To help you set yourself up for a year-long journey of self-efficacy, we’ve provided you with 51 options for new year’s goals.

Also as a personal finance blog, we are listing up actions you can take to make sure you are positioning yourself for financial success. 

 Save this post,  and make notes.  We would also suggest you keep a  track of your new year’s goals by using a planner.

51 New Year Goal To Achieve In 2023

1. Make a budget

The key to achieving almost every other financial objective is budgeting. Making a budget is an excellent way to keep track of your cash flow and expenses. Sticking to one helps you with planning what you would do with the surplus. Using budgeting software on your smartphone is one of the simplest methods to keep track of your earnings and outgoing costs. There are several cost-tracking applications on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

2. Make savings a priority

One cannot emphasize enough the importance of savings in achieving financial security. If you have just started earning and have no idea about what to do with your money rather than your expenses, just start with saving for this year’s new year goals  Be strict with your expenditure so that you prioritize savings more than impulses.

3. Pay off a loan

When creating a financial strategy for the year, consider including debt settlement as one of the objectives. Start with a short-term loan that you can pay off without it getting cumbersome 

4. Increase your credit score

One of the most crucial figures pertaining to your personal finances is your credit score. Consider your credit score as a grade that demonstrates to lenders how responsibly you handle debt. This figure is taken into consideration by lenders when determining whether to lend you money and the interest rate at which to do so. Banks are more inclined to lend you money or issue you a credit card if your credit score is higher. Moreover, raising your credit score might help you save money since it can get you a reduced interest rate.

Related: How To Improve Your Credit Score

5. Open up a credit card 

Get yourself a credit card for this year’s new years goals if you do not have one, even if you do have one you can apply for a 2nd or a 3rd. Credit cards can quite be advantageous in your financial journey as you do not have to carry cash. Secondly, it boosts your credit score making money easier and cheaper to borrow.

Related: How To Pick The Best Credit Card From a Thousand Cards

6. Start saving for an emergency fund

 Investopedia states emergency funds are a financial security that creates a safety net around your family. An emergency fund is intended to serve two functions. First of all, it can aid in covering any unforeseen costs. Second, if you lose your work, it could be able to temporarily replace your income

Uncertain about the amount to save? As a general guideline, you should set aside between three and six months’ worth of spending. I personally do and recommend an 8 months’ worth of expense

Related: What is Emergency Fund, Do I Need One?

7. Buy Insurance

If you still did not buy insurance this is your sign to decide on the insurance that you want to buy. Even if insurance is based on a probability factor, this is one tool that will protect you from financial losses

Your lifestyle will determine the kind of insurance coverage you need and how much coverage you require. Health insurance, life insurance, automobile insurance, renters’ insurance, house insurance, and disability insurance are the most prevalent forms that most individuals have.

Related: Investing as a Form of Insurance

8. Decide on asset allocation

The process of allocating your investments among various assets, such as stocks, bonds, and cash, is known as asset allocation. Asset allocation analyses a portfolio to try to strike a balance between risk and return. The choice to allocate assets is a private one. Depending on how long you have to invest and your risk tolerance, each stage of your life will require a different allocation strategy.

9. Plan of investing if you aren’t already

If you have not planned about investing, start now. As intimidating as it might sound to a beginner here one cent at a time I make your investing journey as easy.

Note: It’s critical to assess your risk tolerance and choose investments that can help you achieve higher risk-adjusted returns and inflation-adjusted returns.

10. Prioritize spending money on experiences rather than a thing

Materialistic gains might give you joy, but this year try spending on experiences. Go out on a date with your partner rather than buy that sneaker you’ve been eyeing for a while.

11. Plan on your retirement

If you are in your twenties and thirties retirement might sound like a joke to you now. But thinking about your retirement objectives and how long you have to achieve them is the first step in retirement planning. It takes decades to get to the position of financial cushioning that will lead to a fun – comfortable retired life.

12. Improve your financial literacy

When it comes to making prudent financial decisions, increasing your financial literacy is a sensible step that is sometimes disregarded. Financial literacy plays a major role in your capacity to handle your money effectively. Its objective is to assist people with a fundamental grasp of finance to have a better awareness of the complexities of budgeting, tax minimization, and investment

13. Explore  a side hustle

With all the financial goals on the list like saving, investing, and paying off a debt does it not become overwhelming for your current paycheck? Here is where a side gig comes into play. A well-researched side hustle can ease you off with an extra source of income

14. Nurture an interest

Remember that wish you had while in high school to be able to play a stringed instrument? Start it this new year. 

15. Learn a new skill

Constantly upgrading yourself will help you boost your confidence and your self-worth. Try learning a new skill, be it related to your career like upgrading your excel skills, or something very different like baking.

16. Make a vision board

Have visual interpretations of all the goals and intentions that you wanna achieve this year as a vision board. Save that up as your screen saver in your digital devices so that you can take a look at it daily and be reminded of your goals.

17. Practice mindfulness

When our mind wanders, we get disconnected from our present selves and quickly become preoccupied with compulsive thoughts about the past or worry about the future. And it stresses us out. The ability to be completely present, and aware of where we are and what we are doing,  is mindfulness. This year start practicing mindfulness in everything that you do.do it in the present, with no intentions of the outcome, no worries about the future

18. Start journaling 

Journaling is a great way to keep track of the time that is passing. If not every day, journal about the days that were a highlight in the week. Keep a record of the day you had a good experience and also the day you felt you could no longer move forward

19. Get into a discipline 

Discipline is very important to keep the good going. Without discipline, no amount of life coaching can pave way for your well-being. Whatever you decide to do, you have to keep on doing it. Day one it is the motivation that strikes the match, rest discipline is what keeps it going

20. Start making to-do lists the day before

Did you ever realize how much time you just took just to decide the tasks that you have to accomplish for the day? Make this habit a thing of the past by making up your to-do lists the before.

Related:101 Ways to Beat Procrastination and Increase Productivity

21. Have a task timeline ready for about the upcoming 6 months

Have a detailed timeline of the major tasks you have to take over in the period of 6 months to a year. Use a calendar app for this purpose.

22. Think less

Life is gonna be as it will be, no given amount of thinking can change certain things from happening or not happening. Effective planning can make the curve lot smoother but uncertainty is always one step ahead. So this new year make it a point not to think too much and spiral into the web of feelings just to degrade your own mental health

23. Reward yourself

Reward yourself for every little achievement that you do. It always doesn’t have to be extravagant. Had a long predictive day, reward a cozy night and Netflix and chill to yourself 

24. Brush up your soft skills

Be it the professional aspect of your life or the personal, soft skills are what make you stand out from others. This year brush up on yours. 

25. What do you not want to repeat? 

In a list of what are the things that you want to achieve this year also have a column of things that you do not want to repeat. For example, avoid a bad financial decision you took or a certain diet that did not work out for you.

26. Be grateful

Be grateful for what you now have, where you are in life, and for whatever you made out of yourself. and who you are at this time rather than stressing about what you could be.

27. Travel bucket lists

This year have a bucket list just of places that you want to visit.

28. Try  a new restaurant each month

Try out a new restaurant each of the 12 months of the year.  Explore different cuisines from all over the world 

29. Self-care

Self-care and self-love in this era of distracting and misleading social media are so important to keep the mental equilibrium in place. Take care of yourself, love yourself a little more than the past year, cut yourself some slack, and take it easy

30. Eat healthily

This new year aim to eat healthily. Include more greens and fiber for good gut health. Cut off processed and packaged food and switch to organic at-home prepared meals.

31. Make your own breakfast 

Ditch the habit of ordering takeout whenever you’re hungry. Start prepping your own meals starting from the most basic like breakfast. Not only will it reduce the cost of meals but also is a lot healthier option

32. Cut down on caffeine after sunset

Avoid intake of caffeine after sunset for more ease in falling asleep

33. Commit to a healthier sleep cycle

Get your circadian rhythm straightened, sleep by 11 pm max, and try to get up early.

34. Practice body positivity

With all the pressures from society to look a certain kind, fit a certain box be kind towards yourself. Be positive about how your body looks and be grateful for its functions so complex for your life processes

35. Get into motion

With all the sedentary lifestyles that we are leading it isn’t a surprise we develop lifestyle diseases at such an early stage of our lives. Take out time each day to be in motion.  Target to walk 5000 steps daily, do some freehand exercises first thing in the morning, stretch out, do strength training, take the stairs, etc.

36. Make meditation a way of life

Try guided meditation to manage stress and focus better

37. Don’t neglect your dental health

Though you might be reluctant to do your health screenings at regular intervals, dental health awareness is really not as par. This year resolute not to neglect your dental health. With regular brushing and flossing, also make it a point to visit the dentist’s office once in a while

38. Dedicate some time each day to cleaning  chores

Assign 15 minutes each day to cleaning. Cleaning each day contributes to a clutter-free space. A clutter-free space reflects a clutter-free mind. 

39. Cut down on screen time

Apart from your what’s a necessity try and cut down on screen time. 

