Curse of the Smartphone

I love my iPhone. I mean, I really love it. It's rarely more than a foot from me, whether I'm working (texting back and forth with writers), playing (taking pictures) or sleeping (until the alarm wakes me). I say with complete earnestness that having that amount of access to information, leisure and high-quality photography has changed my life. But for all of the good things it brings, it also creates plenty of negative impacts to on life. Here are a couple of tricks I've learned to help manage the blessing and the curse that is the smartphone.

Never Buy Anything Without a Coupon

I know, the title of this article is a bit extreme.

But honestly, if you engrain this tiny piece of advice into your impulsive, worry-about-an-overdraft-after-the-expensive-shoe-purchase brain, you'll save yourself a lot of financial headaches. It wasn't that long ago that I realized the power of Google in my constant mission to pinch pennies.

You'd be surprised how many companies have valid coupon codes floating around on the web without actively promoting them in their normal email spam.

Make Your Gratitude Memorable

In the professional world, there will always be an occasion when you will have to thank someone for putting in a word for you, for giving you a reference, or for recommending you for a job or a project.

If the case is that you are working your way up in your career, and you are completing an application for a post graduate program of any kind, then you will find yourself asking former supervisors, or professors for favors; just make sure you remember to say thank you.

Turn Your Internship into a Job

In terms of getting and keeping your dream job, I’m definitely fortunate. I was hired at a magazine company in my early 20s and in just over a year became its top editor. My interns ask me frequently for advice about landing a similar situation. The simple answer is that I was in the right place at the right time and had enough luck and energy to stick it out… which isn’t much help to them. The more complex answer is that I took a small opportunity – as an unpaid, undergraduate intern – and managed to turn that into a career. Here’s how I did it.

God Save My Shoes, and My Bank Account Too!

Image Source: www.nymag.com

Unless you have just crawled out of a hole, you know who Mark McNairy is. It is impossible to browse through any men’s fashion magazines or style blogs without running into that name. Who was once the former creative director for J. Press has now launched his own clothing line, with an emphasis on edgy, fashion-forward footwear (www.markmcnairy.com). As the number of these trendy shoes decreases, so is the amount of money in buyers’ bank accounts. With McNairy footwear starting at around $395, here are similar options that won’t break your bank accounts.

Brave-as-Hell 20 Somethings

Recently, I’ve been thinking about how our lives as busy-as-hell 20 somethings are so distinctly different from others of the same demographic. Just as we have made the choice to write, chain ourselves to a desk, and pursue ever-higher degrees in education, so have our troops made the decision to commit their 20s and beyond to the military service. 

The Saturday of Misfit Chores

The Problem

For six months I've had three bottles of Vaseline Intensive Care lotion sitting on my bathroom hamper. The situation is this: when one bottle almost runs out, I open a new bottle intending to transfer the last couple ounces from the empty to the new bottle.

And then I never do.

I've made it through two whole bottles and I'm about to empty a third.

I know what you're thinking: why don't you just throw away the bottles before you end up on Hoarders?

5 Tips for Online Shopping Success

During my graduate career, I became a professional at online shopping. When you work 30 hours a week while studying full-time, and accessing a shopping mall means paying for a rental car or spending hours on public transportation, knowing the ins and outs of online shopping is a skill worth having.

Here are 5 tips that will help you online shop successfully, and minimize the chances of being disappointed by what arrives at your doorstep.

Landing the Unlisted Job

     I'm all about creating and finding the best kind of opportunity out there: the unlisted job!  Over half of the positions inside some of the world’s most sought after companies are unlisted due to internal hiring and employee referrals.  So how does one break and enter into a company, brand, or agency to score a dream job?  It’s simple: stop spending so much time applying for the jobs that are listed and focus in on some specifics:

Need Motivation?

Sometimes motivation cannot be found no matter how hard you look. There are distractions everywhere, especially if you're on the internet. Whether you're a writer, a student, or a professional, you might need some help once in awhile to get that boost of motivation. In my search for motivation I have found two websites that might help with productivity. If that doesn't intrigue you enough, one website involves kittens and the other involves punishment.

