the day.

Now what?  There’s a gathering of workers and their supervisors.  Even the bosses are all looking at my new system and shaking their heads.  No one, at least, in this company has ever seen this kind of setup.  Yes I explained, I saw what was built, and although I don’t understand all of the technology embedded in the new system, I am sure it will work.  ( It seems I, who doesn’t know diddley from doo, knows more about this new installation, than all of the professional types, hanging around the yard.)

The new system, a new and improved standard installation, turns out to be related to rocket science.  Sounds like my luck is holding.  Tomorrow we’ll get to put this puppy online and see what it’s capabilities are.  I knew I shouldn’t get too excited, but maybe tomorrow I’ll be back in the game.  Sleep never comes to those so full of anticipation, but I can get by without a few hours of sleep.

There is a storm raging out there.  I should be raging too, almost a month into this whole fiasco, and not much seems to have been accomplished.  The storm is too severe to send techs and equipment out today, but I’ve not been forgotten.  I’m number 1… Ahead of all the rest, first on the list.  After it’s safe to venture forth, I will get my system going and get back in the game.

Murphy again!  3 days to get past the worst storm in fifty years.  Trees broken and littering the highways, power lines down, blown transformers.  Too much debris to get past.  The army corp of engineers will have everything all cleaned up by the end of the week.  I can expect to see my crew here, in 3 or 4 days.  My crew!  Now I feel important, it’s my crew.

“Hello”?  “Yes it’s me”. “The what”?  “I find that hard to believe”.  Apparently the engineers and the design team, were working on a model of my system.  The schematics suggest, there may be some variance of the waveform that won’t interact kindly in the last stage mixer buffers, creating possible echos in the matrix.  It can probably be handled with a 941 code box wired into the sub-junction of the linear node amp, relieving the unnecessary pulse transmissions. The bad news is that the 941 code box is still in China.  The good news is, it will be shipped out at their earliest convenience.  Great, soon I’ll be back in the game.

” Hey there, I’m trying to reach Julie”.  “Yes, she’s with billing”.  “Sure, I’ll hold, but I am short on minutes”.  “Hey Julie, this is me and I’m returning your call”.  “What do you mean delinquent payment”?  “No, the system isn’t even running yet”.  “I don’t know who said what.  All I know is the thing ain’t working yet, and it’s been over a month”.  “No, really I’m not being rude.  The system was under construction, when your company inherited that account.  The service had not yet been activated”…. “I know you have an account activated for me on that date, but the service has yet to begin”…. “Yes”… “We’re hoping”… “Ok, that sounds fine, I’ll notify you when the service is activated and my billing should begin then”?  “What do you mean?  I didn’t call the whole darn company out to my place.  I don’t believe they’re all working on” …….

Out of phone again.  It’s always something.  I may be actually learning something.  Patience…Breathe…The top dog foreman or whatever his title, just handed me the schematics of the new system, with revision notes and a few part numbers.  Included was a revision of the installation package and new billing numbers.  Looks like I bought the whole company.  I’m pretty sure I can’t afford this….Contract?  Lawyers?

Well once again, it looks like it’s time for the waiting game…..

10/22/2011
rgcorros

“Squatch” Is Technologically Challenged!

