Happy new year, everybody. Clearly one New Year’s resolution of mine wasn’t to get out the first edition of Changing Lanes in a timely fashion. Still, let the record show this edition came out in January 2012.
One of my “traditions” before setting my goals for the coming year is to review what’s worked in the previous. Those things can be tools for business or things that helped me do business better. Here’s the top five of things that worked well for me last year:
Constant Contact – Social Media
It may seem like a trivial add-on to an already great service. Yet being able to share your e-newsletter to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other social media serves a great purpose if you’re trying to be consistent with your social media efforts. Even better, you don’t need to take a class on how to do it. Just check a few boxes and it’s pretty self-explanatory.
Matt Furey’s Combat Conditioning
I’ve been using Matt Furey’s Combat Conditioning program for six years and enjoyed the incredible workout these bodyweight exercises provided in a short period of time. One in particular, Hindu Squats, I’ve found to be a tremendous cure for writer’s block.
While a lot of people find a trip to the gym or a run a great way to alleviate writer’s block, it can take a lot of time. A set of 100 Hindu Squats can take three or four minutes. You’re probably breathing a lot harder than a run or 30 minutes on the treadmill and you can do them right at your desk.
Matt Furey – Carpal Tunnel Fix
Last year, hitting a punching bag was my version of stress relief. Unfortunately, it caused a little bit of elbow tendonitis, otherwise known as ‘tennis elbow’. Upon shaking the hand of a 110-lb graphic designer and feeling pain, I knew it was time to seek some help but did not feel like dealing with multiple trips to physical therapy, co-pays, deductibles and all that. I ordered Matt Furey’s Carpal Tunnel Fix program. Within a few days, the pain had subsided dramatically. Within a week, it was gone.
If something works for me, I stick with it. That’s why I kept the same printer-scanner-copier for the past nine years. It worked fine and I saw no reason to switch. Well, almost no reason. When I bought the new computer with Vista, the photo editing software that came with the printer was not working well. Or, at all. That’s when I discovered IrfanView. It enabled me to edit size, crop, change resolution and a bunch of other stuff. And it was free. ’nuff said.
Paint
Not the kind you put on walls. The Microsoft software that’s part of the Accessories suite. Usually thought of as kind of a throwaway/add-on, it has actually come in quite handy in my attempt to save my printer. In fact, it’s the program I use to scan documents. It sure beats buying a new printer.
That’s what worked for me last year. Stay tuned for next month’s Changing Lanes, which should appear before February 31.