40. Reduce your waste

Go for sustainable living by reducing waste. Cut on the packaged food and shift to fresh foods that are home-cooked for better health benefits and also reduced plastic consumption

41. Avoid the negative influence

Stay away from people and environments that have a negative influence on you, make you worry, and make you feel any less. 

42. Relax 

Find time to unwind. Relax 

43. Constantly learn

Keeping yourself open to learning lifelong elevates you as a person. This year make it a point to keep a receptive mind so that you constantly learn something

44. Get more organized

Planning ahead and organizing your work will increase your efficiency and productivity. You may accomplish significant goals and objectives by maintaining good organization and creating successful strategies.

45. Get better with stress  management 

Without proper stress management, your body could be on high alert all the time without it. Chronic stress can eventually cause major health issues.

46. Do an electronic declutter

Once in a while go through your electronic devices and make them free of any united files applications. Not only will it save up space but also lets you manage and access files on  your devices better 

47. Focus on relationships

This year focus on relationships a bit more than usual. Put your phone to good use by calling up your friends and family. Make time for each. Value the importance of family in your life.

48. Inculcate a reading habit

Reading gives you life lessons. It sharpens your thinking and increases your creative ability. This year aim to finish off one book each month

49. Set intentions rather than tangible goals

A number-oriented goal is what leads to pressure and therefore anxiety and fear in case it is not achieved. This year try setting intentions like you want to get healthy and not burn a certain number of calories. It is a much more holistic approach

50. Renovate

 This year plan to renovate your study space or your kitchen. Give it a new look and a new feel to your old self.

51. Revisit your goals list to tick off

And lastly, keep on revisiting this list to tick off the goals you have achieved on the way. Be proud of your accomplishments.

The post 51 New Year Goal Ideas For 2023 appeared first on One Cent At A Time.

Though we know you are just reading this while procrastinating a work of priority, hail there. This might be a motive for you to kill your procrastinating habit and get going. And this read would definitely be more productive than your random search instincts like finding out if your headache indicates a brain tumor,

Before we discuss ways to beat procrastination let us first get to the base of it and understand what it is and the psychological mechanisms of  why it occurs even when it comes with remorse, guilt, and all the negative emotions

Why Do We Procrastinate?

 Most procrastination comes from the fact that we always have to feel inspired or stimulated to work on a task at a particular moment.

Procrastination isn’t always bad for us. It is the body’s automatic response to protect oneself by avoiding tasks our brains perceive as threatening. One of the ways your brain decides to handle this threat is by doing tasks that are less stressful, like how you avoid sitting down on that due assignment and rather scroll on your phone for no good reason

•  The effect called the present bias is a significant additional factor. It is a phenomenon in human behavior that has been seen to cause procrastination. The present bias describes our propensity to be motivated more by short-term incentives than by long-term ones. This is why putting things off feels fantastic right now.
• Procrastination is also pretty common in people with obsessive-compulsive disorder. Those suffering from OCD  have tendencies towards maladaptive perfectionism which leads to concerns about mistakes, doubts about actions, and an overall worry about external expectations causing one suffering from OCD,  a procrastinator.
• A lot of adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have trouble getting things done. It can be tough to get started on work when you’re so easily distracted by external and internal stimuli, and it can be even harder if the task is difficult for you. One of the characteristics of the disorder that causes procrastination in people with ADHD is their difficulty managing their time.

If you can boil down any of the above-mentioned causes resonating with you, don’t be hard on yourself. It is workable, with a little willpower and help.

101 ways to beat procrastination 

1. Just go and blatantly start the action-  

The most obvious thing to kill procrastination is to start with the task without thinking hither and thither. Like Mark Twain once said,  “Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day”.

2. Break the tasks into small little manageable chunks–

Break your tasks into realistic bite-size chunks to be able to approach them better without getting overwhelmed by their vastness. For example, if I have to write up an article for a blog post I break it up into 3 large chunks, the topic research, the basic framework, and the final draft copy.

3. Set realistic goals-

Setting unrealistic goals makes your fear worse and none of what you intend to happen. Set a maximum of 4 to 6 tasks you wanna accomplish that day, or even less to begin with. Write them down. Do two tasks, but do them to your satisfaction. 

4. Make up to-do lists the day before–

a lot of time is lost in deciding what is to be done that day, so it is best if you plan your days in advance. It saves you the hassle of deciding what to do and what not to do. Wake up, take a look at the look at the to-do list and go about it, simple! Ain’t it?

5. Pick the hardest task first

When you do away with the hardest task for the day, your brain does a little happy dance. The rest left are less challenging in comparison and won’t put you in a defensive mode.

6. Just do it for  5 mins –

Fight the urge to procrastinate, and sit with the work just for 5 minutes. After that, you are free to opt-out and go do whatever you feel like. But there comes the catch, once you start doing something, you might not hate it as much as you thought you would and it is not that difficult to finish. The initial momentum is what takes the most effort.

7. Stimulate your motivation–

give yourself doses of motivation to do the work you have been procrastinating on if you feel you can’t sit without being driven. If there isn’t a driving force, build one.

8. Set yourself instant gratification –

Your brain tends to be to motivated by instant gratification, so give it that. For tasks that have far-fetched outcomes, set up a small instant reward like a bar of chocolate, or an episode of your favorite Netflix series that awaits at the end of the completion.

9. Try and make tasks more enjoyable–

For example, when a chapter of a book becomes too boring to read, I refer to explanatory videos which are based on interaction-based learning. Sometimes sensory cues make your hectic work easier.

10.  Make procrastination difficult–

Hold the bull by its horn. Make procrastinating difficult by putting away distractions where it is difficult to approach

11. Give yourself permission to make mistakes–

Don’t be an idiot to think you can not make mistakes, Humans are entitled to make mistakes, accept that. A better way to deal with mistakes is to keep room for correction. Cut yourself some slack to make mistakes.

12.  Fool your brain by preponing the deadlines –

Did you notice how deadlines make you do your long pending work in a night? To avoid such tense situations, prepone up the deadlines and work towards them.

13.  Set deadlines for work that don’t have deadlines –

Certain tasks have long-term benefits and thus have no such deadline, like the side course you are pursuing apart from your regular course of education. Set up a deadline of about  6 months to complete that.

14.  Create a detailed timeline with specific deadlines–

Create a timeline ahead of about 6 months and list all the deadlines you have to meet in that given period of time. Your timelines must not be lenient  – i.e., if you don’t finish a certain task that is listed for today, by today, it will jeopardize everything else you have planned after that. This way, it creates the urgency to act and you are able to beat procrastination

15.  Build up your attention span–

This is what I actively practice, building up my attention span in small chunks of 10/20 minutes at a time. Suppose you put up a timer of about 25 mins to do work, for the next session set that up to 35 minutes and challenge yourself to sit through that.

16.  Use time management techniques–

Use time management techniques to beat procrastination, like the Pomodoro timer, time blocking, and keeping an account of the hours in a day to see what exactly 24 hours look like in your life

17.  Use the Eisenhower matrix–

The Eisenhower Matrix is a productivity, prioritization, and time-management paradigm that enables you to prioritize a list of tasks or agenda items by first classifying them based on their relevance and level of urgency.

18.  Build a discomfort habit–

You can not always be comfortable, get used to a little discomfort in life. Me, I absolutely loathe paperwork, but somehow miserably I make myself go through that.

19.  Create a sense of urgency-

Develop a sense of urgency to fool your mind to do the work. Urgency works wonders to beat procrastination

20.  Use visualization technique–

Use visualization techniques to aid you with learning tasks and make them less daunting.

21.  Know that nobody cares for your excuses–

That sick excuse you’re providing to your superior body is of no use, none of it will make them care for you any better than you not meeting deadlines

22.  Have accountability buddy–

Sometimes humiliation does the job, so keep an accountability buddy who you can account for honestly about your day’s work.

23.  Reclarify your goals in life-

If you frequently put off doing something in your life, consider whether this still supports your short- and long-term objectives. As you learn more about yourself, it is possible that you transcend your goals, but you don’t alter them to reflect this.

24.  Get a vision board–

Draw up a vision board stating everything you wish to achieve and hang that in the range of your eyesight. Whenever you are procrastinating, look at that and ask yourself, if the certain engagement brings you any closer to what you envisioned.

25.  Stop waiting for a perfect time–

This is complementary to people who strive for perfection. Know that now is a perfect time. Like Mother Teresa said “yesterday is gone,  tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today, let us begin.”

26.  Upgrade your acquaintance circle-

The people we are with influence our behaviors. Identify the people, friends, or colleagues who provoke you to incline towards a positive action  – most likely the doers, hustlers, and hard workers – and hang out with them more often. Soon you will inculcate their drive and spirit too.

27.  Tell others about your goals–

Telling others about your goals is a great way of using external push as leverage. When you talk about your projects to other people around you like your parents, friends, and colleagues, that creates accountability. And by the nature of people, they are bound to ask about the status of your work.

