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Original poster

Life "hacks" - ways you secretly stay ahead of the pack?

285 replies

tarquinandjocasta · 30/09/2014 16:16

By this I don't mean those crap Take a Break tips that are going round the internet - use a trouser hanger to hold your recipe book. More like things that you do, that give you a bit of an "edge" no matter how trivial.

I am having a crisis of confidence day - feeling a bit like I'm not good enough.

I'm just wondering if others have secret ways of feeling better about trivial stuff that doesn't really matter in the big scheme of things.

Obviously MN itself is a bit of a secret and a great way of finding stuff out/researching without "letting on" to people in RL….

If I am feeling lazy, I buy plain fairy cakes and ice them myself fancily filling with lemon curd and piling on the buttercream and pass them off - people think I am quite the domestic goddess. Grin
I warm shop bought biscuits in the oven too.

There must be other things that you don't 'fess up to in RL?

OP posts:
Thread gallery
5
Shannith · 03/10/2014 11:04

Stop caring what other people think. Saves a lot of time.

lisej · 03/10/2014 11:10

When ill or just feeling incredibly lazy, I take to the sofa and get under a blanket, stick the telly on and every time there's an advert break, I heave myself up and do a bit of housework while they're on. you can unstack and reload a dishwasher in a 3 minute ad break, or dust a room, or sweep a floor or hoover the stairs or give the sink a quick clean. It's laziness with added smuggery.

Suzannewithaplan · 03/10/2014 11:17

Surely the only sure way to stay ahead of the pack is to not reveal your secret life hacks to the rest of the pack?

quietbatperson · 03/10/2014 11:48

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Suzannewithaplan · 03/10/2014 12:47

so you can lead a horse to water but ya cant make it drink!

NewLeafExpat · 03/10/2014 13:50

screenshot everything on the go to review later, recipes, websites, suggestions, phone numbers..

change the sheets every Sunday.

wear dark clothes for Two days, then light clothes for two days etc depending on what washing load is up next .. sad :)

GarlicOctopus · 03/10/2014 15:04

laziness with added smuggery [like] [like] [like] Wink

Momagain1 · 03/10/2014 18:13

Permanent phone/gadget charging stations. One in the lounge, maybe more if you have a family's worth of gadgets. One at a desk or table where you do paperwork. One at the bedside of each adult. One in each car. One sent in for each desk-workers desk. One for each gadget/phone carriers purse or pocket.

At least for us, 3 adults each having having a gadget and a phone, plus an older gadget passed down to a child, but having lost or broken multiple cords, it ended a lot of minor stress over having to hunt for cords, negotiate charging priority etc. Everybody's everything was always fully charged in the morning, and could be recharged easily if needed during the day. It stopped the swiping (and losing) of cords because someone was uncharged and needed to leave the house because everywhere they went, there was a cord.

mamaslatts · 03/10/2014 18:59

any public speaking/presentations/job interviews - make sure you are overprepared and know exactly what you are talking about

Always be 5 minutes early

YY to politics and voting

Do not lie/gossip

Buy cakes for the bake sales, do not then waste your time fancying them up!

Say no to lots of things - volunteering, lots of playdates, after school activities etc. Some are fine, don't let them run your life

Slow cookers - fabulous

Make a massive batch of mash by boiling the potatoes then 'mashing' them with a hand whisk - can also be frozen

If your DH is naturally v messy, make sure he has certain areas he can take control of such as ironing and cooking. Makes the fact he can't wash a chopping board slightly easier.

Cleaner if you can possibly afford it - even if its fortnightly

Learn to drive

YY to having friends that won't judge on tidiness of your house, whether meals are cooked from scratch etc

For most friends children, we only buy them a present if we are going to their party otherwise we just get christmas presents - easier to remember!

Always try and keep your hand in with work, even if you are a SAHM, if the worst happens, always have a plan of how you could earn some money.

Lollycats · 03/10/2014 19:32

Each and every time I have tried to disengage from anyone they've cottoned onto the fact and had a total hissy fit, and it's caused me problems forever more.

I would love some tips on how to disengage as smoothly as possible, preferably so that the person being disengaged from barely realises....

Tanacot · 03/10/2014 19:36

Things I have done that have improved my life, hm:

Get rid of at least half of your stuff and esp your telly because it is mostly rubbish that makes you feel bad. But do get a robot hoover and a dawn clock and a pair of properly comfortable shoes. Those are good things.

