Travel | List Producer

Hail a Cab From Your Phone

June 27, 2013/0 Comments/in Apps, Increase Productivity, Reduce Stress, Saving Time, Technology, Travel/by Paula Rizzo

Ever had trouble hailing a cab? If you’re a New Yorker…I’m talking to you. Well, as it turns out — there’s an app for that! (Haha) Maybe you’re caught out in the rain, or carrying a ton of groceries. You’d love to grab a cab ride home, but easier said than done, right? Not anymore — with the help of Hailo, you can hail a cab from your phone!

I tried it out a few weeks ago and I have to say it was quick and easy! All you have to do is choose a location to be picked up and the app will tell you the name of your cab driver, his phone number, and how long you’ll need to wait. You even can track where the cab is on your phone, so no need to waste time waiting outside.

Pack These Items When You Travel

March 31, 2013/0 Comments/in Apps, Benefits of List Making, Increase Productivity, Learning With a List, Reduce Stress, Saving Money, Saving Time, Tool for Success, Travel/by Paula Rizzo

Paula & Nicole at the Trevi Fountain in Rome

Traveling can be very stressful no matter how much you plan. People go travelling for a whole host of reasons. Some people are interested in doing something like this Cultural Care Au Pair, whilst others are only interested in being tourists. But there are some tips and tricks that I’ve found to help you out. Recently, Jay and I went to Italy and Paris with our friends Nicole and Peter. They were the ones we went to visit in Paris in July.

Anyway — Nicole is a crazy planner/researcher like me. She makes lists and is super organized. She even wrote a guest post about ways to pack for a two week European vacation in a carry on. It’s brilliant advice. We had a blast planning out every stop on our two-week Italian tour. So we teamed up with this list of travel must haves: Read more

7 Tips for Traveling Abroad

March 27, 2013/0 Comments/in Benefits of List Making, Decision Making, Fellow List Producers, Increase Productivity, Learning With a List, List Making, Reduce Stress, Saving Money, Saving Time, Tool for Success, Travel/by Paula Rizzo

While traveling abroad there were a few things that made my trip even easier so I’ve decided to share my list with you:

1. Use Airplane Mode: When you board the plane – put your phone on airplane mode and leave it on for your entire trip. This way you will avoid any crazy expensive
data charges. Your phone won’t access any cellular towers this way but you can turn WIFI on if you want to check your email. I found this to be a really easy way to stay connected but also not have to worry about spending a fortune.

2. Pack a Carry-On Only: Between going through customs and waiting for your luggage – getting out of an international airport can take forever, but to make it easier for you, you could check out this carry-on luggage size guide before you jet off! As this way you won’t have to worry about bringing the wrong size luggage on your trip. My advice is to pack everything you need in a carry-on. You will save time and money this way. My friend Nicole has quite a system for this. Click here for her techniques. Read more

Best Food Apps

March 25, 2013/0 Comments/in Apps, Decision Making, Food, Increase Productivity, Saving Money, Saving Time, Shopping, Technology, Tool for Success, Travel, Wine/by Paula Rizzo

Salumi e vino lucchese. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It’s no secret — I love food! For someone who works in television I don’t actually watch it that often but when I do I’m always watching a cooking show. I love talking about food, eating it and planning out menus.

So when Mindy Kobrin of Meals on Heels asked me to write a guest blog for her food site I was thrilled! I decided to write about some apps that make planning, eating and enjoying much easier. Here’s a look at that blog post: 5 Must-Have Food Apps.

Bonus App

While on vacation in Italy and Paris recently I found another useful app that I didn’t include in my guest post. It’s called Delectable and it’s a wine app that is very smart. You just snap a photo of a wine that you’re enjoying and the app does the rest. The photo is sent to a database that identifies where the wine was produced, what year it was, what type it is, etc. And it even tells you where you can buy the wine. It’s a clever and practical app for wine lovers. It definitely came in handy in Tuscany. More on that trip soon. But I hope you find these apps helpful in the meantime.

Produce Your Life With Lists

December 5, 2012/0 Comments/in Benefits of List Making, Boost Memory, Decision Making, Fashion, Food, Health, Holidays, Home, Increase Productivity, Learning With a List, List Making, Radio, Reduce Stress, Saving Money, Saving Time, Shopping, Technology, Tool for Success, Travel, TV/by Paula Rizzo

As a TV producer — I think in lists all day long: segment ideas, schedules, questions, shots, etc. Many of the skills I use at work come in handy in my everyday life too. Grocery shopping, looking for an apartment, traveling and even clothing shopping becomes much easier with a plan — and a list!

If you think of your life like a newscast — and break it up into little bite-sized segments — it will be much easier to manage and be successful. I talked to Hilary Topper on her show, “Hilary Topper On Air” about how thinking like a producer will make you more efficient and less stressed in every aspect of your life. We talked about websites to make your life simpler, how to get your holiday shopping done with ease and ways to save money.

Take a listen to her show on Blog Talk Radio and let me know what you think!