28.  Pre-commit publicly-

This is more or less the same thing as above, it just involves a bigger circle of people. Announce your goals in your classroom or even post them on your social media account.

29.  Change your environment–

If you are not feeling productive at your work desk try and change your environment, shift to a library from your home, or sit by a well-lit window to beat procrastination and increase productivity

30.  Restructure plans that don’t work out –

plans and targets which are not accomplished are not to be forgotten, restructure them in your later schedules.

31.  Stop chasing perfectionism–

There’s no such thing called perfection, all that there is a sense of pseudo-perfectionism. For instance, I was quite good in literature and language in my school days (no bragging intended), but for some reason, I never got a perfect score. The reason my teacher said, that there is always room for improvement. For all 15 years of my school life, I strove for that “perfect” but never got any closer until I realized it’s an illusion, it’s like a mirage, it’s there but not there.

32.  Give meditation a try–

Have you given meditation a try if you are not being able to concentrate? What meditation does is raises your consciousness and help you stay in the present. When you stay in the present you concentrate on the immediate other than regretting the past or constantly planning about the future.

33.  Give importance to your health–

Oh, I bet you this is a real deal, most times I feel sluggish and lethargic, and there are high chances my health is not at its best. The cues are subtle, but you have to understand what your body is trying to tell you.

34.  Get your circadian rhythm straightened–

There’s a reason that humans sleep with the sun setting down and waking up with the sun rising. If you wanna be a cool guy sleeping the day? Know that it messes up your melatonin levels and natural sleep regulators which in turn affects your productivity. Try and avoid electronic screens an hour before sleep.

35. Exercise a few times a week –

Move those limbs a bit, and induce a little movement in your muscles. You would be amazed at how energetic you feel with regular workouts.

36. Get your vitals checked regularly-

Notice a certain drop in your energy levels? There are high chances that one or more of your vitals are on the err side. Get your iron levels, hemoglobin levels, vitamin D, thyroid, and diabetes levels checked at regular intervals

37. Try starting with basic supplements–

Introduce dietary and nutritional supplements into your regimen.

38.  Stay away from addictions –

Stay away from addictions of all kinds, be it TV and Netflix to hardcore like substance abuse and alcohol.

39.  Don’t be too harsh on yourself–

Beating procrastination also comes with killing the negative emotions attached to it. Take action but don’t be so hard on yourself that you start to have opposite repercussions.

40. Change your negative affirmations to positive affirmations–

Negative brings in negative and positive induces positive. Try changing your “Oh I couldn’t accomplish this, I’m a failure” to “I tried my best, will certainly do better the next time”

41. Take a break–

Breaks work wonders when there is burnout, take a break, rewire and get back

42. Change your mood-

If you’re irritated or frustrated, sit down, change your mood or wait for it to get better before resuming.

43. Adopt the two-minute rule-

Here’s what the rule by David Allen which says: if you can do an action in two minutes or less, tackle it at the moment — and don’t delay. Tackling it at the moment would help you beat procrastination.

44. Stop multitasking–

you can quite argue on the same but I feel the human brain is not hard-wired for multitasking. Do a single task at a time with the utmost concentration.

45. Assess your cause for procrastination–

Try and ponder on what exactly is the reason you procrastinate

46. Get treated for underlying medical causes–

In continuation to the above point if you think you have conditions that need to be looked at professionally like OCD and ADHD don’t hesitate to reach out for help

47. Play a game of roles play–

People occasionally discover that they do better when they are living out a particular identity. When you work, put yourself in “CEO” mode and conduct yourself as a CEO would, even if you are only handling emails or other seemingly unimportant tasks. Create your own modes that correspond to your lifestyle and your tasks.

48. Learn to say no-

Being able to say no to something you forcibly say yes to just because you can’t say NO can take you to heights. Having good barriers is a great way to have control over one’s life

49. Learn to challenge yourself–

Don’t be too comfortable. Constantly challenge yourself to get out of your comfort zone

50. Take power naps–

Power naps of 5 -10 minutes in between heavy grinding are a great way to relax your brain.

 51. Disconnect during your tasks–

When you are focusing on important tasks, just disconnect from the world, by all means, put away all your notifications and urges to digress in that period of time

52. Take note of your distraction triggers–

Try and track what exactly makes you want to procrastinate, what are the occurrences just before that moment, find out if that has a pattern, and address it to beat procrastination

53.  Have a list of your go-to distractions–

List up all the things you get distracted by and make them less accessible in your work time.

54. Face your fears–

No fear remains a fear until you decide to face it.

55. Give yourself a small pep talk–

Don’t underestimate the power of a little self-talk to motivate your ass.

56. Create routines and habits–

Try molding yourself to certain routines and habits

57. Use apps and websites for your aid–

Instead of being a slave to technology, make use of it for your assistance, use apps to manage your time, website blockers, reminders, and planners.

58. Take inspiration–

Inspirations keep on fueling your motivation, don’t forget your daily dose of it

59.  Read books on the topic–

There are n number of books on self-development and time management. Wanna procrastinate? Procrastinate by reading those. Some books that are suggestive: Eat That Frog by Brian Tracy, Getting things done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen,7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey.

60. Listen to instrumental music–

This is what I find very helpful while doing things that don’t require a cent percent of my attention, I listen to instrumental music without lyrics so that I don’t have to focus on anything other than just the tune

61. Wake up early –

Waking up early gives you a lot of room in your day to plan and act accordingly

62. Start your day as if you would if you had to go work in an office setup–

wake up, take a shower, wear clothes that you would wear out, and sit at a setup. This has a telltale effect on productivity if nothing at least better than being a couch potato and typing away.

63. Stay hydrated –

Drink water at regular intervals to keep you hydrated

64. Envision your future-

Envision your future about what it looks like with your procrastination and without it, what would you like it to be, and act accordingly

65. Take the decision–

Don’t fickle too much, just take the decision 

66. Be disciplined–

Develop a sense of discipline and stick to it

67. Be determinant–

Be fiercely determined and stick to your determination

68. Develop a positive addiction–

Get addicted to productivity, wellness, to mindfulness

69. Use the 10 -90 rule for planning–

The first 10% of the time you spend planning will save you as much as 90% of the time in getting the job done once you get started.

70. Use the 80-20 rule–

The 80-20 rule, also known as the Pareto Principle, is a familiar saying that asserts that 80% of outcomes (or outputs) result from 20% of all causes(inputs)

71. Practice creative procrastination –

You have to procrastinate on something, therefore, procrastinate on small tasks (small frogs).

72. Apply the law of 3–

It states that whatever energy a person puts out into the world, be it positive or negative, will be returned to that person three times. You would get fruits 3 times the amount of effort you put

73. Upgrade your key skills–

Constantly upgrading your skills is a dominant factor in your productivity. Never stop learning. Get better all the time. It will keep the fire burning in you. The better you are at a  task, the more motivated you are.

74. Identify your key constraints and eliminate them–

identify what hinders your productivity and makes you lean towards procrastination and actively eliminate them. Is it the notification from your social media, the sound of the Tv blazing from the other room, or a feeling of lethargy? Be digitally stranded the time you are putting into your work, go talk to the neighbor and let them know of your concerns regarding the TV sounds, and take a 5 min nap for all the constraints mentioned above. Do the needful.

75. Temptation bundling –

Temptation bundling is a concept that came out of behavioral economics research performed by behavioral economist and professor Katy Milkman at The University of Pennsylvania which states that you bundle a behavior that is good for you in the long run with a behavior that feels good in the short run.  It is a pairing of a pleasurable indulgence with behavior that provides delayed rewards. It combats present bias by making behaviors with delayed benefits more instantly-gratifying. The basic format is: Only do [Something you enjoy] while doing [Thing you procrastinate on].

76. Being consistent–

consistency is the key, in the long run, any aid and ways  to beat procrastination only hold viable if continued for a long time

77. Distribute it –

If something will take you considerable hours to complete, don’t sit down and try to conquer it all at once. You’ll get bored pretty quickly. Either break it up over a period of a couple of days or break it into chunks separated by different tasks within the same day. Either way, you want to make sure you’re not trying to focus on one thing for too long, it just becomes monotonous and your efficiency drops.

78. Incorporate mindfulness–

Being conscientious about the circumstance, you can develop self-compassion and forgiveness. Not only can being kind to yourself reduce procrastination itself, but it can also reduce some of the negative effects of procrastinating. 

79. Stop overestimating–

It’s also important to acknowledge that we can often overestimate the unpleasantness of a task. So give it a try! You may find that it’s not as bad as you thought, after all!

80. Stop underestimating–

stop underestimating your power, to begin with, if you will to, you will do it.

81. Know that you are not alone– a large percentage of people suffer from procrastination and are actively battling it. Do not think of yourself to be alone and stressed out.

82. Be the master of your brain– Don’t let that monkey- brain of yours take control of yourself, make it do things according to your own will and judgment

83. Rephrase your internal dialogue–

The phrases “need to” and “have to,” for example, imply that you have no choice in what you do. This can make you feel disempowered and might even result in self-sabotage. However, saying, “I choose to,” implies that you own a project, and can make you feel more in control of your workload.

