Life is tough.  Half the time you don’t even realise the things impacting upon your decisions.

Below is a list of what can get in the way without your full awareness.  It’s hardly an exhaustive list…If only that could be done!

1. Friends. You love your mates. So you let them dictate some aspects of what happens in your life, even when you don’t realise.  Nothing wrong with this in small doses (hey, that’s why they’re friends).  But draw the line at peer pressure!
2. Peer pressure. Drawing the line doesn’t always happen because peer pressure is not always easy to spot.  Doing something you wish you weren’t doing?  That could be down to peer pressure.
3. Alcohol. Students and alcohol…the combination is a cliché in itself.  There will always be a number of students for whom a night of drunken revelling is the pinnacle of entertainment.
   But even if you only get a little tipsy on the rare occasion of craziness, that alcohol gets in the way of your thought process and your body.  As with most things, in moderation is unlikely to do much harm.
4. TV.  Who doesn’t watch TV?  Few people can admit to watching nothing whatsoever.  I hardly watch television, but still make time for the odd show.  That’s all time sat in front of a box doing little else productive.
5. Internet. All I need to mention is Facebook and Farmville and Mafia Wars and messaging and YouTube and so on forever and ever and ever…
   You know the Web’s brilliant.  But it can take over your life without you realising.  Be careful not to browse your last breath!
6. Music. My big weakness lies here.  My taste in music is so eclectic that I don’t have enough hours in the day to listen to everything I love, even if I listened for 24 hours each day.  As soon as I realise the music is unintentionally eating up time, I cut down on my consumption.
   That lasts about a day…
7. Other people’s opinions and comments. If someone else hadn’t got in the way, you’d probably push on without a second thought.  But now a remark has stopped you in your tracks.  Be it a friend or a stranger, a thought out speech or a throwaway comment, it’s hard to let go of an opinion once it’s out in the open.
8. Your own opinions.  You get in the way of yourself, you really do.  Adamant you’re right, unwilling to look at alternatives.  You seek affirmation for what you believe rather than finding new ways to succeed.  Who needs enemies when you’ve got yourself, eh?
9. Outings. Go on, I’ll stay for one more.  Okay, I’ll stop working to see the others for a bit.  Fine, if everyone else is doing it.
   The most organised of people can succumb to unscheduled visits and staying longer than expected.  You can’t get that time back…
   …Neither can you afford to be totally rigid, so be aware of the changes instead of letting them get in the way and spin out of control.
10. Relationships/Love.  There’s too much to say here.  I don’t think I need to explain, mainly because it’s impossible to find words.
11. Money. A necessary evil.  The best we can do is temper the beast.
12. Perfection. The word sounds pleasant enough, but don’t be fooled. Perfection may seem like the ultimate control, but perfection is actually losing control.
13. Chaos & false perceptions of future certainty. You don’t know what’s around the corner and you don’t know how sudden changes will impact upon your life.  No matter, you probably try to plan abstract events in your head that are so far ahead it’s never going to turn out that way.  Why bother at all?  Because we don’t realise how random the future is.  If you want to see how random, just read “Fooled by Randomness” and “The Black Swan“.
14. Weather/Time of year. We recently had a lot of snow.  It changed moods.  When you open your curtains and look outside, the state of the weather gets you thinking.  The weather is so changeable in the UK, no wonder we always like to talk about it. I’m not surprised we let it dictate our mood.
15. What’s expected of you.  It’s rare to find someone who doesn’t care what others think.  For most of us, we aren’t doing what we want to do in isolation, we’re weighing up all sorts of decisions (real and imaginary) that sway what we’ll do.
16. Your own expectations.  Do you cut yourself some slack?  You probably don’t as much as you think.
17. Fitting in. It’s not always cool to stand out.
18. Standing out. It’s not always cool to fit in.
19. Sex. When it comes to impressing others romantically, we’re known for doing all sorts of crazy things.  Or is that just me…?
20. Gossip. Hearing stuff on the grapevine is dangerous.  It changes perception, even if you subsequently find out the rumours were untrue.  The damage has already been done.

Title image: original by tiffa130 (cc)  /  Bottom image: InfoMofo (cc)

Let’s face it.  Most of us spend our time staring at a computer screen, looking down at your phone, watching something on a handheld device.  We do so much without stopping to look up and really take in what’s around us.

But it’s beautiful.  Away in the country, deep in the city, in a building, outside, there’s so much wonder wherever you are.

Why should you look up?  Here are 20 reasons for today’s 20/20 posting.  It’s short, because I want to give you some extra time to look around and enjoy!

