The Small Blog

Fri, May 06, 2011 - 8:53:22

Give it a Rest

Chances are that your office frowns upon the practice of employees sleeping on the job. But, recent research suggests that a taking a nap during your workday could actually make you much more effective during your waking hours. In fact, sleep experts at the Johns Hopkins Sleep Disorder Center believe that particularly for the kinds of positions that require maximum mental alertness—air traffic controllers and surgeons, for example—napping should be a required part of the workday.

Why? Because research has found that taking a short nap can play a powerful role in increasing the brain’s performance. According to a recent Baltimore Sun article, one study found that overnight workers, who took just a 20-minute nap halfway through their day at 3 a.m., could still be described as “vigilant” at the end of their shift at 7 a.m.

Posted by Linda and Robin
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Mon, May 02, 2011 - 8:50:10

Dancing All the Way to the Bank

Chances are, you’ve heard of the workout craze known as Zumba and you may have even tried it yourself. But, did you know that this popular routine—and big business—is the result of an accident? It’s true, and it’s a great example of how keeping your eyes open for the tiniest opportunities can help lead you to great success.

Posted by Linda and Robin
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Wed, April 27, 2011 - 10:23:39

Be Four Again

When you’re faced with a serious problem, the natural assumption is that it calls for a serious solution. But, what if we told you that the most sensible solutions are often simply ridiculous? In fact, many times, the best way to tackle a tough challenge is to channel your inner child, be playfully creative, and think like a four year old.

As adults, our brains are conditioned to automatically filter out illogical, nonsensical, and outlandish ideas. But often, those crazy and even childish thoughts can provide inspiration for true innovation.

Posted by Linda and Robin
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Tue, April 26, 2011 - 9:51:09

Sweat the SMALL Stuff Like Your Life Depends on It

When you think about the characteristics that lead to a long and healthy life, what springs to mind? We’d imagine the list might go something like this: carefree, relaxed, and free-spirited. Well, you might be surprised to learn that an 80-year scientific study has just turned this long-held notion on its ear. The study uncovered a rather shocking discovery: the people who live the longest—and happiest—lives could actually be described as conscientious, prudent, persistent, well-organized, and even somewhat obsessive. In other words, they eschew the conventional wisdom and do sweat the SMALL Stuff.

According to lead researchers Howard S. Friedman and Leslie R. Martin, whose findings are published in the new book, The Longevity Project, genetics play only a supporting role in your chances for a long life. More important are a combination of lifestyle and chance. And that’s where sweating the SMALL stuff comes in.

Posted by Linda and Robin
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Wed, April 20, 2011 - 10:20:49

Multi-tasking? Forget about it.

Have you ever been so busy completing the items on your endless to-do list that if you stopped even for a minute, you couldn’t remember what you were doing? New research suggests that the problem might not have been how much you had to do, but how you were doing it. The New York Times reports that the common practice of multi-tasking has now been linked to poor memory function. And it’s just one more reason why we’re taking multi-tasking to task.

Unfortunately for many ambitious professionals, there’s a common misconception that multi-tasking is the best way to power your way through the day and this new finding linking multi-tasking to weakened memory is just the latest development outing the practice as a productivity-killer. Instead of being ultra efficient, multi-tasking is, quite counter-intuitively, the least effective way to get things done fast. Research has found that multi-tasking actually slows your productivity, and worse, it decreases your accuracy, increases fatigue, and negatively impacts your decision-making skills.

Posted by Linda and Robin
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