84.  Act as you go–

Tackle tasks as soon as they arise, rather than letting them build up over another day

85. Join a community–

Join a community where other fellow procrastinators actively battle with it

86. Creating the desired ambiance in the room-

While light therapy is not a panacea for depression, it has been found to aid with some of the signs and symptoms, including fatigue, sleep issues, anxiety, moodiness, hopelessness, and irritability. You can remain calm and concentrated with the aid of mood lighting. When you feel depressed or if you have SAD, try using light bulbs with blue light in the afternoon, red/amber light in the night, and white light (Seasonal Affective Disorder)

87. A little competition with a fellow procrastinator–

Compete with a friend of yours who suffers from the same and see who procrastinates the least at a given task. The drive to win would make you beat procrastination

88. Manage your energy, later your time–

Push yourself when you have your daily peak productive hours, not when your energy levels are low take a nap or a walk and start working right afterward if you feel tired after a period of hard work, take a break and recharge your batteries if you’re emotionally irritated, talk to other people and calm yourself down first

89. Be lenient with acceptance–

Accept that sometimes you’re simply not in the state to be productive and that’s okay. We are all only human. You can’t just work hard constantly. Sooner or later, burnout happens. 

90. Overcome the fear of failure–

In my case, this has been such a blatant example that it has taken me years to get away with it. I would immediately begin to ignore it as soon as I began to fear the outcome. It was such a knowledge that any effort I make will be for naught and won’t be able to prevent me from failing. This is a very negative attribute, I wholeheartedly urge you to come out of that feeling and start working without the fear of what result it will yield

91. Delegate–

Delegate the tasks which can be taken care of by others

92. Outsource–

Outsourcing is also similar to delegation where you hire a third party to perform your tasks

93. Automate–

Start an automation mechanism in places where possible, like automate your recurrent emails, automate your bills, etc

94. Dissociate failure from one’s own worth –

Failure, my friend is the best thing that can happen to you in life, it shows you an aspect of motivation you never would get from something else. Once you fail, you would know what success actually tastes like. And failure is in no way connected to your self-worth, any number of failures does not and never will define your self-worth. Self-worth is what you decide for yourself and work towards it

95. Visualise–

visualize yourself being productive, being the best self you want to be, and one day you would be that.

96. Listen to a power song–

Pick a song that really gets you pumped up, and play it whenever you want to tackle something you’ve been procrastinating. The brain likes to have a trigger to create a new habit, plus you’re more likely to follow through when you’re feeling good in your body and mind.

97. You don’t have to finish everything-

you don’t have to finish up everything on that to-do list you made, for every 3 finished tasks if there is one unfinished, know that you are good.

98. Make it a game–

Oh how do I emphasize how fun this is, whenever I find a work monotonous I treat it as a game, like how many words can I complete in an hour, how many words are of good vocabulary and etc 

99. Think about the consequences of procrastinating–

Think about the consequences of procrastinating, how much time will it take up in your life, what goals you will miss out on, and how will your life look 10 years from now if you go on like this. If that makes you shiver and you don’t want to suffer the consequences, go and put a stop to it, act accordingly to beat procrastination, and boast your productivity

100. Create a not-to-do list–

As important as a to-do list is for you, creating a not to do list to refrain you from doing things that waste your time, is equally important.

101. Believe in yourself–

Last and most importantly, believe in yourself, you are the one who can do it, and you have control of your own life and actions. 

Any number of bio hacks and tricks are only possible with tenacity and an iron will. If you are attempting to understand that, you will. And the fact that you are reading this blog shows that you are making an effort to kill procrastination. Keep going, my friend; active efforts are not in vain.

Let us know in the comment sections if you think we missed something and also don’t forget to put in your valuable suggestions.

The post 101 Ways to Beat Procrastination and Increase Productivity appeared first on One Cent At A Time.

No more! It’s time to put bad vacations in the rearview mirror. While it’s impossible to eliminate every potential piece of misfortune to befall a vacation, taking time to plan accordingly will go a long way in making sure your upcoming vacation lives up to your expectations and perhaps even exceeds them.

The following are six ways to avoid bad vacations:

Do your research

From social media posts to travel-based TV shows, there are many ways we discover destinations we want to visit.

But just because it looks great in pictures and videos doesn’t mean you’ll have a good time. Take the time to do further research about a potential destination before booking a trip there.

You may discover the weather isn’t as nice as you assume or the price of products and services is too expensive to afford.

It also pays to do research in order to prepare yourself for cultural differences that may otherwise come as an unwelcome surprise upon arrival.

Avoid street scammers

Virtually every tourist hotspot on the planet is home to unscrupulous scam artists preying on unsuspecting tourists.

The nature of the scam may vary, but it always boils down to one thing: tricking you into giving them money for nothing or pickpocketing you while you’re distracted.

The result is the potential to lose money and valuables in a matter of minutes. The best way to avoid street scammers is to never, ever stop to see what they have to say.

If someone on the street tries handing you something, refuse to accept it. If someone pops out of an alley trying to start a conversation, politely decline and keep walking.

It might seem rude, but it’s a necessary precaution to take if the goal is to prevent yourself from becoming a victim of common street scams and ripoffs targeting tourists.

Bring backups and replacements

From getting roughed up during your flight to going missing on the trip, there are many ways in which important items and accessories can get lost or damaged.

Rather than be forced to buy an expensive replacement at your destination, consider packing backups and replacements whenever possible.

For instance, buying replacement lenses for your favorite pair of sunglasses keeps you from buying a whole new pair if the original lenses crack on vacation.

Backup power adapters for phones, laptops, and other electronics are also worth packing. And make sure you bring enough cash for emergencies.

You may even need to take out a Western Shamrock loan or use a credit card to cover unexpected expenses. 

Practice safe social distancing

While the worst days of the COVID-19 pandemic appear over, infection rates continue to be high in many hotspots around the world.

Combined with the ever-present threat of common cold and flu viruses, consider practicing social distances on your vacation.

When doing so is not possible, wear an N-95 mask. Remember to wash your hands with warm soapy water on a regular basis. Doing so reduces the chances of getting sick on vacation.

Use AirTags or similar devices

Losing one’s purse, wallet, or phone is an easy way to ruin an otherwise great vacation.

Given the affordability of AirTags and similar tracking devices, consider purchasing a pack or two and attaching or inserting them into these and other items you can’t afford to lose.

While coin-sized trackers won’t force a thief to return your possession or make a difference if you dropped your phone into a large body of water, they’ll help you determine the location of items you’ve left behind at restaurants, hotels, and other places you’ll be visiting on your trip.

Keep an open mind

Lastly, you want to keep an open mind as much as possible. Just because things aren’t how you prefer them doesn’t mean you can’t have a good time.

From local foods to the customs and traditions of the inhabitants, the point is to sit back and soak it all in, for better or worse. As the saying goes, “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.”

We all expect to have a great time on vacation. Unfortunately, that’s not a guarantee.

While nobody can prevent canceled flights and similar forms of bad luck, there are ways to increase the odds of your vacation being memorable for all the right reasons.

The post Best Ways to Avoid a Bad Vacation appeared first on One Cent At A Time.

What is life insurance and why do you need it

Life insurance is a policy that provides financial protection for your loved ones in the event of your death.

It can help cover things like funeral costs, final medical expenses, and debts.

That’s why it’s so important to have life insurance if something happens to you.

Why do you need it? No one likes to think about what would happen if they died, but it’s important to have life insurance in case something happens to you.

If you die without life insurance, your loved ones will have to bear the financial burden of your death. Life insurance will help ensure that your loved ones are taken care of financially if you die.

How much life insurance do you need?

The amount of life insurance you need depends on your unique situation. Factors to consider include your age, health, debts, and the number of dependents you have.

It’s important to make sure you have enough coverage to protect your loved ones financially if you die.

The different types of life insurance policies

There are several different types of life insurance policies to choose from, so it’s important to choose the one that is right for you.

The most common types of life insurance policies are term life insurance and whole life insurance.

Term life insurance is a policy that provides coverage for a specific period of time, usually 10 or 20 years.

It is less expensive than whole life insurance, but if you die during the term of the policy, your beneficiaries will not receive any money.

Whole life insurance is a policy that provides lifetime coverage. It is more expensive than term life insurance, but your beneficiaries will receive a payout if you die during the policy.

Which type of life insurance policy is right for you?

That depends on your unique situation. Make sure to compare the cost and benefits of each policy before making a decision.

Final thoughts

When it comes to life insurance, there are a lot of things to consider. First, you need to decide which type of policy is best for you.

Then, you need to figure out how much coverage you need. And finally, you need to choose a policy that fits your budget.

It’s important to remember that life insurance is not just for death. It can also provide coverage in the event of a serious illness or injury. So, no matter what your age or health status, it’s important to have life insurance.

Make sure to compare the cost and benefits of different policies before making a decision. And don’t forget to update your policy if your situation changes.

