Amazing Tips & Tricks

• 10 second trick to improve photo composition

Set your camera’s self timer to 10 seconds, then lineup your shot. The goal is to get you thinking about composition, but only so much that you have a deadline and still have to actually take a photograph. The self-imposed ten second countdown forces you to set up your photo quickly, but you’ll probably still have a second or two near the end you can use to think again, see if there are any changes you could make, and make them before the timer goes off. Same can be applied for any work. Identify a reasonable time for any task and put a timer. Challenge yourself to complete a task within anticipated timeframe.

• Use BIG picture to connect to purpose

Anything you need or want to do can be thought of in more than one way. For instance, “exercising” can be described in Big Picture terms, like “getting healthier”. Thinking Big Picture about the work you do can be very energizing in the face of stress and challenge, because you are linking one particular, often small action to a greater meaning or purpose.

• Avoid stress by relying on routines/habits

Having to make decisions is a powerful and pervasive cause of stress in everyone’s lives. Every time you make a decision - whether to invest money or when to schedule a meeting or about choosing a breakfast or choice of going for walk — you create a state of mental tension that is, in fact, stressful. This is the reason, why people feel exhausted when they are presented with too many options. The solution is to reduce the number of decisions you need to make by using routines. If there’s something you need to do every day, do it at the same time every day.

• To leave best impression, seek simplest identity

People remember us through only one phrase, one thing, one adage. You stand out by working at your “highest point of contribution” - an intersection of your talent, passion and market. A unique you, how simply can you define him? everyone is unique, so are you. Hence, beware, don’t use superlative adjectives. Adjective elevates expectations. Don’t say it, Prove it. State your achievements, describe your works, don’t take credit for things you are supposed to do. Authority comes by who are your audience. Words like creative, effective, proven, team player have lost their impact since they are used to describe everyone. Don’t describe yourself, point to customer appreciations, awards, praises. Don’t use superlatives that can’t be quantified like incredibly, profoundly, extremely.

• Appreciation is the one thing that should never be automated

If you’re truly grateful (and you should be!) why not take the time to personally express your gratitude in a heartfelt, genuine way? A letter, greeting card, a post in own hand writing is good manners, memorable, and leaves a huge impact. A personal visit, hand made food, a personal note are more gratuitous and elegant.

• Nothing worth achieving comes without a price

Fit people are fit because they work out a lot. Successful people are successful because they work incredibly hard. People whose family relationships are close-knit have put time and effort into building those relationships. If you don’t have what you want, pay the price to get it. If you’re not willing to pay the price, recognize that fact and take that particular goal off your list. Keeping goals for which you aren’t willing pay efforts, will create mental block and frustration. Everytime you confront a “Yeah, but…” thinking, either decide to take the difficult pathway of other successful people OR forget the goal and move on.

• Extremely successful people work smarter and they work harder

Harder you work, luckier you become. Even Tim Ferriss, the lord of the 4-hour workweek manor, stays incredibly busy with all his projects. (Of course to Tim it doesn’t feel like work). With given time of same 24 hours per day for everyone, where you spend yours will dictate what you achieve. In a world filled with incredibly smart and driven people, smartness is not an option, but a necessity. You may not be smarter than everyone else. You may not be as talented. You may not have the same great connections, the same great environment, or the same great education. But you can always rely on your courage and effort and perseverance. You can always substitute effort for skill and experience, secure in the knowledge that, over time, incredible effort will always breed skill and experience.