Budgeting Made Easier

Money, it seems very simple when its viewed from the principle of spending or not spending. Having the room to spend or not is basically how I used to manage my finances. I don't think I ever had terrible spending habits, except for using my credit cards as an extension of my income. When the credit cards popped, the burst effect in my pocket didn't leave room for much. Regardless of how much I was making, I always had the same problem, I'd run out of funds before time. I knew I had to revise my money strategy.

Turn Your Kitchen into a Spa

If it were up to me, I would spend every weekend in a spa. Think about how you would look and feel with limitless facials, pedicures, body scrubs, massages… The possibilities for indulgence are endless. My bank account, however, is not – so I survive those terrible months between spa visits with DIY treatments. Here are three easy ones: you’d be surprised how simple and inexpensive it is – and how many ingredients you already have in your kitchen.

Simple Aromatherapy at Home

Throughout the day we're surrounded by synthetic fragrances and toxic cleaning chemicals. The effects these fragrances and chemicals have on human health is up for debate. The debate, however, isn't: "Are they OK to use?" or "Are they bad to use?" But rather: "They may be harmful," or "They are DEFINITELY harmful."

OK, enough said about that. The point of this post isn't to be a downer or an alarmist. The point of this post is talk about aromatherapy, which you may need to start practicing to relax yourself after thinking about synthetic fragrances and harmful chemicals. 

Your Spa Treatment at Home

In these days of long commutes, classes, work, family and social life, is hard to find enough time to pamper yourself. Going to a spa for nurturing might require extra time, and extra money. However, there is always a homemade version of everything, if you decide to do some skin care at home, you don't always need expensive beauty products or a huge space. All you need, are some basic ingredients in the shower for a happy healthy skin.

Fall 2012's Top 5 Menswear Essentials

esquire.com

As we slowly leave the heat of the summer behind and enter into fall, one thing that is always on my mind is what essentials I should add to my wardrobe to stay on trend and looking stylish this fall. After doing some research, I have decided that these are the top five items that every guy should add to his closet for fall 2012.

An Ode to the Lunch Bag

For those of us with 40+ hour workweeks in the city, it’s always tempting to dine out for lunch rather than dine in. Who wants to plan tomorrow’s lunch in advance when there's an episode of True Blood to watch and a bottle of white wine that's giving you bedroom eyes?


Well, I’m here to tell you that the benefits of planning your lunch ahead of time outweigh the tiny annoyance. I’ve come to learn that packing my lunch the night before a workday not only saves me time and energy come noontime, but also saves me money and encourages me to make healthier choices.


How, you may ask, did I make the switch?

3 Ways to Make Extra Money Over the Summer

Since I have a little extra time this summer, I started to look up ways I could earn some extra money. I found three things that have earned me money and also lets me decide when, where, and how much time to spend on them.

Beating old habits, one trade-off at the time

From www.junkfoodforlife.com

Trying to find a nutritional and effective meal plan to have energy in a natural way is not easy. I used to have the worst eating and sleeping habits, and by making small trade-offs with my self, I have figured out what eating right means.

The Battle of the Frizz

Why can't it just come that way?

I understand the urge to tame the summertime frizz. In fact, I’m something of an expert when it comes to extreme frizz-busting measures—to such an extent that I once got bamboozled into getting a Brazilian blowout on top of my already Japanese-straightened hair. Granted, I was on a cruise—anything goes, right?—and the hairdresser who talked me into it assured me that it was no big deal. There were no harsh chemicals to worry about, he claimed; the blowout functioned solely by virtue of the magical properties of the acai berry.

Stylish, Affordable Eyewear

I don't know about you, but when it comes time for me to purchase new glasses, anxiety immediately sets in. The main reason for this is due to the fact that purchasing new eyewear is costly. I know that when I enter the eye doctor, I am leaving with a $300+ bill, and it is due to this that I rarely purchase new glasses. Up until a couple of weeks ago, I was living with these predisposed thoughts until a close friend recommended an eyewear company that I was unfamiliar with, until now.