Get More Done By Speed Reading

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Speed Reading Class

Photo credit: iBjorn)

With only 24 hours in a day, finding time to get everything done in our hectic lives is really a challenge. Each day I find new articles, books, or little tidbits that I am dying to read but they just end up collecting dust in a pile on my counter or get lost in one of my cyber folders – what a waste!  I’ve started using a new system to capture some of the tweets and articles I want to read later but it’s not enough. It’s hard enough to read what I need to (especially now that I am attending B-School) and it’s frustrating that I have no time to read for fun.  But recently, I thought… “What if I could speed read?” that would solve this problem, right?

Speed reading is a technique that allows you to obtain the material you are reading in half the time as normal by reading groups of words at once. It may seem strange and it’s a little intimidating at first, but it really works !

Here are two tools that I found for quick and easy speed reading:

ReadQuickApp: This app displays an article (no books) of your choice one word at a time at the pace you are comfortable with. You can start at the slowest speed and gradually move on to get used to the technique! It will also tell you how long an article will take you to read based on your words per minute. (Cost $9.99 and is available for the iPhone)

Spritz: Want to read a whole novel in 90 minutes or less? Well now you can with Spritz. This app works by displaying one word at a time with a “fixation point.” One letter of the word is a different color and that is where you focus your eye. This allows you to focus on the word individually and obtain it, rather then moving your eyes side to side – this leads to distraction. This app can train you to read up to 1,000 words a minute – that is some serious speed reading! (Comes out around March 21st for Android, Javascript for web, and iOS. Test it out on their site here.)

If you can’t get into the speed reading that’s okay- it’s not for everyone! There are other ways to cut down reading time by using some old fashioned skimming techniques:

Yahoo News Digest (formerly Summly): No time to read lengthy news articles? This app will summarize them for you. Each story is created from multiple news sources that way you are consuming the essential information. You get all the important stuff without wasting your time! And it’s free!

Need 2 Know: This awesome free newsletter gives you “Need 2 Know” news coverage! It’s one of the first things I read in the morning.  They consider themselves the CliffsNotes for news. In each news category they sum up everything you need in 1-2 sentences. Want to know more details later – no worries, they provide the links for the full coverage.

How do you get all your reading done? Let me know which reading techniques you like best – I’m always looking for new ideas.

Where Does Luck Come From?

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Is it luck that opens doors in our life or is it our hard work and determination that pushes us forward? I think that it’s a little bit of both! When I look back at the good things that have happened to me — sometimes I’m the one who creates my own luck! I think that Oprah puts it perfectly, “I believe luck is preparation meeting opportunity. If you hadn’t been prepared when the opportunity came along, you wouldn’t have been ‘lucky.'”

It’s always good to be prepared for the time that opportunity comes knocking at your door, and to always keep an open mind.

So to get you inspired, and of course, in honor of St. Patrick’s day, here are 7 quotes to lead you to that lucky pot of gold 🙂

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7 Ways to Deal When Cable and Internet go out

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no-cable-tv

no-cable-tv (Photo credit: hjl)

As many of you know — I’m getting ready for a big move to a brand new apartment.  With that comes a lot of coordinating and planning.  Our cable company made one very big mistake about our move and shut off our service in our current apartment a month too early!  So yes, we were left without TV, Internet, and phone service for two days.  Who cares, you may think.  And I would have said the same — until it happened to me.

When you’re on vacation, you are ready to unplug, you need it and you want it.  But in the middle of a work week when you are unexpectedly thrown off of your routine and contact with the outside world is ripped from your grip — you get angry fast!  So as I was pulling my hair out with frustration, as our nice field tech Rich tried to get our service turned back on, I wrote out a list.

This is a list of things to do when your cable and Internet go out without warning — like when your cable company screws up or something more dramatic happens like a blackout.

1.  Go to the movies. It occurred to me that we had been binge watching Netflix for so long (House of Cards is amazing!) that we hadn’t actually been to a theater in months.  It was great to get out and see something new.
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Apps To The Rescue

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Typical scene at a local emergency room

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This week I have been all about apps!! Yesterday, I hosted a “Productivity Apps” webinar. In case you missed it check it out here! Today I want to introduce you to a whole new category – emergency apps! (I know, I know, I can’t get enough!)

1. iTriage
If you have any health questions this app will have the answer. You can find medications, diseases, and medical locations instantly! In the app’s new verison 5.9, members of select insurance providers will be able to find medical facilities that are In-Network for your plan. (FREE)

Screen shot 2014-02-27 at 7.57.36 PM

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Tonight’s The Night! Join My Productivity Apps Webinar

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iPhone 4's Retina Display v.s. iPhone 3G

(Photo credit: Yutaka Tsutano)

I’m excited to host my second FREE Webinar tonight — dedicated to apps!

Want to learn about the best apps to increase your productivity, and do more in less time?!  Well tonight, February 26, 2014 @ 8 pm EST, you can join me as I reveal some of my favorites.   (just in case you missed the last webinar “Boost Your Productivity in 2014” check it out now)

When I see people using the “Notes” app on their iPhones to keep their to-do’s or tasks, I literally cringe thinking back to when I used to do the same! There are so many great apps out there that blow “Notes” right out of the water. And don’t fear – they are mostly all free!

So, tonight I will give you the full rundown of the best of the best! AND It’s not too late to sign up- so register now! (Even if you can’t make the specific time, there will be a recorded version if you register)

Check out the details below: