January 21, 2017 Hi there! This week, I was intrigued by this trip across the U.S. by train. I sent it to my family ("What about this?"). Sadly, thei

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January 21, 2017

Hi there! This week, I was intrigued by this trip across the U.S. by train. I sent it to my family ("What about this?"). Sadly, their response was underwhelming, so I'm not sure it's in my future, but maybe it's in yours. Also, I'm bookmarking this list of questions to get beyond "How's it goin'?" with friends & family (you gotta scroll down for the link, and beware the ginormous popup—yowza). On to the tips...

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1. How to turn work "off"

I have trouble making the switch from being present in my work to being present with my family. So, I appreciated the practical disconnect / reconnect tip Jairek Robbins offered on this episode of The James Altucher Show. To turn work off, recall your sweetest moment with a family member. Then think of one more, and one more. The idea is to mentally draw yourself toward your family and allow work to recede into the background. I think his explanation (at minute 20:52), along with the background story about Air Force Pararescue specialists (at minute 16:52), is worth a listen. (Note, there is some language.)

2. Tips for writing comprehensive content

Gone are the days when tons of short posts or a single killer keyword equalled more traffic. Thank goodness. These days, go for comprehensive content. Anticipate and answer all the questions a reader might have about your post topic. But what if you're not sure what their questions might be? Of course you should brainstorm, but sometimes you can get Google's help too. Look for related searches (see #1) and try this:

1. Type your general post topic into Google.
2. See if a "People also ask" box pops up in the search results.
3. If so, answer those questions in your post (only if they're a natural fit of course).
4. Extra points: Don't just answer those questions, use the questions themselves as headings within your post (i.e. H2 or H3 tags).

example-using-google-for-post-content

3. Simple security tip: cover your camera & audio

I'm currently reading Tools of Titans by Tim Ferriss, in which Tim interviews Samy Kamkar, "one of the most innovative computer hackers" in the United States. On page 429, Samy gives tech security tips, one of which is not new (Mark Zuckerberg's photo made the news last year), but it's not known by many: cover your laptop camera with non-transparent tape. Hackers can easily hijack your camera.

4. Heads up!

Botdoh script font - Commercial use and unlimited projects & end products. Nice.
Scrivener for Windows - If you're a writer and if you have Windows, the deal on this wildly popular writing tool is still on but ends soon.
YouTube rolls out Super Chat - Fans pay to make their comments stand out during a live stream. Creators now have another monetization option.

5. Behind the scenes

You guys, my excitement about bullet journaling is waning. I know. Already. Barely 3 weeks in. What happened? I don't know, but the problem is, ideas pop into my brain at random times and pulling out that pen & notebook to write them down—like on a walk, while driving, or in the middle of the night—is just...impractical. Creating a reminder on my phone (I use Google Inbox) is loads easier. So, I don't know where I'm going from here. Some hybrid solution probably. Also this week, I spent a big chunk of time organizing my digital files. They were on my computer, in Dropbox, Google Drive, all over the place. I was able to downgrade my Dropbox subscription in the process so that was a win. And being organized feels great. Finally, a huge thanks to all of you who sent me feedback per my request a few weeks ago. It was very helpful and gave me some good ideas.

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Have a great weekend,

Amy

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