Little Irritants

On one of my morning runs this week, something didn't feel quite right.  I stopped and removed a tiny twig, about the size of a half of a toothpick, from an indentation in my running shoe. That's all it took to rectify the situation.  This incident reminded me that countless little irritations are easily eliminated.  However, we sometimes just live with them, rather than take the time to make things better.

119 Ways to Improve Your Life

There are countless ways to improve our lives.  I offer 119 suggestions and invite your terrific ideas.

1. Believe – In God, yourself, family, friends and colleagues
2. Embrace an attitude of gratitude
3. Do something nice for another with no expectation of reciprocity
4. Volunteer
5. Donate money or other usable resources
6. Read
7. Adopt a plant
8. Recommend a friend or colleague to others
9. Share your knowledge
10. Stay curious
11. Take one more step
12. Smile
13. Respond appropriately with yes or no
14. Anticipate
15. Make something
16. Send a card, letter or email to someone with whom you’ve lost touch
17. Share shortcuts
18. Recycle
19. Get enough sleep
20. Schedule the next appointment with a friend before you part company
21. Drink a lot of water
22. Improve listening skills
23. Be courteous
24. Graciously welcome others
25. Take a time out
26. Hold a baby
27. Pet a cat
28. Create a fresh floral arrangement with an unconventional container
29. Make your bed every day
30. Do someone else’s family chore without
31. Offer to help with a project
32. Sincerely compliment others
33. Look for positives
34. Become hyper-observant
35. Forward a helpful article
36. Subscribe to useful newsletters or blogs
37. Play
38. Dream
39. Hope
40. Plan
41. Consider alternatives
42. Be decisive
43. Set goals
44. Acknowledge accomplishments – yours and others
45. Give the coupon you can’t use to a stranger in the check-out line
46. Repurpose an item
47. Always put your wallet and keys in the same location
48. Automate payments
49. Bank online
50. Establish high expectations
51. See a play
52. Make a newcomer feel welcome
53. Recognize and reward excellence
54. Do what you say you will
55. Build a great reputation
56. Make others feel valued
57. Control your controllables and accept or work through or around the uncontrollables
58. Do what you love
59. Hug someone special
60. Be active
61. Find a place for everything
62. Distinguish between want and need
63. Be responsible
64. Schedule think time
65. Schedule preventive health appointments
66. Carpool to events
67. Make an introduction at an event
68. Compliment the host
69. Give a deserving speaker positive feedback
70. Recommend a book on LinkedIn
71. Catch a fish
72. Give a found good luck penny to someone
73. Create time-saving routines
74. Thank family members frequently
75. Mean it when you say “I Love You” and when you mean it say it frequently
76. Establish a pattern for staying connected to those you treasure
77. Use recurring appointments in your electronic calendar to remember special occasions
78. Take baby steps instead of avoiding things you have been avoiding
79. Break big projects into manageable pieces
80. Find a creative outlet
81. Alert a stranger when they are unaware that a strap or zipper or tag or tear needs attention
82. Laugh often
83. Confirm understanding
84. Streamline providers for frequently used items
85. Use paperless delivery options for statements and notices
86. Spell check
87. Reread aloud before sending important communications
88. Tell a friend or co-worker what they need to hear even if it’s not what they want to hear
89. Share good deals and sources
90. Stretch
91. Play to your strengths and partner with others whose strengths are your weaknesses
92. Be timely
93. Reduce clutter
94. Observe nature
95. Look for innovative solutions
96. Write something every day
97. Buy stamps online
98. Be an advocate
99. Ask for advice
100.  Be approachable
101.  Ask questions
102.  Bite your tongue or remove your fingers from the keyboard before responding inappropriately in anger
103.  Sincerely apologize when you are wrong
104.  Use an informative subject line in emails
105.  Speak slowly and distinctly when providing contact information
106.  Show enthusiasm
107.  Be supportive of family, friends and colleagues
108.  Help others
109.  Limit complaints
110.  Find an interesting way to do a mundane task
111.  Use a cross-hatch shredder to lessen identity theft risks
112.  Contribute to your company 401 (k) at least at a level to maximize the company match
113.  Forgive yourself and others
114.  Share a positive memory with the family of a deceased friend
115.  Nominate a deserving individual or organization for membership or recognition
116.  Establish a credible personal email address
117.  Use hyperlinks to minimize large attachments and blocked emails
118.  Don’t super-size fast food meals
119.   View riveting talks from remarkable individuals at http://www.ted.com/

Random Tips that Have Improved My Life

I maintain an attitude of gratitude and it's always a treasure when I discover a tip that makes my life better or easier. I share a few random tips:

Reusable water bottles - Yes, JuJu, I am reducing my carbon footprint, but I'm also drinking more water. I put one in the dishwasher each evening and fill one each morning as I head to work. Great poolside, too!

Lip moisturizer re-purposed: Gar's lip balm didn't make it through the washer in any condition for him to apply it. However, it's a great cuticle moisturizer and you can scoop it out as needed.

Audio-Tech Business Book Summaries: This is a subscription well worth the $149 per year price tag. I look forward to receiving 2 business book summaries (text and audio) each month. Great value and learning!

Towel drying hair before applying conditioner: Why didn't anyone ever tell me before that getting a bit of moisture out of your hair before applying conditioner makes a remarkable difference in the amount of conditioner that is actually absorbed? Just takes a couple of seconds to squeeze the excess moisture from your hair, apply conditioner, continue with your shower, then rinse the conditioner. This keeps the conditioner from sliding off soaking wet hair.

Calcium with Vitamin D can reverse bone loss! When my wonderful OB/GYN delivered the news that I needed to address my bone loss, I decided to take matters into my own hands. Thankfully, taking calcium +D every day, increased my bone density the first year, and has provided status quo going forward. Yes! It's great to change my bone health without drugs!

Sudoku - Thank you, Anne for providing a daily opportunity to solve a puzzle!

Hammock! No explanation needed!

Mapquest/Televav - Thankfully I am the only directionally challenged person in my family. These tools were made for me!

Keyless Entry - What difference could a few seconds make? Multiply those seconds by each time you enter your car. Not having to dig in my purse for keys is priceless!

List of Things to Take on a Trip - Years ago I prepared a list of items to pack. What a time and stress saver this has been. My only omission in recent years was a toothbrush... This one time I packed days ahead and sent my bags with family... Easy enough to correct!

Methodist Hospital Breast Center Satellite - I asked a few less than a million questions to determine that Methodist's satellite location at Kirby and the Southwest Freeway had the same radiologists, equipment and access to my years of records. Assured by my trusted physician, multiple nurses and everyone involved with scheduling, I had my first mammogram outside the Med Center. The facility is great, access to records is instanteous and the radiologists actually take time to meet you!

WWW.HCAD.ORG - ifile is the most time efficient government tool I've ever accessed. When a disparity exists between appraised value and market value, you can easily file a protest. My experience was amazing! From the time I filed, received and accepted a fair settlement offer was only 4 days!

Random Number Generator - Thank you Amy! If you need to easily find winners among eligible participants, this is the tool for you! In Excel use the formula =randbetween(bottom,top).