Genuine Curiosity

Author Dwayne Melancon is always on the lookout for new things to learn. An ecclectic collection of postings on personal productivity, travel, good books, gadgets, leadership & management, and many other things.

 

Freedom to choose

Today's Thanksgiving Day in the US, and I'm spending the day with my family. I'm thankful for many things, not the least of which is our freedom to make choices and take actions that help us become better people.

With that in mind, please enjoy these inspiring thoughts from the late Sybil F. Partridge, called "Just For Today"

"Just for today I will be happy. This assumes that what Abraham Lincoln said is true, that "most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be." Happiness is from within; it is not a matter of externals.

Just for today I will try to adjust myself to what is, and not try to adjust everything to my own desires. I will take my family, my business, and my luck as they come and fit myself to them.

Just for today I will take care of my body. I will exercise it, care for it, nourish it, not abuse it nor neglect it, so that it will be a perfect machine for my bidding.

Just for today I will try to strengthen my mind. I will learn something useful. I will not be a mental loafer. I will read something that requires effort, thought and concentration.

Just for today I will exercise my soul in three ways; I will do somebody a good turn and not get found out. I will do at least two things I don't want to do, as William James suggests, just for exercise.

Just for today I will be agreeable. I will look as well as I can, dress as becomingly as possible, talk low, act courteously, be liberal with praise, criticize not at all, nor find fault with anything and not try to regulate nor improve anyone.

Just for today I will try to live through this day only, not to tackle my whole life problem at once. I can do things for twelve hours that would appall me if I had to keep them up for a lifetime.

Just for today I will have a program. I will write down what I expect to do every hour. I may not follow it exactly, but I will have it. It will eliminate two pests, hurrying and indecision.

Just for today I will have a quiet half-hour all by myself and relax. In this half-hour sometimes I will think of God, so as to get a little more perspective into my life.

Just for today I will be unafraid, especially I will not be afraid to be happy, to enjoy what is beautiful, to love, and to believe that those I love, love me."

Every day, you can make a difference through the choices you make. Happy Thanksgiving!

Another note: If you want some more inspiration, check out the special Thanksgiving post at Joyful Jubilant Learning!

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A new voice emerges...

This week, I met someone I've been corresponding with because he is a reader of this blog. We both happened to be at the same trade show in San Francisco, and got the chance to sit down and chat for a while. I really enjoyed the discussion and we talked about a wide variety of topics. One of the things we discussed is blogging. You see, he has been considering blogging for a quite a while, and I encouraged him to go for it. I'm happy to see that he's done that, and is off to a great start.

Check out Derek, now sharing his thoughts at "Business Based Parenting." Today's post is on Perseverance, Persistence and Determination - which I'm taking as a sign his voice will be around for a long time. Way to go, Derek!

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Pre-trip planning lists

Leaving town for the holidays? Make a list. Actually, many people have some of the more common lists covered (who's naughty and nice, who to send cards to, etc.) A list that is particularly valuable for me is my "don't forget to do this stuff."

Some things on my list include the following:

Arrange for pet sitter Adjust thermostat (lower in the winter, higher in the summer)
Leave check for pet sitter Turn on "out of office" reply on email
Stop newspaper delivery Change voicemail greeting to let people know you're gone
Hold mail delivery (you can do this online in the US at www.usps.com) Pay all bills (or schedule them in online banking)
Bring garbage from kitchen garbage can to outside can Print out itinerary and confirmation numbers
Check weather forecast for where you're going and pack appropriately

If you're traveling internationally, ensure you have:
current passports, valid visas, etc. (allow at 6 weeks for US passport processing)

This is just a sample of the things on my list, and we end up adding things to it every time. For example, 2 trips ago, we forgot my 7-year old's suitcase in her room; now, everyone must put their luggage by the front door and we double check that everyone has their bag before we leave the driveway. Last trip, I forgot my Blackberry and we almost missed our flight because I needed to go back and get it (it's also my phone).

Don't have a list? Here is a great online travel checklist, organized as a timeline - this provides a really good place to start.

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Yapta helped me get cheaper flights

A few weeks ago, I wrote about a free service called Yapta, which stands for "Your Amazing Personal Travel Assistant" (get Yapta now, or read my previous post about Yapta). Shortly after I started using Yapta, I bought a couple of plane tickets for a family trip and used it to watch the fares to see if they dropped. My tickets were about $760 each when I paid for them (yep, I know - pricey).

What does Yapta do?

The way Yapta works is that you can tell it what trips you're shopping for, or which tickets you've already bought. From there, Yapta starts monitoring the prices and lets you know when they drop (you can set how far they need to drop before you're notified). If the price drops, most airlines will either give you a refund or issue a travel voucher (depending on their policy) if you contact them before the price goes back up again (you've gotta act fast - those fares change quickly).

Yapta can track fares from the following airlines (currently US-heavy), but they have been adding more to the list:

  • AirTran Airways
  • Alaska Airlines
  • American Airlines
  • ATA Airlines
  • Continental
  • Delta Airlines
  • Frontier Airlines
  • JetBlue
  • Midwest Airlines
  • Ted Airlines
  • United Airlines
  • US Airways

Well, did Yapta work?

About a week ago, I got an email from Yapta on my Blackberry saying the fare had dropped, and I was elegible for a voucher from United Airlines for the difference. They even told me where to call and what to say to get my voucher (pretty cool). I called United, and the price had dropped to $601 per ticket so I got vouchers in the amount of $308.

Now that is what I call an amazing personal travel assistant. It's free - what are you waiting for?

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Speed Keys for Web Applications

If you're a student of David Allen's Getting Things Done, you may know that he encourages you to do a couple of things to improve your productivity in front of the keyboard:

  1. Improve your typing skills (see my previous post on learning to type)
  2. Learn and use speed keys (for example, <Ctrl>+C to copy, <Ctrl>+V to paste) so you don't have to move your hands over to your mouse as much.

On point #2, I've just discovered a great (free) add-on for Firefox that lets you create speed key shortcuts for any web site or web application you wish. It's called "Splinkd" and it's really cool.

You can use it to automate things like web-based applications (Salesforce.com, for example), web-based email (Google has its own hotkeys, but this allows you to add hotkeys to Hotmail and other services), and more.

Check it out - it's a great productivity tool for Firefox (no other browsers are supported at this time).

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