Writing starts way before you put letters to a page. It involves processes like critical thinking, communication, and creativity. People will take your message more seriously when the evidence is right in front of them. This is like dressing up a household pet in evening clothes. The pet is embarrassed and the person who committed this act of premeditated cuteness should be even more embarrassed. You’ve probably read someone’s essay before where you cringed or frowned at their excessive language....

It’s only natural to want to surround yourself with people who believe in you. Shutting them out is a natural, yet damaging self-selection process that removes any useful criticism or feedback. Adaptation is one of the single most important factors for long-term success. Disagreement can be beneficial and feedback, whenpresented constructively, is an invaluable tool. How Your Positive Posse is Destroying You| Consumerism Commentary Photo byThomas Hawk.

Wasting energy in your home is like throwing away money. Here’s how to perform your own energy audit and save a bit of money. verify Everything Is Insulated Shoddy insulation is the worst offender for home energy loss. Start in your attic and check for gaps around pipes and ductwork and fill them using expanding foam. If you have gaps around your fireplace, verify you use non-combustible foam sealant. confirm your attic floor is insulated but don’t block your attic vents....

One way t0 make your bio more interesting: use “sticky” words that appeal to the senses. Write to Done offers a couple of examples: Think of the reader’s brain as Velcro. You want your words to stick, so she will remember them. That is how they process and remember information. Try including some image-rich (“picture”) words in your bio. Rewrite “I am in a race to the finish line with my first full-length memoir....

Plus, after factoring in the gift card, both essentially cost $80. Here are some of the best, but check out ourApp Deals postfor more. Be sure tocheck out our App Deals postfor more. Monument Valley($1) | Amazon | Normally $4 Threes! That’s $300 off retail, and a fantastic deal. Here are two inexpensive options to get you started, including one that comes with a Lightning cable. No tax for most sweetens the deal....

Building a great presentation doesn’t mean downloading a huge office suite. Last weekwe asked for your faves, then looked atthe five best online presentation creation tools. Now we’re back to highlight your favorite. The Hive Five is based on reader nominations. We understand it’s a bit of a popularity contest. Have a suggestion for the Hive Five? Send us an email at[email protected]!

You don’t need to keep up with the Joneses, but comparisons can sometimes be useful. Openfolio tracks your investment portfolio and shows you how you’re doing compared to different groups of people. The idea is to learn from the investment choices of others. you’re able to register for the service online or via their iPhone app. Then, you search for other investors who have their profiles set to public. These may be people in your social circle....

Editing your own work can be difficult. If you don’t give yourself enough time between writing and revising, everything might sound good as is. Fortunately, ProWritingAid is a webapp that edits your work for writing style and gives you immediate feedback. If you want a comprehensive revision of your work, pair ProWritingAid’s suggestions up withGrammarly’sfundamentalspelling and grammar edits.

Without the shortcut, they stay the same size. How to Temporarily Enable Dock Magnifications in OS X| How-To Geek

The repetitive, clicking sound of a mouse can become pretty irritating. If you’re tired of the click, click, click, there are some options. Or it’s possible for you to do a little work on your favorite mouse. You will need to open up your mouseand be somewhat comfortable with small electronicsbutR. Anderson’sguide on HubPages explains everything it’s crucial that you know. you’re free to find the complete guide at the link below....

Rewards are a great way to get yourself to do the things you don’t want to do. Concurrent rewards can help. You’ve probably made a deal with yourself at some point when it comes to your work. This pop in of reward works especially well for tasks that are time-consuming but not concentration-intensive. Music can be great for productivity and breaking up the tedium as well. What kind of concurrent rewards do you use?...

Standing desks are popular, but choosing a good one is no easy task. You could go with a motorized, whole desk replacement, or DIY a simple solution. You could even buy an adjustable attachment to go on top of your existing desk. That shouldnt come as a huge surprise. Weve known for a while thatsitting all day is terrible for you. Weve lookedat the best standing desksas alternatives, and while they can help, theyrecertainly not a panacea....

London-based portrait photographer Tom Barnes has built himself one impressive, massive desk. It’s as functional and clutter-free as it is unique. The desk was made with a plywood top and scaffold parts and fittings to support the heavy weight. I’m kind of envious. Check outpart 1andpart 2of this project to see the DIY in action. confirm any photos you include are at least 640x360. Keeping them to 16:9 helps, too!...