With the right life insurance policy in place, you can rest assured knowing that you and your loved ones are taken care of financially if something happens to you.

The post Why It’s Important to Have Life Insurance appeared first on One Cent At A Time.

When my son is around, I play with him or tell him a story. We play pretend games a lot.

When he’s not around, and I am not working I fall victim to endless videos that Facebook serves, one after the another. Finally when I come to my senses, usually a big chunk of time has passed.

I feel frustrated and start thinking about what else I could have done.

I often feel lost and lazy.

I watch the clock ticking by.

Absolutely nothing to do!

However, some other times when I am buried to my neck working or just about to sleep, my thoughts veer into a series of things that I needed to get done. But where’s the time?

This is an irony – when you have time, you seem to get little idea about using it the best way. And when you can’t do anything else than what you’re already doing – you seem to find a host of other things to do!

Yesterday afternoon my son asked me what he could do.

I thought most of us face the same irony. When we have time we get clueless.

I wrote down 20 things that he could do, on a whiteboard and hung them on the wall.

Now, he can go through the list and pick things based on his mood.

Here is a similar attempt for the adults. Before you start with this list –

Create a running to-do list (honey-to-do-list). You can use your phone, paper whiteboard, or anything. The idea is to write them down. 

Whenever you have time, first, go through your list and finish them. If you still have some time to kill, follow the list below.

101 things to do, when there is nothing to do

1)   Earn some money

• • You can earn quick money by registering for InboxDollars. You’ll get a free $5 bonus today when you sign up! You may have to wait a bit longer to get to $100, but it’s still easy money by doing things you do online anyway, like listening to music (yes seriously), watching ads, and a variety of other things. Plus, you get $5 just for signing up (just name and email address).
  • SwagBucks is another site where you can earn money by answering surveys and shopping using their site. To top it up, when you join SwagBucks will also give you a $5 bonus. It is like getting paid to do things you’d do anyway!!!
  • PermissionResearch will send you a $5 Visa gift card when you register and answer your first survey within the first 7 days.
  • Register for DOSH, the cashback app, which rewards you, in addition to your regular credit card rewards on purchases.

2)    Jot down some new ideas which can be about your growth or about any new project you can do at your home, a new side hustle, a book to read, or a new game to play with your child.

3)    Internet is a huge source of knowledge. You can surf to gain knowledge about things. You can be up to date with current affairs.

4)    Play with your kids, and spend quality time with them. As a parent, the best gift you can give to them is your undivided attention.

5)    Write a thank-you note to someone who helped you. Send it via email, SMS, or letter. Maybe a thank you note for your spouse, just because they are together with you.

6)   Youtube is the best place to learn a new skill. You can get a tutorial on almost anything; From making your drone to fixing your toilet flush – you can find A-Z how-to videos on YouTube.

7)   If you’re a blogger, get online and check how many people have responded to your blog. If you’re not, check your last social media post.

8)   Open a new bank account online and earn a promotional bonus. Sometimes banks pay a large amount of money when you open a new checking/savings account with them and keep a minimum deposit for a few months. This is easy money!

9)   Play your favorite music album and relax with the music. A satisfied soul can be very productive later on. If you’re in a mood, why not little exercise, yoga, or even, meditation?

10) Tune in to a food channel and cook the same dish they are showing on TV. At least give it a try!

11)  Write something. Writing takes a lot of time. Whenever you write time flows faster. Try it and see yourself.

12)  Read a book, and try to finish a chapter. Or read the newspaper. Your goal is to read. When you read your brain cells get a workout.

13)  Post an interesting event or a joke on your Facebook feed. Better, you take a picture of plants, people, and flowers with your phone and post them online. Then wait for the reactions and comments. This gives you a feeling of connection with other people.

14)  Improve your finances – Talk to someone, your advisor, your colleague, or friends. Talk about investment, market conditions, economy, companies to invest in, etc.

15)  Consider taking some time out to walk with your family. A walk together improves family bonding.

16)  Take a test of things you’re learning or you are good at or worst at. Consider taking an online IQ test to gauge your level. Search online for tests and answer questions. This is another excellent brain exercise.

17)  Take online marketing paid surveys and earn some extra cash.

18) Dial up an old friend you haven’t spoken to for years. Make a physical call. 

19) You can stretch your back to prevent lower back pain.

20)  Are you reading this when you’re waiting for an appointment or meeting to start? Well you have a short time to kill now, right? Check the emails you received since morning. Re-read them and reply to emails you set aside to reply to later.

21)  Check out the results of your favorite team on the internet.

22)  Write the next chapter of your novel and think of how to make it the best in the market after publishing.

23)  Plant some trees in the backyard and give them names.

24)  Feed birds that come perching in a nearby tree

25)  Get the trash out! Clean the indoor garbage bins.

26)  Start cooking something you love and haven’t eaten for a while.

27)  Solve a crossword puzzle. There are many free online sources around.

28)  Practice some simple yoga routines. You can also try meditation.

29)  Talk to your neighbor, if you happen to see them around.

30)  Pray together with your family, and visit a church or a temple.

31)  Is it daytime, and you are at home? Look down the window, does the lawn need a mow? Are there weeds growing? Do the plants need watering? Does a plant look unhealthy or overgrown?

32)  Make as many paper planes and fly them. This will be fun for the kids.

33)  Are you alone? Go to a movie theater and watch a movie alone with jumbo popcorn to munch on. This will form a forever memory.

34)  Have a chat with your friend/wife on the new methods of improving your communication and time efficiency

35)  Look around, do you see things that are not clean, not properly arranged? Go fix it. Wipe a surface down, vacuum the floors, arrange cabinets, and arrange the kitchenware or bookshelves. 

36)  Read about your employer on the internet and get the market perspective about them. This helps you be prepared for things to come. You can also surprise your colleagues with your knowledge afterward.

37)  Clip your nails, and groom yourself. 

38)  Compete in mental mathematical calculations, especially multiplication with your partner or child.

39)  Get your child to recite and teach you one of the songs that were taught at school.

40)  Do you have a voice assistant at home, Google Home, or Alexa? You can do lots of talking. Weather, news, playing music, etc.

41)  Get into your competitor’s website and look at the new products they came up with.

42)  Compare the performance of your product with those of competitors.

43)  Tell a fiction story out of the blues and see how you can create and recite it at the same time

44)  Have coffee with your clients and listen to their views about your work.

45)  Take some time with one or several employees to establish whether the new management motivation is working.

46)  When it’s hopeless – Look and count vehicles passing by, through your window

47)  Especially when you’re desperate – Count the number of people you see, standing on your balcony

48)  Head down to a bubble bath for additional relaxation.

49)  Do you have a hobby? Find online forums about that hobby. Register, read, and contribute. You’ll learn a lot about your hobby and your interest would be renewed.

50)  Make tea or coffee and enjoy a lazy afternoon.

51)  Try painting using crayons. Consider competing with your child

52)  Remember and write the names of all your classmates in college. reunite with them. Call up. Send text.

53)  Play a mind game – how many states have you visited? How many countries? How many country capitals you can remember? What did you do at the same time last week? Last month?

54)  Take a stroll to wind up after a busy working schedule

55)  Think there are too many things at home and you don’t need those many? Pick them up for a Goodwill donation.

56)  Donate blood to the local health center

57)  Take a shower. Especially in hot countries without central air conditioning, people do take showers multiple times a day.

58)  Visit a local museum and be amazed.

59)  Make your family budget for the month. Or check your last month’s spending and see if there’s anything unusual there. 

60)  Consider visiting a dentist to have your teeth checked, or at least make an appointment for it.

61)  Take your pet for a checkup

62)  Visit an animal shelter with your children

63)  Check your latest credit score and credit report.

64)  Get your bank account statements and look at your cash flow. Is your finances cash flow positive?

65)  Move to the highest point of the tallest building using the elevator and get back to the ground floor

66)  Check your weight, if you gained some then write down a plan to get rid of the excess you gained.

67)   Are you an individual stockholder? research the companies you own shares of.

68)  Go window shopping to identify the more cost-effective shopping mall

69)  Drive to several animal health centers with a view of establishing the one with better facilities and services offered at lower rates

70)  Ride a bike in the neighborhood, if you go out with kids, excellent!

71)  Walk 2000 steps, at least. This one is my favorite. You can keep count by keeping your phone in your hand or with a smartwatch. 

72)  Do you have barbells and exercise weights at home? Get some exercise?

73)  Start learning a new language. There are many free online resources to get you started.

74)  Volunteer to assist a local school sports team. Be a coach. A coaching assistant.

75)  Is your passport, visa, global entry, TSA pre-check, club membership, etc. up to date? Check your documents.

76) Set up a Zoom meeting with your best friends. 

77)  Record a song with your family, and share it on social media.

78)  Do you own the same email account for years? Go back years and read emails you got on this day.

79)  Check the marketing offers you receive in the mail. Does anything look interesting? If they are, do more research online.

80)  Check the new online courses that one can take to build/improve your skills.

