Bored with your bland cubicle? Keep the walls from closing in with these strategies from Lifehacker or grab a few of these funny cartoons from Doug Savage. They’re cleverly designed to look like Post-Its….so the boss won’t even notice what they say! If you really want to create a fun first impression with your coworkers, make your “cube” even more unique with this book!
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It’s been one helluva week. Boston. Texas. And closer to home, my babysitter and our two daughters were rear-ended in rush-hour traffic. (Thankfully, they are all fine.) Over the past several days, my emotions have run a wide spectrum: shock, anger, guilt, grief and relief, just to name a few. My thoughts have included:”Everything can change in an instant”; “Life is a fragile gift”; “Nothing matters more than the health and safety of loved ones”; “There is danger everywhere”; “Most people are good.” Take for example, the people who are working tirelessly to return
Read more →Brandweek magazine said: “Brands are the express checkout for people living their lives at ever increasing speed.” If you’ve ever stood in the middle of Times Square, you know this is true. A few weeks ago, my wife and I took my nine-year-old daughter on a special birthday trip to New York City. She had recently played Molly, one of the lead orphans, in an all-kids production of the musical, Annie. We took her to see the real production on Broadway. Like me, my daughter has a Type A personality. Eager to make the
Read more →In today’s world, formal etiquette has relaxed considerably. For example, did you know that it used to be considered poor manners to place a ketchup bottle on the table or mention a gift registry on an invitation? Today, we have to be concerned with netiquette-the use of manners online, in emails and in texting-than with etiquette. How do you measure up when it comes to email manners? Inc.com gathered a veritable Who’s Who of business etiquette experts asked them for their top tips. Click here to read all 25 suggestions, or just skim a
Read more →If you think of the transportation industry as a community, then Matchmaker Logistics in an active member of its neighborhood watch program. We maintain paid subscriptions to several “watch dog” services, including one invitation-only program, that shares information about carriers across the country. When brokers experience a serious problem with a carrier (loads double-brokered, loads held hostage, service failures, etc.), they post this information as a friendly, cautionary alert to other brokers in the industry. At Matchmaker, we take our watch dog efforts seriously. We have systems in place to add all problem carriers
Read more →In these tough economic times, it’s great to hear some good news! Did you know that Taco Bell is buying the famous Liberty Bell? It’s all part of an effort, the company says, to “help the national debt,” by purchasing and maintaining national landmarks privately, instead of depending on the American taxpayer to protect these treasures. Taco Bell believes this will start a trend of charitable purchases of landmarks and historical items by other US companies. The Liberty Bell will be renamed the Taco Liberty Bell, but will still be viewable by the public,
Read more →Do have to write a report on a deadline, but find that you are constantly interrupted by distractions? Do you sometimes forget the multiple logins and passwords needed for all of the websites you visit? Forbes published a list of 7 Top Online Productivity Tools that will simplify your life and increase your efficiency. Many of these tools are free or very inexpensive. For example, WriteMonkey is a free software program that blocks all those time wasting applications, so you can focus. LastPass, a highly secure application that generates and stores secure passwords, is
Read more →As the Dixie Cups crooned in their 1964 hit Chapel of Love: “Spring is here/the sky is so very blue/Birds all sing as if they knew…” Here at Matchmaker Logistics, we have two lovebirds who are “goin’ to the chapel” very soon. They don’t just have Spring Fever, they also have Wedding Fever–Congratulations to Shelly Stoddart and Pam Carrier on their engagements! Hearing about their wedding planning is proving to be quite an eye-opening experience. I’ve learned that there are Bridezillas (brides-to-be who turn into self-absorbed, over-indulgent monsters) and Bridechillas (those who remain cool
Read more →It may be the way the cookie crumbles on Madison Avenue, but in Hong Kong it’s the way the egg rolls. ~Robert Orben Last month, I told you about my attempts to win back an old account that resulted in a friendly office wager: If I could win the business by March 1, my Office Assistant, Shelly, promised to make me cookies; if I lost, I’d have to bake her cookies. As you, our faithful Thought for the Weekend readers suggested, I even had a bouquet of cookies delivered to the company I’ve been
Read more →People often lament: “I’m too busy to work out”, but according to Virgin Airlines founder Richard Branson, one workout could give you an extra 4 hours of productivity per day! In his book, The Four Hour Body, Tim Ferris (also the author of The Four Hour Work Week) shares an anecdote when someone asked business icon Richard Branson: “How do you become more productive?”: Richard Branson leaned back and thought for a second. The tropical sounds of his private oasis, Necker Island, murmured in the background. Twenty people sat around him at rapt attention,
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