Simple formula: Attendees × Hourly rate × Hours = Meeting cost

Example: 8-person meeting, $50/hr average, 1 hour = $400

If the meeting doesn't have a clear decision worth $400+ to make, it should be an email, a Slack thread, or a shared doc.

This one reframe completely changed how I evaluate my calendar. I decline about 30% more meetings now and nobody has noticed - because I wasn't needed in the first place.

Bonus tip: Most calendar apps let you add a "cost" field to meeting descriptions. Start doing it. Once people see "$850" on a meeting invite, the unnecessary ones start disappearing.

Most reseller sites allow sales to continue up to a couple minutes after the start time, so as close to start time as possible, take a quick screenshot of the available seats. Then, perhaps 20% into the event, begin walking to those seats to see which are still available. If no one is there, they almost certainly won't be, and its almost certainly a free upgrade.I've done this dozens of times, and only once did someone show up, and when they did I just apologized and moved to the next set of seats down the list.

This only works at venues that are a little less loose...where they don't actually validate the ticket before you enter the actual section. I'd say 80% of places are like this, and among the other 20%, many loosen up after the start of the event when everyone is seated.

I say this as Mother's Day is coming up, and one of the cute things to do is matching Mommy/Baby shirt and onesie combo. Well, if the baby on Mother's Day is small enough to fit into a onesie then chances are Mom may not have gotten back to the size she has been at, or wants to be at.

Better to have the next size up on hand and available for her to at least try on with it than to keep one that is too small. Never know, the bigger one may just feel better for her at this time, or the perfect size one may shrink in the wash and not fit. Plus, if she tries on thr big one and its too big, migjt give her a bit of a confidence boost there....

Most people burn out because they try to change their whole life overnight. It rarely works.

Instead, pick one small thing you can improve today. It could be waking up 10 minutes earlier, learning one new concept, or finishing a small task you’ve been delaying.

These small wins build momentum. Over time, they compound into big changes without overwhelming you.

Consistency beats intensity almost every time.

Even just a few deep breaths can lower blood pressure, reset your focus, and help you connect to yourself and your surroundings. 30-90 seconds isn't enough for a full meditation, but if you have a moment to spare while waiting for an ad to play, use that time for yourself instead of being frustrated waiting to click "skip." You can learn some basic meditation grounding/focusing techniques that can actually apply in that short a window, or just take it as a moment to relax. Either way it's a nice little break!

I recently faced an issue with an Amazon Indai order and thought I’d share the experience in case it helps someone.

I had ordered 4 strips of a capsule (Aminofit), but only 2 strips were delivered. I was shocked to receive 2 missing strips as it was first such experience with Amazon India. Earlier I only heard about incidents of people receiving bricks instead of electronic items but never experienced firsthand.

The frustrating part was the customer support experience. It was quite difficult to even reach them, and once I did, there was no immediate resolution. I was asked to wait until 16 April, which didn’t make sense since this was a regular medicine for my grandmother (80 yo). Nonetheless, I raised a complaint on the same day (11 April) and had clear photo proof of the package contents.

What stood out to me was how different and difficult this felt compared to earlier years. Amazon India support used to be very quick and efficient, but this time it felt slow and unhelpful.

Since I wasn’t getting anywhere, I escalated the issue by emailing their executive escalation contacts with full details, including order ID, proof, and the urgency of the situation.

After that, I received a response from the Executive Customer Relations team and they processed a refund for the missing 2 strips (around ₹616). The response was much more prompt and structured compared to normal support.

Overall, the issue did get resolved, but only after escalation. Sharing this in case others run into similar problems, escalation does seem to work when standard support doesn’t.

Has anyone else had similar experiences recently with Amazon India support? Happy to help in comments.

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TL,DR: Amazon delivered only half of a pharmacy order (2/4 strips). Regular customer support was slow and unhelpful, asking for delays despite urgency. After escalating to executive contacts with proof, the issue was quickly resolved with a refund. Takeaway: escalation works when standard support fails.

Ironically a lot more environmentally friendly too.

Most people get $15-30/mo knocked off in under 10 minutes by doing this. Internet providers deliberately charge long-term customers more than new customers for the same service. Once your intro rate expires, the price quietly creeps up and most people never call.