81)  Go out for a drive. Listen to music and relax. Pick some less crowded roads. Set your distance based on the time you have.

82)  Especially if you’re alone and your day was bad, cry out loud. This will help you get back positive energy. Kids do it all the time and come back stronger after every such crying episode.

83)  Check your last performance report. Check any negative feedback that you got recently from someone. Look back and try to be better.

84)  We have been publishing since 2011. Go to the archive and read the previous posts, you’ll not be disappointed!

85)  Try to learn a new aspect of computers. Search for phrases like “10 hidden tricks in Mac” or “10 keyboard shortcuts in Windows computer” on YouTube. You’ll be surprised by the result.

86)  Check the market trend for local and international products and services. This could inform you on how to design recommendations about your company’s products

87)  Plan for the next holiday. Start your research now.

88)  Write something, maybe a line of a poem, or a paragraph of a news story. Write diary. Write your goals for tomorrow. There are so many things to write about.

89)  Make some home crafts using clay. Compete who makes the best in the family.

90)  Remove your bedroom items and fumigate the room

91)  Remove the cobwebs from the house outside

92)  Clean the gutter all around the house

93)  Make paper toys with your child.

94)  You and your children, together make a fictional story.

95)  Do you play an instrument? You know what I am trying to say…

96)  Play with your pet

97)  Discuss politics with your friends. Time flies when a group of people talk about politics.

98)  Take some time out and think about work effectiveness in the next five years. Are you lagging behind others? Are you motivated enough? What are the reasons? Starting noting down for further analysis.

99)  Men love fishing, even if you’re a woman, you can try a hand at fishing. Take the fishing gear, buy some bait, and start fishing.

100)  Ask your child to write the names of all the classmates. Then add a couple of sentences for each of them. Then add their hobbies, positive aspects, etc.

101)   Start drinking! If you have nothing to do, then why don’t you relax with a wine or a beer? You’ll not feel you have nothing to do.

What did I miss? What do you like to do when you have nothing to do?

The post 101 Things To Do, When There is Nothing to Do appeared first on One Cent At A Time.

There is no need to struggle to find your perfect way of reuse and re-purpose. You can pretty much reuse every household item. Leave your ongoing efforts to recycle and get to reuse things around your home in a smart way. You will even have fun through the entire process. First, you might want to find out why it is important to reuse. Determine your priorities and get prepared to cut costs.

Not only reuse cuts cost, it does create opportunities to make extra money. I have a wonderful example of reuse and repurpose becoming a full-time hobby and slowly forming into a business – My father’s example!

My father is a good craftsman, although he made steel from iron throughout his life, he never quit making handicrafts and decorative items out of the things we use every day. He now has an online business. My father’s successful Etsy store sells handmade table mats and wall decors if you like you can order them through Etsy. These are fine pieces of craftsmanship from clothes we discard (for his business orders, my father uses new clothes though), a dying Indian art.

Motivated? Let’s move on and see what else you can do to reuse household items

The key point to immense savings is to proceed with many things simultaneously. Plus, you need to stick to it. All in all, these savings will start to add up.

Transforming your things can be a challenge, but you can create home decorative items with damaged frames. Every family throws out a huge trash bag weekly; imagine if we multiply this amount considering every household.

Reduce your trash, repurpose and reuse household items and achieve big savings.

101 Ways to Reuse Household Items

I encourage you to see the idea here and if you like one particular idea, you can see the related YouTube videos for the nitty gritty. You must be able to find various ways tor euse household items here.

1. If we waste one thing most, that would be food. Be it fruit and vegetable skin, seeds or the cooked meals. Here’s how you can reuse the food waste to make compost.
2. The other things we all trash is the old Christmas tree. This can be kept outside and made a big birds nest while allowing it to decay naturally.
3. If you don’t need your old clothes anymore, somebody might donate them to charities, Goodwill or Salvation Army are just a phone call away.
4. You can reduce plastic waste by reusing grocery bags. Read these 50 ideas and get inspired.
5. There are gazillion ways to reuse old furniture.
6. Reuse Coffee grounds and tea leaves for gardening. Here are other ways to reuse them.
7. Get water/milk gallons and use them to water your plants.
8. Get a basket or a milk jug and use it to wash dishes or to wash your clothes.
9. Cupcake tray can be reused as a jewelry organizer.
10. Reuse old books as shelves. (see image below)
11. Use towel rolls to organize your home wires.
12. Get yogurt cans and use them for leftovers.
13. Small sour cream containers can be used for lunch or leftovers, too.
14. Old ketchup bottles can be reused to make pancakes or flannel cakes.
15. One most effective way to reuse household item is to use the plastic shopping bags as your trash disposal bags. For us they come handy as we need to dispose 5-8 dirty diapers a day.
16. Wine corks are great to hang posts its.
17. Hang pictures with wine corks, too.
18. Dryer sheets. You can freshen up any room.
19. Tissue boxes are good as trash receptacles.
20. Cereal boxes to fit your jewelry.
21. Old blankets are great for dog houses.
22. Plastic containers are fabulous to fit your earrings.
23. Clothes for pet shelters.
24. Reuse oven heat in chilly nights.
25. Coffee grinds instead of cellulite gels.
26. Lemon and sugar as a scrubbing cream.
27. Dish soap bottles, for at home emollients.
28. Bottles to fill your iron.
29. Egg cartons to create a fancy decorative item.
30. Styrofoam cartons for cookie dough and/or butter patties.
31. Egg cartons for garden seedlings.
32. Shoe boxes to organize change.
33. Old floor tiles to create a fabulous mosaic art piece.
34. Unused remnant tiles for a decoration project.
35. Floor-tiles to develop a fancy tabletop.
36. Damaged tiles for trivets.
37. Old socks for small toys.
38. Tiny plastic bags to keep paper clips.
39. Paper towel rolls for extension cords.
40. T-shirts with holes for homemade pillows.
41. One most common household item to reuse is your t-shirts, which can be used as rugs. Cut them into small stripes and tie them on to a rod
42. Damaged clothes as wrap breakables.
43. Towel rolls for hair bands.
44. Wine glasses can be reused as pots for the cactus plants.
45. Milk jugs as clothespin holders.
46. Plastic soda as children piggy banks. Here’s how to do it.
47. Water bottles for decorative purposes, painting jobs, etc.
48. Soda bottles filled with bird seeds. You can use soda bottles to sprinkle water into your flower beds
49. Spaghetti jars as small planters.
50. Beer caps to create tiny magnets.
51. Bottle caps for custom refrigerator items.
52. Glass bottles to create light bulbs fixtures.
53. Bottles as decorative grass holders.
54. Courier delivery boxes as file boxes.
55. Shoe boxes as storage containers.
56. Sunday comics as wrapping paper. And, if you have some unwanted wrapping papers already, here are 30 ways to reuse them.
57. Damaged and old garden hose to make a soaker hose.
58. Baby jars to create candle holders.
59. Mailing tubes to develop a wine rack.
60. Wine corks as fire-starters. Few others use of wine cork is here.
61. DVDs or CDs covered with paper as drink coasters.
62. Altoids tins as emergency kits.
63. Small tins for sewing items.
64. Cans to place pencils.
65. Shredded papers as packaging material.
66. Old papers for shipping and delivery gift boxes.
67. Foam as good moving material for packing.
68. Old jeans to create pot holders.
69. Tires to create a low table base.
70. Old shoe rubber used for flooring purposes.
71. Shower curtains to cover your AC during cold times.
72. Bath mats as a brand new mop.
73. Old fused light bulbs can be reused in 10 different ways.
74. Used paper. Use both sides and create notepads.
75. Replace disposable batteries with rechargeable ones.
76. Donate old items to charitable organizations
77. Use toner cartridges to create little toys.
78. Improve your old sofa with a new cloth.
79. Recycle Christmas trees.
80. Reuse your used envelopes smartly. You can try starting an envelop budgeting system with them.
81. Opt for reusable air conditioner filters. But, don’t forget to clean it regularly.
82. Bags as wastepaper baskets or, laundry bags.
83. Paper sacks attached to your kid mattress, this is great to dispose of cleaning tissues.
84. Blackboard chalks to achieve a shiny metal look.
85. Chalks to keep jewelry in top condition. Here’s one article to reuse chalks
86. Tiles as candle holders. Go through this Google images page for that perfect idea.
87. Allow candle wax to drip over wine bottles. Here’s how you can do it.
88. Wine bottles for rolling pins.
89. Bottle caps used as dent patches. Here are 15 other ways to reuse bottle caps
90. Jewelry stand from soda bottles.
91. Buttons as attractive earrings. In fact, there can be numerous good use of old buttons. This article compiles all such great ideas.
92. Calendar pictures for fancy scenic decor.
93. Candle stubs for bottles.
94. Old picture frames as a serving tray. Learn from Martha Stewart in this video.
95. Small cans to prevent ants from climbing tables. Place them below the legs and pour some water into them.
96. Carpet scraps as wall carpeting and/or tote bags.
97. Carpets as shopping bags.
98. Cartons for makeshift tables or temporary storage.
99. Containers to create children toys.
100. Old razor blades for outline cutting and sewing jobs. They also remove hardened paint on windowpanes.
101. Reuse wine bottle corks as perfect pots for your wall cactus (check the image above). Here are 5 other ways to reuse wine corks.