Breaking story out of Reno Nevada. (story written by Fe02, of the G.P.I. news service)
Squatch, also known as RGCORROS, who just happens to be the author of this blog, was found today to be technologically challenged, when he suddenly found he had 1796 e-mails in his Gmail account.
The incident occurred shortly after noon today, following the emptying of his primary account. “The overloaded mailbox, a Google construct, should have exploded from the lack of notice”, one of the technicians stated. Right on Rusty, an investigator for the extragalactic firm SQUATCHCO, located on the inner hard drive just outside Reno told reporters “the danger was real. Had the account reached max load, terabytes of digital area would have been decimated”.
According to local scientists, the explosive outgassing of the digital bomb would have sped away spherically, at the speed of light. Professor Jameson Reynolds Numerally, a renown digiphysiologist at U.N.S.S. spoke to the media at a press conference. He explained what the consequences would have been, if Squatch had continued to be a technomoron.
According to the science, E=MC sq. That M going at the speed of C is multiplied by itself, and there would be no deflection. All near digital space in four dimensions would simultaneously expand outwardly, pushing the cloud toward the constellation Magellan.
In a private interview with this intrepid reporter Squatch recounted what had happened and solemnly swore to “try harder to get it all figured out”. Squatch said he managed to clear all of the emails in his primary account, and when he couldn’t get to use his twitter account to the fullest, he knew he had a problem. “It was the damn twitter!” he grumped. Apparently he had to give an email conformation, and couldn’t find an email from them.
“I kept sending them my junk, and they kept saying your conformation email is in your box”. It turned out, there were two other buttons in the inbox. Anyone who ever used email knows how to use their inbox, except, Squatch it seems. The other two buttons were labeled, social, and promotions. Squatch denied being an antitechnogeek diligently, and tried to defend himself by claiming he had been ” living in the backwoods for nigh over 25 years, powerless and totally untechnolized “.
“I was just amazed when I pushed that word social, and there it was, you know…the damn twitter email I had been trying to get for four frigging hours” According to the self-proclaimed “almost know what to do” technomoron, Squatch said it was even more difficult than any webbie could ever imagine. ” There was the stupid email, so I could have taken care of the one stupid thing, and I noticed the social place was packed! I could feel the pressure mounting while I sat gaping at the social bin. I timidly touched the promotion button, and it just slammed open, jarring me physically! There ain’t words for the danger I was facing. There was stuff in there from 2011″.
According to Squatch he ” hurriedly did his tweet crap”. He commented on the terrible waves of energy he felt rumbling through him, and said ” all I could do was mark them all as read, check the box to delete the second 50 emails, and do that again, and again”. He recounted how after about ten times of doing the delete thing, the pressure started to diminish some. He said after about 40 times doing the delete 50 more, the mailbox spoke. “would you like to do a bulk delete?”.
“That’s what really tore me up” he ranted. He growled about how the *&@%?+= computer could have said something in the first place. He said he figured it wasn’t really his fault, it was the stupid computers fault. “When I think I had enough and am going to blow, I don’t wait for some nontechy type to push my right buttons”.
The City, County, and the State are currently in debate on the problems with these types of incidents. Antimoron groups are shouting in the streets, “nontechs back to the boondocks”, and ” remove retechtards now!”. A plan to reeducate retechtards has been put in place, to prevent other such incidents in the future.
” If laws aren’t enacted soon, it might mean the end of life as we know it “, one of the scientists bemoaned. “Already, we’ve found evidence this kind of drama, has happened in the past, and may well continue into the future”. No charges have been pressed on Squatch at the time of this article, but the repercussions of what has happened will certainly inspire our leaders to enact more stringent measures, to prevent future dumbassary.
Professor Jameson Reynolds Numerally commented on the subject, telling me about the evidence found recently, regarding this very issue. ” It’s all in the ice”, stated the professor. “Records show this has happened in the past, or maybe the future, and might have been the primary cause of the extinction level event, that wiped out the dinosaurs 65 million years ago”. Although the evidence is inconclusive, many theoretical physicists back up those statements.

More Fun Online

If you’re into science or cartoons you’ll love Martina Zeitler. She is a children’s book author & illustrator, cartoonist & engineer. She creates a great cartoon well worth looking at on a new blog at http://justoutsidetheboxcartoon.com/. She also has freebies! I love free stuff and especially free stuff that makes me laugh. Have you heard about Doug the Dung Beetle? Well Marti offers a FREE Doug the Dung Beetle Activity Book, on her new site.
Marti is an engineer and is into physics and outer space, and if this appeals to you, go check out what she is up to.
Creative Commons License
Just Outside the Box Cartoons by Marti is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at www.justoutsidetheboxcartoon.com.
Also check out https://cosmiccaboodle.wordpress.com/2015/01/17/introducing-cosmic-caboodle/ and let me know what you think.