Weekly Round-Up #56: Working Not Rocking Around The Clock, Taking Much Needed Breaks and Reinventing Yourself For 2016
In this week’s round-up we take a look at how you can file your taxes more efficiently, how guys in the U.S.A are losing out on holidays and why you should get dressed in the morning to help your productivity if you work from home.
Welcome to this weeks round-up. I have no idea when January has gone, do you? Last thing I knew I was sitting down to boxing day dinner and now it’s almost Valentine’s day – where has the time gone?
This week I have some interesting reader-submitted articles and a few I’ve found myself that I think you’ll like so if you’re into self-improvement, making Power Point presentations or just need a break check out the great round-up I’ve put together this week.
I hope you have a great weekend – don’t forget to check the blog tomorrow for your free February Wallpaper download.
The Freelancer’s Essential Guide To Business And Taxes – Form Swift
When I was freelancing and contracting accounts and taxes were the thing I hated the most and there aren’t a lot of free guides around to let you know what you should be thinking about when filing your taxes. This guide is U.S centric but should point you in the right direction of what you need to consider.
Visme Presentation And Data visualization – Vizme
I was emailed by Visme asking if I’d like a free premium account in order to review their app. To be honest I don’t use presentation software or create infographics enough for me to be able to write a full-blown review but the idea behind it looks really interesting. If you’re into creating a variety of media content types then check out their video:
Take A Five – Take A Five
Do you sit on Facebook or Twitter for hours… and I mean Hours on end when you should be working? Then check out this great website that allows you to manage your distracting web habits without the need to install an extension.
Simply go to the website, select how long you want to be allowed to view your “unproductive content” for (2, 5, 10 or custom minutes) and then choose your poison. There are a few inbuilt “gateways” to select – as yet there’s no way to select a bespoke URL so you can still get lost in Wikipedia or StumbleUpon for ages if you’re not careful – but your major timesinks are present.
Enjoy your short break and then get back to the real world when the tab closes and forces you back into the harsh reality that is your existence… just kidding, open it again for a bit longer next time!
Holiday working hours in a ‘Round the Clock World’ – Find My Shift
This is a really interesting article in the fact that I didn’t realise just how bad some workers in the U.S.A had it in terms of workers rights when it comes to holiday. I do disagree with some of that article’s contents in that it makes it sound like everyone living in Europe has this fantastic working life that’s just one long holiday – I wish! I, for example, have opted out of the E.U’s “Working Time Directive” so don’t necessarily get afforded 11 hours off per 24 hours, don’t get a rest day for working 7 days on the trot and can work over (or be asked to work over) 48 hours a week. That was a personal choice though so, you know, my bad!
You guys in the U.S get more days off in terms of “Federal” holidays though – you get 10. In the U.K we have 8 “Bank” holidays although most companies do work on these days and if you take them off they come out of your holiday allowance (unless you work in the Public Sector but that’s a rant for another time!)
If you’re in the European Union, Canada, or Australasia take a look at this and don’t moan about working conditions again – I think we’re the lucky ones! Don’t agree? Let me know why in the comments.
What To Do If Pomodoro Doesn’t Work For You – Productivity Theory
I was asked recently what technique I’d recommend for people who need to stay focused on their work and I was very much in favour of the Pomodoro Technique – stay tuned for a link to the great article coming soon from Camilla at 99 Smart Ideas – but if you can’t get into the Pomodoro technique then check out this article for some more ideas.
Top 10 Ways to Be More Productive When Working from Home – Lifehacker
This is a reverse countdown of important things that can motivate you when you’re working from home. The “least” important is to get dressed and I disagree with this, I would put in in my top 3 definitely. I wrote about how the way you dress can impact your performance back in 2006… yes, that long ago! My article’s a short one but hopefully worth something. The other items in this article are all really good pointer for those working at (or thinking of) working at home – they’re just not in the order I’d put them!
19 apps to reinvent yourself in 2016 – Mashable
Still looking for a way to get your New Year’s resolutions off the ground? Or perhaps you’ve just decided 2016 is the year to make you a better version of yourself. If so then check out this post from Mashable which showcases 19 apps to improve all aspects of your lives from exercise and brain training to getting a better nights sleep.
Over To You
I hope you’ve found this week’s round-up informative. As always I’d love to hear from you. Have an article to share, thoughts on something I’ve posted or perhaps a suggestion on a future post then let me know in the comments here, email me via the website or send me a tweet. I love to hear from you all so keep the comments coming.
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