As you can tell, there are many ways to reuse household stuff. Get started and enjoy infinite savings.You may feel that doing things like reusing toilet paper rolls or milk bottles are signs of a miser. But mostly see them as your bit to help preserve the nature. The less amount you buy, the less you waste and the less pollution, especially the plastic items.

Also, most of these ideas are fun to implement, you may start one of the ideas on a weekend morning along with your kids. This can become a powerful lesson for them towards frugality and protect the environment. There is no limit, if you think today, you may come up with 1001 more such ideas. You may enjoy just browsing through and getting inspired by this Pinterest section for innovative reuse ideas.

Let this article be your guide and inspiration towards doing something new with your stuff. All the best in your quest of re-using and re-purposing. Don’t forget to share your story below.

The post 101 Ideas to Reuse Household Items appeared first on One Cent At A Time.

With this blog post, I want to share ten things I learned (some the hard way) that will help make your transition from home life to being on the road smoother and more enjoyable.

• It’s Never Going to Be Easy

The first thing you should know is that the road will not always be easy.

It’s hard to leave your friends and family behind, but it can also be difficult to make new friends when everyone lives in different places.

If you’re looking for a community of like-minded souls who are living their full-time RV adventures around the country, you can check out #vanlife on Instagram or join a local Facebook group.

• Space

Space will become your best friend and worst enemy at times.

You have so much room in an RV there’s nowhere for all of the clutter to go.

It will help if you take some time to straighten up your little home each day (when you’re not driving).

• Take Advantage of Your Location

There’s a lot to see in our country.

You will find some truly amazing places that you won’t want to miss, but there are also less desirable locations where people tend not to go.

When possible, take advantage of the beautiful and unique things your area offers, such as hiking trails or museums.

• You Won’t Get Out of the House as Much

You’re constantly on the road in an RV. You can’t just jump up and go somewhere whenever you want to anymore.

A lot of planning goes into your adventures, so get used to it now before you hit the road.

• The Perfect Spot Doesn’t Exist

We had dreams about where we’d park each night before we left on our full-time RV adventure.

Those dreams have long since been crushed because you can’t always find a good spot to stay overnight.

Sometimes you’ll be exhausted and want to park somewhere, so you don’t drive anymore that day, but there won’t always be an option for your perfect location.

• Auto Insurance

The most important thing you need to know about car insurance before you begin your travels is that it’s going to cost a lot more than what you had back home.

That might seem obvious, but the reason for this increased price tag comes down to liability and how much risk they may assume when insuring an individual or family who will be traveling around the country, sometimes in a large vehicle.

• You’re Never Alone

Even when you’re camping in the middle of nowhere, there will be people everywhere.

You might want to travel off the beaten path sometimes where not many others go, but if you have an RV that screams “I’m a tourist,” no one will bother you.

If you don’t like it when other people are around and would rather be alone, you might want to consider a different way of life.

• It’s Expensive

RV living is expensive, and it doesn’t get any cheaper once you have your unit.

You need gas for the vehicle, electricity, water tanks which require emptying and refilling, and so much more.

It can get costly if you’re not careful with your money.

• You Might Want to Go Back Home

Living in an RV isn’t for everyone (it definitely wasn’t my first choice), but it is a great way of life with its pros and cons, just like anything else does.

You might find yourself thinking, “I just want to go home” after a few weeks or months on the road.

• The Weather Will be Different than What You’re Used To

If you live in an area that has four distinct seasons and all of them are very different from one another, your weather will change drastically while living full-time in your RV.

You’re going to have hot days where you can’t wait to get out of your vehicle because it’s too warm and freezing days when all you want is a sweater to keep you cozy.

RVing is a great way to see the country, but it’s not for everyone.

There are so many things that you might not have thought of or even considered before taking off on your road trip around America.

If you’re thinking about hitting the open highway in an RV with no set destination and nothing stopping you from going anywhere at any time, make sure you know what it’s all about before taking the plunge.

These are just a few of the things that I wish we had known before starting our full-time RV adventure.

Do your research and take advantage of other people who have done this for years so they can help teach you some valuable lessons.

If anything else, enjoy your journey!

The post 10 Things You Wish You Knew Before Living on the Road appeared first on One Cent At A Time.

They’re usually given by friends or relatives but, sometimes, you may need to purchase them whenever you’re trying to reach a certain threshold for miles, points, or credit card bonus.

If you’ve been stacking too many gift cards for whatever reason and you don’t have any idea how to make the most out of them, you’ve come to the right place. 

Tips on Maximizing Your Gift Cards

Letting your gift cards go to waste is a big no-no, especially if their prices are decent enough to allow you to buy something or pay for anything substantial.

Generally, Visa, Mastercard, or AMEX gift cards are never redundant as you can buy anything against these gift cards.

The same applies to Grocery or supermarket store gift cards, like Amazon, Walmart, etc.

My son received a few gift cards for his birthday from our friends. We really had a tough time getting rid of the “build a bear” gift card he got.

We had to make a day out plan in such a way that we visit a place near the mall which has a build a bear store.

Here are some tips that you can follow to maximize your gift cards:

Re-Gift Them

If you’re not up to using the gift cards anytime soon, it’s better to give them to someone else as a gift instead of letting them expire.

If you know of any upcoming event or occasion among your circle of friends or family, it’s a good idea to go over your gift cards and pick one that’ll be perfect for the celebration.

Just make sure that the gift card is a general one.

A general gift card is flexible enough to be redeemed or used in most stores.

Be mindful of giving inappropriate gift cards to people who most likely won’t end up using them.

For example, if your gift cards are mostly from supermarkets or department stores, you wouldn’t want to give them to someone who doesn’t like shopping in those places.

Redeem Them and Get a Reward

If you’re not aware of it yet, some gift cards come with promotional offers where you can earn extra rewards upon redeeming them.

That means you can use the gift cards for any purpose that you want and, at the same time, earn rewards from using them.

Definitely like shooting two birds in one stone, right?

These free gift card rewards can include a variety of items that you can get as your compensation in exchange for using the gift cards.

The items depend on where the gift cards are from, but they’re typically similar to what the company or brand is offering.

Google Play, for instance, offers a reward system for their gift cards upon redemption.

You can get bonuses like an in-app item, a book, or a movie rental.

Sell Gift Cards You Don’t Want

If you’ve received too many gift cards in the past and you don’t plan on using most of them before expiration, it’s better to sell them instead.

You can ask your friends if they’re interested in buying gift cards at discounted prices. 

If your friends or family aren’t up for it, there are several gift card exchange companies that buy gift cards.

They won’t buy the cards at full price, but at least you’ll get some money off of it.

Just try and look for a gift card exchange that can offer you an amount that’s closest to the full value of your gift card.

Sites like raise.com will buy your gift card online you’ll have to wash off with 5%-15% of the card face value in this route. So if you have absolutely no use of the gift card then use this route.

Use Them on Sale Items

If you like shopping, you can always wait for sale events and use your gift cards when paying for your purchase. 

Most gift cards are eligible for use, even on sale items.

This will help you save money on purchases that you can actually use, may it be shoes, clothes, or something else that you want.

Sale events usually happen during major holidays, so watch out for that.

But be sure to also take into consideration the expiration date of your gift cards.

Make sure to use them sooner and not later than their expiration date.

Add More Money to Your Gift Cards to Purchase More Expensive Items

If your gift cards are running low on balance, you can always add more funds or money to them.

This is useful when you’re eyeing something a bit expensive for your budget.

Instead of paying for the full amount of the item, you can use your gift cards to pay for it.

Use Them Together with Coupons

Another way to make the most out of your gift cards is to use them together with coupons for your purchases.

You don’t even need to have physical coupons that you’d normally cut out from newspapers.

There are now a lot of online and electronic coupons that you can use instantly together with your gift cards.

Conclusion

Gift cards are already useful as they are. But as you can see, you can actually maximize their benefits even more if you know the tips and tricks to do so. 

Don’t let your gift cards expire or lazily sit in your wallet.

There are several ways that you can consider to make the most out of them.

Use them, gift them, sell them—they’re gift cards that are as good as cash. Use them for what they’re intended for.

The post How To Make The Most Out Of Unused Gift Cards appeared first on One Cent At A Time.

Kids are grown and have moved so there is nothing stopping you from going to your dream area. Or, you are now on a serious budget and your area is too expensive to live a good retirement. Then, there are also health concerns and where you are now may not have the right weather or amenities for your condition.

Whatever your motivation, there is the ideal place out there for a perfect retirement. You just have to know what you want and then look to where you can find it. In this article, I will go over some of the best places to retire in the US so you can get some ideas on where to go.

1 – Arizona

Arizona is a place that ticks a lot of the boxes of people looking for a great place to retire.

