Motivation

Clearly motivation is not a one size fits all deal. This is a question that you need to ask yourself no matter how many times you get it asked of you in interviews. If you know what gets you motivated and going towards your goals, you are much better off. Without any kind of motivation, things are not able to get done and it becomes pointless to do them anyway. If you are a business professional or in any other industry, this is one of the biggest questions that you have to know the answer to, second to know what you are passionate about. Do you want to be the best in your field or is it something along the lines of making a difference? The best part of is that no matter what motivates you, you can always find it. Sometime seeing progress can be motivating in itself so you can start by tracking your progress using mobile applications since we have our phones on us most of the time.

Germ Free Handles

Bathrooms are places for germs to grow and thrive. For those of us that a bit OCD about those germs, it can be an utter nightmare because the handles can be really gross. A study several years ago found that there are 19 different bacteria in public restrooms in just about every surface, including the handles. Let me give you a moment for that to really sink in. At a recent international science and engineering fair, two teens invented a door handle that eliminates bacteria completely. The secret is that it is coated with titanium dioxide and lights up. The energy for it to light up comes from the mechanical energy of the door opening and closing. The best part here is that it costs less than $15 dollars. The invention won second place in the material category. There has been a lot of progress as far as software development for communication and mobile devices but not nearly as much when it comes to the materials. Since studies have also pointed to the cell phone being dirtier than a bathroom, why not coat it with TiO2 as well?

Be Memorable

We all want to create a lasting impression on other people when we are networking. It is possible because it is something that is not written in our genes but we can definitely learn it. First of all when someone is talking to you, be all there. This means that you should not be checking your phone or mobile applications. It will make the other person feel important and valued and that can make all the difference. When you are talking, make sure that everything you say is positive and stay away from complaining. It will help and the person you are speaking with in the long run. Another great way to make an impression is to remember the name of the person you are speaking with and use it in the conversation. It is like a subtle compliment and says that they are worth talking to. Body language is also part of the conversation if not most of it. Make sure to be aware of how you are standing and that you are making eye contact.

Communication Secrets

Communication skills can be learned and even the most inept of us can be amazing speakers. This skill will also translate into great communication abilities over video conferencing. The very first thing that you should do is communicate with yourself. This means that you need to have confidence in yourself and your abilities. When you do speak, make sure that it is with sincerity. True communication means that you are not talking at a person but rather with them. You have to really listen to what they are saying because that also builds a connection. The ability to ask skillful questions and listen carefully to the responses is a huge factor in being a great communicator. While you are busy thinking about what is being said, pay attention to the language that is unspoken such as tone and posture. You should also practice what you preach because people that are listening to your presentation are also aware of your character and reputation.

Being Successful on the Weekend

As business owners, you know it is a never ending game to stay afloat and you are trying to keep up with the internet phone calls and emails over the weekend. There are probably even times when you are thinking why in the world you got into owning the business. I bet you did not know that there are ways to get yourself ready for the weekend and actually recharge. One of the first things that you should do is get up at the same time that you normally do on the weekends. It will make sure that your body will get the rest it needs and not sleep too much. You should also plan the weekend so that you do not lose the productivity from the week days. Although, it is important to plan some time for yourself. This means that your health, family and friends are just as important as work. Meditate, go for a hike, wash the car, or take in the theater. It is just as important to get your mind off of work. Lastly, take ten or fifteen minutes on Sunday to look at the week ahead and plan for it. That way, you will be able to hit the ground running come Monday.

Body Language: Take Note

Sometimes your body says more than your words and with video conferencing in full use, you will have nowhere to hide from it. If you are prone to slouching, just stop and straighten up. It communicates that you're bored and have no desire to be where you are. Same with looking at a clock, you tell the person that you are with that you would rather be doing other things. If you have folded arms or legs, it signals to the other person that you are not open to what they are saying and that you might be shutting them out. As far as facial expressions go, don't roll your eyes and and make sure that your eye contact is just long enough but not too long. The way we break contact sends a message, too. Glancing down communicates submission, while looking to the side projects confidence. Also, adapt your handshake to each person and situation, but make sure it's always firm. The bottom line here is that if you practice it enough, you will have a better idea of how to handle each situation and it will strengthen your relationships.

Decisions Decisions

Graduation is right around the corner for so many people. This is a time for some major changes and the shifting of responsibilities. Our decisions start to really impact the lives that we are making for ourselves and life does not come with an instruction manual. The first rule is to be present in the moment and pay attention. Just like people say that you never know when you are going to get hit by a bus, you still never know when opportunity might hit you in the face. Most likely you will not recognize it for what it truly is. You also need to learn how to be in touch with your gut and to trust it. Staying healthy will be one of the biggest decisions that you will be making. Yes people it is a conscious decision and will reflect on your life. And no, there is not miracle diet pill or mobile application that will do the hard work for you. If you want to have a mind that stays sharp, you need to feed it and take care of it. If you keep your body in great shape, you mind will just come along for the ride and function that much better as you age.