Read the LRB. Listen to Radio 4. Don't read the papers or magazines.

Work with people on the East Coast so you always seem amazingly together and productive every morning (cause you're 5 hours ahead).

Be kind to everyone, including yourself, as much as you can.

Get a cleaner if you can afford one - even 2 hours a fortnight.

Get a recipe box delivered and give up shopping pretty much completely.

Don't try to do things in a particular way (like a normal person, like a good person, like a proper woman...). Just get your own life working for you, however that needs to happen.

Turn off your phone. Unsubscribe.

Reduce, as much as possible, the inconsequential decisions you make every day: what to eat, what to wear, what to watch...

These might not all be useful to you, but have been to me.

Smilesandpiles · 03/10/2014 20:37

Get rid of any husbands, children , pets...

Makes life SOOOOOO much easier Grin

Suzannewithaplan · 03/10/2014 20:47

yep, ditch those freeloaders!

Newrowsees · 04/10/2014 15:10

Some great tips there Tanacot. I signed up for Unroll immediately, it's such a great idea!

Wonc · 04/10/2014 15:47

I keep a box of chocolates hidden at the top of the pantry and a stack of blank cards.

Comes in so handy - forgotten birthdays, but mostly as a thank you or get well soon gift.
Then replace as needed with the next shop.

carriewintermeadow · 04/10/2014 16:01

Thanks Tanacot, I have joined unroll.

Wish I could do away with food/cooking decisions. Sadly can't afford recipe boxes at the moment, but will look into it at some point. Likewise robot hoover.

MamaMary · 04/10/2014 16:15

Get the Met Office app on your phone. It tells you what the weather will do every hour of the day and night. Check it every morning to help decide - what to wear, whether to bring umbrella/ rain cover, whether to hang out clothes.

ThisIsSylviaDaisyPouncer · 04/10/2014 16:16

At work if you have to add comments to a doc (word or ppt) that will later be deleted (for example, say you want to write "check stats for accuracy" or something like that), write them in square brackets. Then when you finish your doc you can do a quick ctrl f on square brackets and make sure all comments have been actioned and removed.

Try and manage your mandatory workload so it takes up 80% of your time or less, then use the 20% on value add stuff, or simply to glide around the office looking chic, as you wish. A bit of both is a healthy combo!

Do the little things well. Introduce yourself properly on conference calls and in meetings, and take the time to welcome late attendees. Start the meeting by stating its purpose and likely length, and try and finish five minutes before time to get everyone to their next meeting, having agreed actions and owners. The first line of every email should contain your reason for writing. Make sure your contact details are visible on all your emails unless there's a good reason why not. Thank everyone that helps you - junior, senior or peer.

TheSpottedZebra · 04/10/2014 17:31

Ooh, unrollme is excellent!

PacificDogwood · 04/10/2014 17:58

Tenacot, thanks for the link to Unroll.me

68 subscriptions I had! Shock
Let's see what the roll-up e-mail looks like tomorrow.

trixymalixy · 04/10/2014 18:42

OMG unroll.me is bloody brilliant! I had an email address I had given up on as it was just full of rubbish and try as I might could not get it clear. I had 235 subscriptions!! Surely that must win a prize. Hopefully I can keep it clear enough to use now.

Tanacot · 04/10/2014 20:07

/me grins

I also send back catalogues and junk mail, but I am a mad person. Glad it's useful!

CrotchMaven · 04/10/2014 20:34

One thing that helps both you and whoever you're dealing with: when you email, use the subject line properly and use words in your email that mean that the email will come up when you search for it. I. E don't just think about the email you are sending NOW when you write but also about when you need to find it again quickly.

pluCaChange · 04/10/2014 21:10

I reinstalled Cute PDF on my new laptop this week, and that's a useful bit of software:

  • to "screenshot" the order acknowledgement page when you've paid for something online,
  • to make an attached letter or cv difficult to monkey around with (= assertting your control). The content (and format) will remain as you intended,
  • a pdf looks more serious than a Word attachment (for the above reasons)
Laquila · 04/10/2014 22:01

I LOVE Unroll.me and CutePDF!

CrotchMaven if I could make one global change to the way everyone on earth does business, it would be to teach people to purposely use the fucking subject line of an email. I can't tell you how many emails there are in my work inbox with subject lines such as "Hello!"/"Yesterday"/"Question" or, God help us, "Email".