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

[tarquinandjocasta]

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.
I warm shop bought biscuits in the oven too.

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

Why are these all about housework?:)

Don't buy anything self assembly which includes Lego/ playmobil. You will end up assembling it whilst dc wander off squabbling.

If things get too much, order everyone out of the kitchen and drink tea/ wine depending on time of day. 10 mins of quiet time might mean dinner is late by 10 mins but at least there is no shouting.

Always wear sunglasses with a slick of lipgloss. Keep phone to hand for pretending to make VIP calls if approached by someone you don't like who isn't intimated by your sunglasses and lipgloss look. ( make sure its on silent)

Make up the name for an imaginary friend, who lives a way away and is v busy. This way you can get out of anything, or change your mind and bemoan " anastasia let me down! I can come to the fund raising knit- a-thon, after all"
You could even pre enter the name on calendars for anyone nosy who looks at your calendar, ( wall or over the shoulder on the phone) sees you have an evening free and wants you to do something that doesn't appeal.

And diarise everything. Keep a desk diary too, and let the dc write in it, and get them to look up activities etc and plan stuff everyone likes or might want to try. Am not entertainments director and its fine to actually, you know, get involved!

KatieKate Depends what you're interested in/where you are - I follow BBC Nrws, and my local BBC and BBC radio, other local radio stations, my local train and bus companies, Guardian accounts for the various bits I'm interested in (education, books etc), BuzzFeed, Huffington Post and various ones. Ones for my neighbourhood and City.

The most useful are the local media ones, I don't tend to listen to local radio or watch local news these days, so it's the only way I really keep up with local news.

Big yes to learning how to Google well. Learn how to put phrases in "" and do x+y-z to filter what you don't need. And all the other tips that are freely available if you, erm, Google.

And another hell yes to teaming up with a detail person if you are big picture or vice versa - unstoppable team right there.

Oh, and the tip of cracking on if you've not got the go ahead but know you're doing something good (to paraphrase) - genius. All women should take that and keep it close to their heart. Don't wait for permission.

If you run a small business, use something like Insightly alongside Google Apps for Work to make work flow easier to manage.

And don't forget to file your tshirts ;-)

Learn to trust your own instincts and while other peoples opinion can be helpful - its not the be all and end all - you have to live with your decisions no one else.

Learn to not really give a shit what people think but with a smile on your face and no ill will towards those that disagree with you.

Get some balls and understand life is not always fair - but so what you still have to get on with it.

Unconditional love is only for children and animals.

Karma is woo and thing happen just because - there is no fairness fairy out there.

The Brownies were right - be prepared - having some cash, a charged phone and a kick ass attitude can get you out of 99% of unexpected shit situations.

Get dcs to do the following

Tidy their own rooms
Put their own washing away
Sort their own dirty laundry
Hoover their rooms

They are only 5 and 8 gotta start em young !!

If a book is crap, stop reading it. Not if a book is hard work, mind you (otherwise I might never have "got" and consequently devoured Foucault's Pendulum).

Taking being ahead of the pack literally, I've made a list of the clothes I've actually worn this holiday, as opposed to the ones (too many) I packed.

The only variable is drying capacity in accommodation.

Andsmile - oddly enough I learnt it from an a level how to write essay type book about structuring essays ( the same book did me through two degrees and my first two professional jobs)
I also read a lot of good quality writing - times/ economist/ fiction/ poetry/ plays -newspapers are very good as they tend to have focussed writing. Main tip is to work out what you are trying to communicate to the reader and be very clear about that rather than instantly start writing. And then it's practice.

Oh - I also plagiarise & reuse loads for work but often it is simply structure rather than content.

Totally random makeup one. Use tape for eyeliner flicks. I love makeup but like perfect liner, basically shove tape at an angle and follow it up, peel off and perfect line. Also works if you want to make that outer V edge for eyeshadow

I don't iron, I hang virtually everything up to dry (lakeland heated airer)

I'm always early so usually have some kind of admin or phone call that needs doing so I can do that while I wait. Hate being late, it makes me stressed

Tape for liner/eyeshadow link
www.shamelessfripperies.com/tutorial/cut-crease-eyeshadow/

ALWAYS except for tonight because I am knackered and a bit pissed off make sure you empty the kitchen bin, deal with the recycling and empty the dish wrack for the morning.

When you have bought someone's birthday present wrap as soon as you get home. Then put the wrapped gift, and the card in a bag and keep it somewhere safe so you can grab it easily when you are in a hurry and on your way to the birthday party or whatever.

Every time I'm ready to hit 'Hide' on this thread, because it's all wifework & grooming, somebody posts a truly marvellous Life Lesson Thanks, philosophers & go-getters!

If Brownies advice includes "having some cash, a charged phone and a kick ass attitude can get you out of 99% of unexpected shit situations." then I may have to review my "if you must" attitude to DD doing Brownies and read the book for myself.

We have two walls of cupboards both around 12 FT long - Haha, I'd be living in a tunnel between them!

Bachelor life hacks...
www.buzzfeed.com/readcommentbackwards/32-bachelor-hacks-that-will-improve-everyones-liv-dmjk

My absolute best life hack was deciding to live on my own, do what I like when I like and don't have prise open cracks into which I can squeeze some 'me' time?
?

Doing things the night before is NOT a timesaver.

Leisurely making packed lunches in your precious evening time: 5 minutes
Panic-making a packed lunch one minute before you leave for school because you forgot to do it earlier: 1 minute.

Packing to go on holiday over a number of days: AGES PACKING
Packing to go on holiday 20 mins before the taxi arrives: 20 minutes

My absolute best life hack was deciding to live on my own - Oh, mine too

Well said and proven, Tonde.

I use shared lists on my iPhone with DH so either of us can do the shopping.

Never do any washing or housework while the toddler is asleep. Let her help! That way she learns and I get to relax and read while she naps.

Lay out clothes night before, no searching for kids clothes come morning!

Those bachelor tips looked pretty domestic to me, GarlicOctopus!

Love your compression deadlines, TondelayoSchwarzkopf, and I totally agree!

Always sit in the front row at meetings, presentations etc and model this to your DC. You get more attention from the speaker and just show the world that it is not scary to do. We went to see a comedian with DD aged 12 and he picked her from the front row to do a short piece with him on stage. He was lovely with her and she got the biggest confidence boost from it.