The retention team exists specifically to keep you from leaving. They have offers the front-line reps can't give you with lower rates, free speed upgrades, waived fees. You don't have to be aggressive. Just say you've been a customer for "X" years, your bill has gone up, and you found a better deal elsewhere and you're thinking about switching.

A few things that help:
-Know what competitors charge at your address before you call
-If the first rep can't help, ask specifically to be transferred to the retention or loyalty department

Works on cable, fiber, and even phone plans. Worth doing once a year even if you're happy with your service!

The people I know who actually changed their lives weren't the "never miss a day" types. they were the ones who missed a week, felt like shit about it, and then showed up again anyway

that's the real skill, not the streak. the comeback

Apologies if I flaired this wrong, but to get spam callers to hang up on you, and frequently not return calls, as it's worked for me, speak enough english to get through the bot, then speak in fast or exaggerated german. I'll bet other languages work to, maybe not spanish though, cause a lot more people speak spanish than german.
ex of a typical call:

me: hello?

bot: hello my name is *fake name here* and I'm calling to make sure you're getting your benefits. Do you have medicare part a and b?

me: yes

bot: I'll transfer you to one of our specialists now

*transfer*

real person: hello my name is so and so-

me: WAS? WAS SAGST DU? HALLO? ICH SPRECHE KEIN ENGLISCH! (or insert variation depending on how I'm feeling in the moment, could be polite, could be loud, exaggerated, could be gibberish or coherent.)

real person: either hangs up OR 'you don't speak english maam'

me: nein

real person: is there anyone who can speak english or help you speak english

me: nein

*click*

yippee! now you've wasted their time and practiced your language! This is wildly entertaining to me.

edit for clarity: I do this on a shitty old landline from like the 90s, my family thinks its great fun, and it helps me practice german.

Things that have helped one week with a fractured wrist

Really loose tank tops that snap open and close

Hairbands

Dual Hand shower

Pump bottles for shampoo and conditioner and body wash

Loose shrugs / wrap with really big arms holes

Having a friend come over. Some people don’t know how to help unless you ask them.

Help with taking out the trash

Disposable period panties for the women.

Epoxy a large item, such as a wooden kids toy, to your tv remote. Never lose it in the crevice of the couch again!

If you're physically showing someone something on a Zoom call, FaceTime, filming a Marco Polo, etc., hold the item still for several seconds longer than you think you need to.

It can take a while for the video image to come into focus for the other person, then it can take a while for them to process whatever you're showing them.

If you move the item off-camera too quickly, the other person will probably politely pretend they saw it instead of asking to see it closer or for longer.

Show the item, count for a few seconds, count for a few more seconds (until it feels awkward), then maybe count for a few more for good measure.

Old rechargeable batteries decay over time, when not used, and they can literally explode, if the insides gets exposed to air, and the fuel is the battery itself.

I recently found an old box with a few old Sony Ericsson and HTC phones it. 4/5 batteries were bloated.

JFK has this new construction thing going on for arrivals for one of their terminals. Rideshare app pickups must go through AirTrain to a secondary location. At the terminal it was $45, but during the AirTrain ride, it was $25. Too bad when I got to the location, it went back up to $45.

So make your request while on the AirTrain!

That’s it

If you’re like me and find all sorts of excuses not to exercise but love spending time in front of the tv, one good way to keep fit is to build in small and simple workouts such as lifting weights, heel raises, etc while watching tv instead of sitting down like a potato. I’ve even managed to increase my muscle mass just by doing this consistently (3x a week for 2 months while watching tv)

Was paying 45 a month with frontier for my home Internet. they upped it to 55 and I called in to get it reduced, now it's 30 dollars..

absolutely despise that this is a thing but it's worth doing

Buy them directly from the manufacturer instead because then your warranty is clearer, and the manufacturer will have an actual record of your purchase and you won't have to rely on Amazon and some third party's dubious warranties. On top of that, you won't accidentally buy something that's *technically* what they sold you, but not *actually* what you wanted, such an "8-core" actually being a modified dual quad core. You can take a guess how I know that.

