Tips Today: September 2011

Friday, September 23, 2011

How to Prepare Your Business for Google+

Google+ just opened its doors to the world by enabling open signups and moving to the beta, testing phase. The nascent social network is still thin on features and ways for businesses to properly use it, but its minimalist approach has gained Google+ millions of users in a very short period. If you've tried it out for yourself, you'll know...

How to use Chrome's latest 'new tab' page

The blank Web site that stares back at you when you open a new browser tab is no longer a vast field of dead white space. Google is making Chrome's 'new tab' page a robust launch pad from which you can interact with your recently visited sites, Web apps, and bookmarks. It's currently only available in Chrome 15 beta, but it'll be handed over...

How to unclutter your email inbox

Once upon a time we had in boxes and out boxes. They sat nicely stacked on our desks and, as the week went along, more memos, copies and little yellow phone messages came in than went out. The in box filled with paper detritus and raised our general stress levels. Then came email. It sent the paper memo to the same crumply grave as folder...

How to focus in a manic market

While the market was doing another backward swan dive, one email came to me that reflected the mass anxiety: “Some are saying it may be time to panic, and I am resisting. What do you think? And what does panic mean: Jump? Sell off?” After I offered some brief words of staid resolve, it occurred to me that the luncheon speaker at the Morningstar...

How to get rid of a manipulative boyfriend

Having a boyfriend can be a wonderful and exciting experience. The feeling of companionship and closeness you can develop with your boyfriend can be matched by few other experiences. However, some boyfriends just don't quite make the grade. Manipulative people can be extremely difficult to deal with, and manipulative boyfriends can be even...

How to find out who unfriended you on Facebook

We've shown you how to try Facebook's new profile page — also known as the "Timeline" — right now, but did you know that it's more than just a pretty design? It can be used to find out exactly which of your friends quietly unfriended you at some point.This clever trick was discovered by the folks at Buzzfeed...

How to plummet 10 storeys without killing yourself

Peter Kent on some of the tricks of a stuntman's trade: ? A "high fall" is when you jump off a building that's at least 10 storeys. "You're usually into an airbag," says Kent, who produced an award-winning series on stunts called Stunt Dawgs in 2006. "The trick is to get your landing right and not to go in feet first or head first, because they can result in a broken neck or a torn spinal cord. I know people who have done that,...

Travel advice: how to recover a hotel booking fee

On July 9 I booked two return flights to Prague with easyJet, travelling out on January 12 for a four-night stay. I also booked hotel accommodation through easyJet because I wanted to be sure that if the flight timings were changed I could amend the hotel booking. EasyJet has now cancelled the outbound flight and can offer no alternative on the same day. It says it will refund our fares but will not cancel the hotel booking and...

How to reduce risk but stay in the stock game

The relief rally that pushed the Standard & Poor’s 500 index back above 1,200 ended abruptly Wednesday after the Federal Reserve said it would purchase $400 billion of longer-dated Treasurys to “put downward pressure on longer-term interest rates.” Global markets sold off big time, a selloff that continued Thursday, as the Fed’s downbeat statement cited continued economic weakness. But the debt crisis in Europe and here will...

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Strategy: How to get ahead by being different

By the time Axle Davids started his own brand consulting firm 10 years ago, he had already worked in the industry for almost two decades. So he knew what kind of competition he would be up against. He also knew he had to do find a way to be different. “When I was drafting my first business plan, I wrote about how I would use innovation to...

How to Take Advantage of Low Mortgage Rates

Markets around the world took a tumble today after investors took the Federal Reserve's efforts to stimulate the economy as a sign that the global recovery is slowing down. But while traders on Wall Street only see gloom and doom in the Fed's low interest rates, those on Main Street could get the breaks they've been waiting for. The losses...

How to Be a Chief Information Officer

For a lot of chief information officers, the best-case scenario is not to be noticed. Why? No. 1, these people are typically responsible for the largest cost center in your organization. No. 2 is that most of the technology budget is for things that were bought in previous years. So the CIO comes from a place of caution and conservatism...

How to Speak ‘IRS’ Language During an Audit

If you are called in for an IRS audit, you will be asked to bring documentation to support the deductions being audited, which requires a little pre-audit preparation. The letter will detail a list of the deductions they wish to examine. The first thing you should do is get out your copy of the tax return, if you cannot locate your copy,...

How to Handle a Crisis

As a leader, you have to balance the desire to say something right away with the need to get the facts. People typically err on the side of saying something too soon and then have to eat most of what they said. There are two phases: the hurricane and the cleanup. During the hurricane, you’re trying to keep the house standing and keep your...

How to Fire a CEO

Let's face it, CEOs get fired all the time. CEOs with less than 5 years of experience are more likely than long-standing ones to be fired, so it's going to happen all the time but there are ways to do it, and ways not to. Yahoo's firing of Carol Bartz is a great example of how not to. Don't fire a CEO over the phone, don't underestimate their grit, don't fire them without an agreed on communication plan. Carol is known for her...

How to fall 10 storeys without killing yourself

A “high fall” is when you jump off a building that’s at least 10 storeys. “You’re usually into an airbag,” says Kent, who produced an award-winning series on stunts called Stunt Dawgs in 2006. “The trick is to get your landing right and not to go in feet first or head first, because they can result in a broken neck or a torn spinal cord. I know people who have done that, unfortunately. You go in flat on your back or [do] an ‘over’,...

How To Trade This Market Meltdown

Investors are far from convinced that the Fed’s latest maneuver, Operation Twist, will be effective in propping up the slumping economy. Or maybe they just think the headwinds are too strong. More downbeat economic data out of China and Europe added to the pessimism this morning, with the German DAX 30 index down 4.9%. Gold and oil futures...

How to turn on your Facebook Timeline right now

If you are impatient and want to experience the new Timeline Facebook announced earlier today, you can turn it through the developer section of Facebook. The process is simple, takes a few minutes, and will require some patience as Facebook tidies up any lingering issues and bugs. You game? Read on. As reported on TechCrunch just...

How to make Apple halwa

Apple halwa is made with just two basic ingredients: apple and oats. I learnt this recipe from my grandmother and it can be made in a jiffy. What you need Oats: 1/2 cup Freshly grated apple: 1 cup Sugar: 1 cup Ghee: 2 tbsp Orange food colour (optional): a pinch Cardamom powder (optional): 2 pods Cooking instructions Heat a kadai and add...

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