Changing Batteries

The battery has not changed since the 1960s and it is really a technological feat that RadioShack took so long to go out of business. We have such impressive technologies and software development in the 21st century and yet we still use lithium ion batteries. This thought might all change soon. Researchers at Stanford published their discovery of aluminum ion batteries in Nature recently. They said that the new aluminum-ion battery has the potential to replace lithium-ion batteries, used in millions of laptops and mobile phones. The new battery is safe and does not have the fire hazard of lithium batteries. It is also durable and flexible, and lasts seven times as long as the other ones. The best part might be that it can be charged in under a minute. This will open doors with so many other gadgets and devices. It also means that the larger batteries could be used as part of a renewable energy system on an electrical grid. It is going to be really exciting to see where it will go from here.

Way to Have a Work Life Balance

In this hectic world, it is sometimes hard to find that wonderful balance where you feel like you actually have a life and are able to maintain a job that can support that life. There are several ways to go about this problem. You can separate, integrate, or cycle. If separating your life into compartments can work for you, you could choose specific hours for work and specific hours for home, and make an agreement with both your boss and family to adhere to the schedule. This way everyone knows what to expect and everyone will be taken care of. If that does not work for you, you could blend work and life but you have to make sure that everyones needs are taken care of. For some jobs such as software development or web development, it will work. If neither of those work for you, you could follow a more traditional model: work hard and play hard. You might cycle through phases of intense work but then you on vacation and completely unplug. Some of the problems come into play when your style of work clashes with your bosses style even though they achieve the same ends. This is something to be discussed and agreed upon beforehand.

Getting Better WiFi Signal

So here you are at home, having a very important VoIP service call with a client when the WiFi signal just will not quit coming in and out. This makes the conversation that much hard and be the deal breaker in some cases. Before you run out and get the best top of the line routers, you should try several of these tricks first. I am willing to be that your router is sitting in a corner somewhere on a desk. Make sure that it is up high and in a room where you use it the most. Make sure that there are not too many metal object around or near a microwave as both of them can disrupt the signal. Also, place it in a spot where is does not have to travel through brick or concrete as they will absorb the signal. Lastly, water inhibits the WiFi signal so make sure it is not where there are a lot of people since humans are mostly water. Do you have any other tips?

The Minimum Effective Dose

I think we can all agree on the fact that we might need a couple more hours in a day to really get things done. Unfortunately there is no way to make that happen so the solution needs to come from somewhere else in our constantly on the move culture. First of all, some people view being still for some time as unproductive while in fact it is completely different than not doing anything. Taking the time to meditate is one of the best ways to recharge and actually increase productivity. It might help the feeling of being frazzled by the lack of time as well. This is also where the minimum effective dose comes in. It is a term used in the medical world but it applies to many other parts of life as well. The first step to dialing back on the hectic-ness of life and to make it seem like there are more hours in the day is to figure out the minimum effective dose for the things that you do because if left unchecked in this crazy run all the time life, it can lead to maximum tolerated dose which is never a great place to be. Delegating is also a great way to go about getting more done. Cloud services are great for syncing everything and being like a personal assistant.

Doing Everything With Your Smartphone

Are you one of those that dove right in your smartphone and all the wonderful mobile applications and accepted that it will be doing many things for you while you become utterly dependent on it? Or did it creep up on you and only when you do not feel the weight of the phone in your pocket do you sense your anxiety mounting and the feeling of impending doom if you do not know where the phone is in the next five minutes? After a couple days of the CES, it is evident that we will be able to do almost everything using our phones. One of the parts of life that are connected to our phones, or is going to be very soon, is our home. Pretty much everything will be controlled save for the rowdy kids running around. Our cars are already very much connected but it is expected that the number and the technology will definitely increase. Another way that we will be connected is by our health records and big data. And lets not forget the wearable technology and industry.

More Space

One of the best things about our phones is that you can store all you music and pictures. Then we also like all those mobile applications that hog up all of the storage, not to mention making your phone run a bit slower. An alternative here is to use cloud services but that requires a reliable internet connection. Are you one of those people that needs more space on your phone? Enter RRAM. At Rice University, a team led by chemist James Tour has developed a breakthrough in RRAM (resistive random-access memory) technology. Their RRAM uses silicon oxide, one of the most studied and abundant substances on Earth, the stuff of sand and glass. This means that phones will be able to have up to a terabyte of memory which is enough to hold several hundred movies. Another great aspect of this technology is that it can be placed on glass which means that it could be a part of the screen on the phone, saving even more space.