Organize by Slowing Down: Work Smarter, Relax, Feel Better

Hi my name is Mar and I'm a recovering workaholic. Since childhood, I've been an obsessive-compulsive, Type A over-achiever. This hurts me, emotionally, mentally, spiritually and physically. It kills relationships. It makes me a bad mom. So I'm practicing ways to work smarter, not harder. Ironically, I accomplish more this way. Most importantly, I feel better. Here's how.

Accept your worth. We overachievers often overdo to compensate. We lack confidence. We think others better than ourselves and so to succeed competitively we must give 500 percent. We aren't relax lest we fail. Recovery means recognizing I'm okay, as is. Here are more lilac zen thoughts for you! Stop Overdoing It: Work Smart, Relax, Feel Better

Third Bubblews Redemption, Only Started Two Weeks Ago

I started Bubblews about 2-3 weeks ago and already I've hit redemption three times. I was on vacation over the 4th of July and did't write for four of those days. One payment cleared Paypal. The other two are pending. The one that cleared did so early. I don't say this to brag.

I said I wasn't going to write a lot about in-house stuff on +Bubblews--when I hit redemption, when payments came through. But I'll share this as it may help or encourage others. Here's why I think Bubblews is working for me. Third Bubblews Redemption, Only Started Two Weeks Ago

How to Add Photos to Articles, Easy and Legal

A picture is worth a thousand words, they say. It can also be worth a lot of page views. I have over 5,000 pieces of content published on line and the simple math says those with photos do better than those without. But hunting up photos is tedious. And you have to make sure to comply with usage rights, which can be nebulous. Here's are bad, good, better and best ways to add your own free, easy and legal. How to Add Photos to Submissions, Easy
 

How to Trim Spending on Senior Prom and Graduation

Tis the season -- for senior prom, graduation and open houses, that is. Parents, if you have a graduating senior or a student going to prom, be prepared: it's expensive. Here are ways to trim spending on prom dresses, tux, graduation supplies and open house. I've graduated three seniors and picked up some penny pinching tips.How to Trim Spending on Senior Prom and Graduation
 

Writer Burnout First Aid: Words of Prevention Equal Pages of Cure

 I've been writing since I was old enough to form letters. I've taught English and creative writing. I've blogged and freelanced professionally since 2005. Of all writing occupational hazards, writer's block is the most challenging. A word of prevention is worth a page of cure.

* Identify feelings. Writer's block, burnout, call it what you will, that stymied feeling is nebulous and deceptive. An apparent mental clog may spring from physical issues and vice-versa. It manifests like general burnout. Help Guide says dread, anxiety, depression, apathy, emptiness, despair and exhaustion characterize it. Writer Burnout First Aid: Words of Prevention Equal Pages of Cure

Debt-Free, Solvent, Unemployed: Earning Sustainable Income Online

When I tell people I'm an unemployed Michigan teacher, they show no surprise. But when I tell them I manage a family of six debt-free with no government assistance, they do. Their first question is: how?! My husband works a traditional job with benefits and I freelance and blog. Here's how work-at-home earns enough to keep me out of the job market.

Educational savings: I went back to work in 2005 after homeschooling for 10 years. I worked in a preschool/daycare because I hadn't yet renewed my teaching license. I made $300 a week. After license renewal, I couldn't find full-time teaching job.  Read more Debt-Free, Solvent, Unemployed: Earning Sustainable Income Online

Step Out of the Job Hunting Market; Think Divergent Employment

Unemployment is decreasing. Jobs are being created and the economy is improving. Or so we hear. I think such optimism premature and fanciful. Personal experience has shown me the way solvency in this quicksand economy isn't job hunting, college or even working a traditional job. Survival requires proactive, divergent thinking. For me, that meant quitting the traditional job and working online. I'm not promising get-rich-quick gimmicks, but common-sense, forward-thinking earning and saving tips. Here's how.Step Out of the Job Hunting Market; Think Divergent Employment 

Teaching Special Needs Kids Appropriate Online Social Skills

Teaching kids appropriate social skills isn't easy, particularly for special needs kids. Emotional or cognitive impairment, autism, Asperger syndrome, ADD and ADHD pose additional communication problems. Social networks like Facebook and Twitter complicate still further. Here are parenting tips for online social navigation from a 25-year special needs teacher.  Read more

Coping with Night Work, Third Shift Exhaustion

In 25 years of marriage, my husband has worked nights half that time. That's him on the left. Can you see the tiredness in his eyes? They don't call it the "graveyard shift" for nothing. Not only do you feel like a zombie when you're on that schedule, working nights for long periods will put you in the graveyard faster than many more-recognized health concerns. Third shift workers face added stress, depression an danxiety compared to those who work during the day. In 2011, the American Psychological Association listed concerns: "restlessness, sleepiness on the job, fatigue, decreased attention and disruption of the body's metabolic process." These affect safety, physical and emotional health and even relationships. Here are tips for third shifters to prevent burnout.   Coping with Night Work, Third Shift Exhaustion

Facebook, Social Media Impairs Real-Life Communication

Facebook and social networking are bubbles. They occupy a lot of time and airspace for a significant number of people. A spectrum of users interact instantly and globally. We don't yet know what all the impacts will be. From my own experiences, I see that digital interaction impairs face-to-face communication. Here's how. Distorted reality. We talk about having Facebook "friends" but that's a misnomer. Unless I know them in real life, for me, they aren't real. It's the easiest thing in the world to set up a fake profile. Kids can do it and I've known several who have. Unfortunately, adults do too. We go by aliases. We change names and pictures. We hide behind tiny thumbnail avatars. Our profile information is only as true as we choose to make it. I'm not saying people I know only online aren't real. They're just not real for me, nor am I real to them.  Facebook, Social Media Impairs Real-Life Communication