1. There’s a world around you. It’s easy to forget that.
2. If you want to help that world, look at what you’re trying to help first. Give yourself all the enthusiasm you can to make a difference.
3. To be inspired by the little things around you.
4. Be amazed. We spend so much time looking down and away that even the most familiar surroundings can surprise.
5. Online confidence is easy, but what about offline? It’s possible that people are beginning to project a more realistic picture of themselves online. But it’s often more difficult to be as dynamic offline as you are online.  Realism is one thing, acting boldly is another. How strong can you be?
6. Not everyone is online. Most of you use Facebook, but not everyone is completely engaged with the Internet.  Can you engage with the people who don’t make as much use of technology as you do?
7. Could you cope without the Web or without your mobile? Give it a go.  What are you free to do now?
8. To get a different perspective. For instance, ask a librarian for help on research you’d usually consult Google about.  Google it later, by all means, but first do something new.
9. While no one is looking… You could get away with something, since most of us are still looking down at our devices!  What do you dare do? [Oi, I mean sensibly!]
10. Books still exist. Electronic text is not (yet) the only option you need consult.
11. A conscious disconnect is healthy.
12. Just 30 seconds taking in your surroundings is therapeutic.  Too often we don’t think about it.  This is like a miniature conscious disconnect.
13. Because if you don’t look up enough, people start to look strange when they’re *not* pixelated.
14. Sometimes the long way round is time well spent. We’re used to getting things instantly.  What if you did it differently?  A different way could take more time, but could also reap greater benefits…
15. It’s just a tool, not a solution.  Don’t get stuck in the tool.
16. Your eyes need a break.
17. Experiences come from all around, not just a screen.
18. Hey, you may miss “THE ONE” walk past if you head’s down. “Your soulmate? Oh, they were walking off into the distance about, er, twenty minutes ago.  Well, I don’t know, they looked in a hurry…”
19. For all the communication you do, it makes many feel lonely.
20. Life’s too short.

Title image: original by tiffa130 (cc)  /  Bottom image: Seeks2dream (cc)

Is it that time again? Onward!

From Economist – Needle in a haystack

“When information was recorded on a tangible medium—paper, film and so on—everything had only one correct place. With digital information the same item can be filed in several places at once, notes David Weinberger, the author of a book about taxonomy and the internet, ‘Everything Is Miscellaneous’. Digital metadata make things more complicated and simpler at the same time.”

Gizmo – Best freeware programs

Gizmo – Best online services

Gizmo’s site consistently offers great advice on finding the best free software around.  Why use expensive programs when you can download something similar (and often better) for free?

The two sites above are definitely ones to bookmark.  I found a lot of software and online tools that I already use and love. I first heard about some of the items from Gizmo’s site in the first place.

100 Free and Useful Portable Apps for College Students

USB memory sticks are so useful. Yes, they’re small and I’ve lost count of the number of people who tell me they’ve left a stick with their essays on in the library or computer centre.  However, the benefits of these tiny sticks can’t be ignored.  Set up a home computer setup away from home by sticking your favourite software on the stick and using it wherever you go.

If you haven’t already seen the brilliant PortableApps suite, you should definitely check that out too.

Independent – Is it time to tear up your CV and try a different approach to finding your dream job?

You’re not limited to finding a job using traditional methods.  How far do you want to go?  While the article helpfully suggests how to push your search further and harder, I wouldn’t suggest you rip that CV up quite yet.

Yahoo! Finance – 10 Resume Red Flags

Get your not-yet-ripped-up-CV in shape for applications. Some seemingly ‘must-have’ CV areas may do more harm. And think again before you try some techniques to make your CV stand out.  It could stand out for all the wrong reasons…

University of East Anglia – Are YOU at risk of plagiarism?

Test yourself on how well you know your stuff.  Can you use material from lectures and lecture notes without referencing?  Are you allowed to discuss an assignment topic with another student?  Can you re-use material from your own essays?

From Leeds Student – Sleepless Students

“Many of us theorize that by sleeping all weekend we can make up for the hapless sleeping patterns of the previous week – a sort of banking system for sleep. However consistency is key. It is actually advisable to sleep the same amount (ideally 7-8 hours) every night. This would involve the same bed time and waking time even on weekends! Understandably, for many this will be unachievable, after all weekends were made for lie-ins. However, ‘banking’ sleep can actually lead to feeling more tired. This is due to an increase in melatonin, a sleep regulating hormone that can be caused by oversleeping.”

Matt’s Idea Blog – The 20 top time wasters, stealers, nibblers, and how to nab them

While I go through the 20/20 series of posts, here’s a Top 20 list for getting your time back and zapping the things that eat away at that precious commodity.

Apophenia: ChatRoulette for the uninitiated / ChatRoulette from my perspective

If you’ve not heard of the randomly social-connecting webcam service ChatRoulette, the first piece will bring you up to speed. It’s not to everyone’s taste. If you’re well aware of the site, the second piece discusses the service further and how it reminds the author (Danah Boyd) of the earlier days of the Internet.