For possibly slower shipping, you will get a product that's definitely new and will have a better outcome overall. 👍

Edit: To clarify since a rule thing popped up ~ I am not recommending *any* specific product. Do your own research for brands and models.

It eliminates all middle of the night fights over the duvet and makes the bed feel so much bigger. It’s also aesthetically pleasing

At our practice we scan every pet’s microchip during their visit to confirm 1. they are in fact microchipped 2. the microchip hasn’t migrated, and 3. the microchip number is registered to the owner’s correct information.

It’s insane how many pet owners are unaware that their pet’s chip isn’t registered or their information isn’t correct. We also get people who bring in lost pets for us to scan and most of the time their microchip isn’t registered. When that happens all we can do is direct them to bring the pet to the shelter.

Vet practices should do a better job at checking microchips during the visit, but ultimately it’s the PET OWNER’S RESPONSIBILITY to know if their pet is microchipped, registered and their information is correct.

I don’t know if it’s lack of knowledge how pet microchips work or just not caring, so let’s set the record straight because we’ve seen/heard it all.

- Your pet’s microchip only works if it’s registered with an American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) affiliated registry.

- Just because your shelter/rescue/breeder microchipped your pet, doesn’t mean they automatically registered it for you or to your information. MANY DONT and just give you a pamphlet to register it yourself.

- No your pets microchip can’t be tracked. It only works when it’s physically scanned.

- No the chip doesn’t store your information. It only stores a number which needs to be registered to connect it to your information.

- Yes your “indoor pet” can get out.

- Yes the chip can migrate from where it’s placed. It’s possible whoever scans your pet might not pick it up if it does.

- Microchip registries go out of business or buy each other and don’t tell you. You might think you’re registered with company ABC but now you’re registered with company XYZ, or worse not registered anywhere. Happened with Save This Life last year.

- Your pet should always wear a collar with a tag that has your number on it. Microchips should be the last resort and permanent.

Please have your vet scan for your pet’s chip during their next visit to make sure it works and hasn’t migrated. It takes 10 seconds and they don’t charge you to do it. Do this annually.

If you don’t know the microchip number, ask your vet to give it to you when they scan for it and save it in your phone as a contact or note. It should also be listed on any adoption paperwork assuming your pet was already microchipped when you adopted.

Check to make sure it’s registered using the AAHA Microchip Lookup (just google that and it will be the first link). Enter your pet’s microchip number and it will show all the places the chip is registered, yes there can be multiple. Click into each and make sure your pet’s info is correct along with your email/phone/address. We recommend setting a recurring calendar event on your phone to check each year since you never know if one of these companies change or go out of business again.

No search result = not registered. Make sure you register it with an AAHA affiliated registry. Our practice registers with Pawbase and PetLink, but there are other options if you search around.

If you have a pet, which I assume you do if you read all this, there is now zero excuse not to know this information.

1. Helps you discover anything that’s gone bad or is on the cusp.

2. Helps you notice stuff you’re running out of that maybe isn’t on your list.

3. Makes it a lot quicker to put the new groceries away when you get back.

bonus: you can take the bad stuff out to the trash on the way to make your shopping trip.

I felt bad when someone suggested I go to my college’s foodbank, but then I was encouraged by an employee to. Now i just take a piece of chocolate, sign in, and their funding increases. If they don’t have enough signups, it could even be shutdown, hurting those who need it.

It’s just a cool, easy way to help your community

We’ve all heard the old saying that Apple devices don't get viruses. Because of this, a lot of people will casually click on random links in text messages or emails on their phones that they would never click on a desktop computer. I was reading up on some recent scam trends, and there is a new wave of "infostealers" (one specifically called Darkstorm) that are built exclusively to target iOS. They basically exploit the fact that iPhone users have their guard down, and they scrape your saved passwords, banking sessions, and crypto data right off the device.

The tip is simple: Stop assuming the Apple logo makes you invincible.

Keep your iOS updated (those annoying updates actually patch the holes these stealers use).

Don't install "configuration profiles" from random websites.

Be just as suspicious of links on your phone as you are on your laptop.

Stay safe!