Let’s start with the obvious, the weather.

There are over 320 sunny days in Arizona so if you are from a cold, grey and snowy state then this is going to be paradise.

It can be hot, however, but everyplace has A/C so you can enjoy nice, warm winters the rest of the year while you stay cool indoors in the summer.

Another thing is the outdoors is incredible. The landscapes are so varied that there is always something new to discover.

The active retiree will have plenty of fun outdoors from sailing the lakes to hiking the Grand Canyon.

There’s something for everybody.

The cost of living is generally low. Many utilities and amenities are below the national average.

The cost of housing is above the national average, however.

But, if you are looking at retirement communities in Arizona then you will find that the cost of these types of houses is in line with other ones in the rest of the country.

The state is situated very well, too. If you want to hit the coast in California, then you are less than a day’s drive away.

Likewise going to Mexico or even Las Vegas is not too far depending on where in the state you end up.

2 – Florida

This is the most obvious area for most people to want to retire to. The beaches and warm winters are a big draw that has attracted retirees from the Northeast for decades.

It’s because of this exodus that Florida is prime territory for a retiree.

It is built for retirees so everything is set up with them in mind.

There are plenty of doctors. Lots of handicapped access to restaurants, public buildings, beaches and parks.

There is hardly a square inch that isn’t accessible if you have mobility issues.

The cost of living is very hit or miss and it highly depends on where you live and what you want out of the area where you do settle.

There are lots of places off the beaten retirement path that offer very low housing costs that can be very attractive depending on your lifestyle needs.

If you are outdoorsy then pretty much any part of the state is going to be attractive.

There is a beach, everglades and the weather makes it enjoyable to be outside in any area.

For nightlife, there are small to large cities in every part of the state that are easily accessible when you want fine restaurants, theaters, and music venues.

3 – Utah

Although Utah is not on the radar of many soon to be retirees, it definitely should be.

The state has a lot to offer not least of which are the low taxes and cost of living.

The state has a wide variety of climates, too. If you want mild then you can find that in the areas near the mountains.

If you want hot and dry, the desert of the southern part of the state fits the bill. And, cooler weather can be found in the higher elevations if you want to experience all four seasons.

For outdoors enthusiasts, there is something for every taste.

Hiking is fantastic and has a good infrastructure to make it easy to get out there.

Sailing on the lakes and any other type of water sport is available. Plus, there is good skiing there as well.

The crime rate is one of the lowest in the country so no matter where you choose to go you shouldn’t have any worries about that.

And, if you like the city life, Salt Lake City is rated very high for the quality of life.

4 – Vermont

If you are a ski buff or at least don’t mind the snow then Vermont is a great choice.

It has a very low population so it is nice and quiet. You can really get away from the hustle and bustle no matter where you end up in the state.

The biggest city is Burlington and it barely cracks 42,000 people. In fact, the state capital is the nation’s smallest with only a little over 7,000 people.

The skiing is some of the best in the Northeast with plenty of slopes to choose from. There is a very enthusiastic outdoors culture in every part of the state.

If you love organic and local food then this is also going to fit the bill for you as it is a culture very much focused on that.

From cheese and other dairy products to vegetables and meat. You can get a lot of very fresh local produce because there is a very big demand for it there.

The people are very laid back and relaxed so you will be made to feel right at home in the quaint New England village of your choice.

The post The 4 Best Places To Retire In The US And Why appeared first on One Cent At A Time.

It’s not that I practice all of the days in and day out, but I follow most of them every day. In a way, this is similar to the other projects I mentioned before, how to be a better person in 15 ways and how to feel good and increase productivity.

Believe me, if you are happy with your work environment, you can get things done fairly quickly and feel more satisfied. Needless to say, you get noticed for your work and dedication.

It is of utmost importance that you increase your earning potential to take better care of your finances. Ultimately it’s your work that pays your bills.

20 tips to be productive at work

1. Cleanup and decorate your cubicle – A clean and uncluttered workplace has a connection with my efficiency. I like to start my day with a clean desk, I make sure to arrange things properly before I leave work. I believe that a cluttered workplace may result in a cluttered and unorganized thought and ideas.

2. Check your eyes – I didn’t have classes till 2007. I noticed a lack of concentration and headaches before realizing it’s due to eye power. I had serious issues at work that year. It may happen when your eye power fluctuates. Don’t miss the yearly eye checkup. Also do some eye exercises like frequent blinking, making ‘number 8’ with eye movement, etc. This is an excellent resource for eye exercise.

3. Use an anti-glare screen if you use a computer at work – Especially if you work on a computer as I do. Glare from a computer screen can cause fatigued and strained eyes. If I can’t look at a computer screen for long, how can I do my work? In my list, this has a very high priority.

4. Stay hydrated, drink water. Over time, drinking water has a far more positive effect compared to tea or coffee. Plus, the occasional trip to the water cooler, coffee machine, or copy machines is a great way to stand up and move around, as well as socialize with other coworkers who are also on a break.

5. Stretch few times during off calls and meetings – It relaxes your muscles. Do a few sit-ups and some physical exercise while at your desk. I raised a few eyebrows at first, now I see others doing it frequently too.

6. Drink water continuously – Stay hydrated, drink water. Over time, drinking water has a far more positive effect compared to tea or coffee. Not that you should stop drinking tea or coffee, in-fact tea helps me a lot during afternoons and early mornings. Just increase your water intake.

7. Go outside a couple of times – At least once a day, take a walk. Sunlight and physical activity are good for focus, mood, and memory retention. I am fortunate to have a lake right next to our office which makes my outing more pleasurable.

8. Use a headset – If your job requires you to use your phone frequently. Specifically, use a blue tooth headset for that matter. Holding on to the phone receiver while working on the keyboard is an extremely difficult proposition. I often take a walk near my cubicle while talking. A wireless headset makes it possible.

9. Set a specific time for checking emails – this is about time management. I found it takes a solid couple of hours to read, understand, and reply to emails. When I try to combine with other work, it takes much more time to focus and refocus. I now set two hours, in a chunk of 30 mins each, and check my emails 4 times a day.

10. Do hard and difficult tasks first – Procrastination makes a difficult task more difficult, apparently when you are under time pressure. Some critical tasks, when completed, gives mental stimulation and a sense of achievement. I do difficult tasks as early as possible, leaving aside less important tasks.

11. Wish as many passersby as you can – at the end of the day, we are social animals, be in a good term with people at your work. Be cheerful and spread happiness. And, do you remember Newton’s third law?

12. Keep a family picture at your desk – Purely for mental peace and to maintain calm. To get reminded of people you love and care for. Especially beneficial when you work under pressure or while facing a bad day in the office.

13. call your spouse/significant other/children at least once – This is also another psychological booster. Call your loved one and ask about the day. It will make both of your work life better. Earlier, I told SMB not to call me at work unless there’s an urgent matter. I was a fool, now I call her every day and talk for a few mins, it’s a morale booster for sure.

14. Help one colleague – I get mental satisfaction and recognition when I help someone else. Whether it is finding a solution to a problem or showing someone where the printer is, you can always help a colleague if you wish. It may boost your energy and self-respect even with a trivial effort.

15. Take breaks to relax and converse with colleagues – I work for more than 10 hours each day. I haven’t yet seen a person who can work at a stretch for that long, it’s humanly impossible. Take breaks, mingle with your colleagues, ask about their family or their weekend plan, share a joke.

16. Take a group lunch, if possible – This is another example of maintaining social work life. Lunchtime discussion increases your awareness of the things happening at work. It takes your mind away from work pressure and problems temporarily which is good for the brain.

17. Keep fruits for late afternoon – It’s good for your health as well. My empty stomach doesn’t let me be fully concentrated on work problems. I fight a mental battle to keep my mind away from food. So, I decided to keep an apple or a few grapes with me. I was addicted to salted nuts but, the growing belly made me switch over to fruits now.

18. Sit properly – At the age of 36 I am having back problems. It’s scary to think about the consequences I may face a few years down the line. It is due to not taking care of proper sitting arrangements, not adjusting my adjustable chair. You shouldn’t do the same mistake, back pain is a terrible productivity drainer at work.

19. Don’t use a speakerphone – You will surely annoy someone if you do otherwise. Sound pollution is as bad as any other pollution.

20. Use as less instant messages as possible, use the phone more often – at my work, we use Skype and Slack for interoffice instant messaging, it helps when the person is sitting 9,000 miles away, but I get annoyed when someone within 50 feet sends chat messages. Chatting, as opposed to a phone conversation, takes time. To manage your time better, pick up the phone and call the other person rather than sending chat messages.

21. Try to keep plants and stare at them occasionally – Staring at Green is good for eye health. Looking at a plant surely soothe your eyes.

I found it works great if I stop by other co-workers, I get a far better result and it saves a lot of time, and most importantly, my fingers get rest.

Readers, are you happy at work? Do you want to share your tips and thoughts about being more productive and enjoy the work environment?

The post 21 Tips To Be Productive And Happy At Work appeared first on One Cent At A Time.