ChatRoulette has quickly become a popular site, but I can’t see it as anything other than a novelty.  It’s not the future of web apps, even if it is bizarre and compelling for many.

MakeUseOf – How To Create A Good Password That You Will Not Forget

You don’t have to rely on the name of your cat, a rude word, or 123456 to remember a password.  As the article shows, you can create a memorable password that looks nonsense to anyone else.  Who’d have thought a Bryan Adams fan would have no problem logging in to their email with a password like ‘E1d_1D!4Y:)GMa’.

Positivity Blog – 3 Common Mistakes When Trying to Improve Self Confidence

Don’t just think something positive, DO something positive.  Don’t just imagine the worst outcomes, imagine the BEST outcomes.  Don’t just rush into things, PREPARE each step of the way.

This post is part of the Guest Post Giveaway at the blog Unready and Willing.  If you think articles about writing or personal development (or personal development for writers) sounds like a good fit for your blog, please take a look at the Guest Post Giveaway page and see if any of the articles spark your interest.

Understanding how to write an introduction effectively is essential to generate a reader’s interest, to convince them that the subject you’ve chosen to write about is important or relevant. A good introduction should pull the reader straight in and make them want to read more. Also, learning how to write a good introduction can be very helpful in overcoming “starting anxiety,” one of the major causes of writer’s block. This article provides some guidelines on the different types of introductions as well as some tips that will not only help you succeed in drawing in readers, but will also make starting your essays much easier.

Types of essay introductions

Here are some of the types of introductions you can use:

1.   Ask a question – Questions engage readers and often make excellent introductions. The question you use could be the very same question you asked yourself before writing the essay.

2.   Paint an image – If you’re writing about the tragedies that take place in a war-torn country, write an introduction in the form of a short, provocative scene that describes the horrors of that country’s war in vivid detail. You can then move into your thesis about how such a scene could be prevented.

3.   Use an anecdote – People are always curious about other people. Provide the reader with an experience from your own life that’s relevant to whatever subject you wish to talk about. Anecdotes are generally humorous or amusing, but you can also write about a serious experience you may have had.

4.   State your thesis – Sometimes the best way to write an introduction is to have no introduction at all. Make your thesis statement the first sentence of your essay. Theses that work well for this kind of introduction are often controversial or humorous.

5.   State a problem – Use some statistic, personal observation or description of an event to let the reader know that a problem exists. Lead the reader from the description of the problem to your thesis statement, which could be your suggested solution.

6.   Emphasize importance – If you’re writing about water conservation you may want to alert us about how precious drinkable water is. Such an introduction could easily lead into an essay on how to conserve water.

7.   Quotes – You could start by mentioning a relevant quote to the subject of your essay. If you’re writing about the future of technology, for example, you might quote Bill Gates. If you’re writing about cooking, you might quote Julia Child.

8.   Outline first – Tell the reader what they’re going to get in the form of bullet points at the beginning of your essay. This isn’t a traditional introduction, but it’s very effective when writing for the web. As much as we’d like to think web surfers read every word, often the reader will only want or need a single part of your entire essay. Provide hyperlinked bulleted points in an outline which lead to a corresponding parts of your essay.

Other Tips and Tricks

1.   Make it relevant – When you write an introduction it should relate directly or at least indirectly to whatever subject you’re writing about.

2.   Lead into the thesis – Make sure that your introduction leads quickly and efficiently into your thesis. No rambling.

3.   Make it short – Write an introduction of no more than 200 words for a 1500 word essay. Get the reader’s attention, then quickly get to the point.

4.   Provoke an emotion, thought or image – An introduction should get the reader engaged, either emotionally or mentally.

5.   Write it later – Writing introductions should not be the hardest part of writing the essay, but for some reason it often is. One of the biggest reasons for this is because we’re worried about whether we can finish the essay or not. Skip the intro and write the body of your essay first. You can always go back to the introduction later when you have a better handle on your subject.

6.   Try several introductions – If you’re having trouble deciding how to start, you can try several different introductions and see which one works best.

Choosing Wisely

Ultimately, whichever type of introduction you use is up to you. It’s important, however, to choose wisely. An anecdote might work well for a humorous essay but could be very out of place if you’re writing about some serious issue. Try to get a feel for the different types of introductions so that you can develop a sense of which one might be most appropriate for your context.

For many, the introduction can be the most difficult part of an essay to write. Once you learn how to write a good introduction, however, not only will more people read your work, but you may find that starting an essay will become the easiest part.

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Kenji Crosland is a creative writing major who, scared of becoming a starving artist, became a corporate headhunter in Tokyo. Since then he’s regained his sanity, quit his job, and currently blogs about creating an ideal career at unreadyandwilling.com. He’s currently developing a web application that just might change the internet. Follow him on twitter @KenjiCrosland.