Finding time to stay on track, especially if much of your work must be done on-line, can be a very big challenge.  There are so many potential distractions that can pull you away from your planned work.  Do you notice that you ‘lose time’ when you’re at your computer?  It’s a very common problem and may well be your biggest time drain.

But don’t worry!  Here’s one simple and sure-fire way to keep yourself focused and on track when you sit down to work at your computer:  Use a timer!

There really is no better way to create time boundaries for yourself so that you can stay focused and on-track.  There are lots of different kinds of timers that you can use – some on-line and some of the egg-timer variety.  Both can work just fine; I personally prefer the egg-timer type, as I can use it to stay on track, not just at the computer, but when I’m doing other things around the house an farm.

For accomplishing tasks that require a lot of focus, I like to set the timer for no more than 20 or 30-minutes.  Then, when it goes off, I get up and walk around a little bit, or do some stretches.  It’s important to give yourself frequent “movement breaks” when your work is primarily sedentary.  This refreshes your body and your mind, enabling you to return to your task with renewed energy.

I think you’ll find that your ability to stay on track is greatly enhanced when you work in shorter increments and give yourself clear boundaries.  You’ll begin to establish a rhythm that both your body and your mind will appreciate.

Not only that, but the more you know that YOU are in charge of your time, the more you can stay focused and on track.  As you use your timer to create and maintain your time boundaries you build self-trust around time management and time choices.  This makes it easier to let go of that tempting website that you want to explore ‘right now’ – because you know that you will find time to return to it later.  Clear time boundaries make that possible for you!

And, here’s something more to consider.  Are you an entrepreneur, consultant, or small business owner who’s ready to take the next big step?  If you want to learn how to create and to keep a successful business running on your own, then this is for you! “How to Create Credibility as a Freelancer” is a booklet with 70 expert-proven tips that will help you recharge your energy and motivation, increase your visibility, and sharpen those vital organizational and time management skills.

Success is within your reach, so don’t wait, http://optimize.thetimefinder.com/tips-booklet/ and get started today!

Let’s explore time together …

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have no material connection with any of the resources mentioned here, and have not received any compensation for writing this content.

Finding time to keep up with all the developments in the world of digital media is next to impossible.  There are so many different platforms, and so many thousands of applications and tools being developed and marketed for each that sorting out what’s what could be a full-time job.

That’s why I like to check sources like Mashable, Lifehacker, CNET, Wired, and PCMag.com occasionally – and most especially when they offer Top 10 Lists and other aggregations of information.  There are people for whom monitoring the digital world is a full-time job (as well as a passion).

So I take advantage of their good work periodically.  It’s a quick way to scan the digital landscape, and I nearly always notice something that interests me.

Today I want to share a weekend post from Mashable’s Matt Protonzio titled 47 Digital Media Resources You May Have Missed.  The entire post is worth a look, and here are just a few of the items that caught my eye:

•  10 Things You Didn’t Know About Klout:  Here are 10 things you probably didn’t know about Klout and the man who created it.
• The Best and Worst Times to Share on Facebook, Twitter:  Link shortening and tracking service bit.ly has released new data on the best and worst times to share links on popular social networks.
• 8 Ways to Get the Biggest Marketing Bang Out of SlideShare:  SlideShare is a vibrant, mobile-friendly, Google-indexed community. Here are eight ways savvy social marketers should use it.
• How to Optimize Your Headlines for Google and Humans:  Google and SEO may make you cringe, but the combo matters in search. Here are SEO examples from news outlets that range from bad to best.

With time at a premium, and digital media tools and opportunities changing every day, it’s worth taking a look at developments and trends at least weekly.  I suggest that you check out one of the venues noted above, and stay familiar with the ever-evolving digital landscape.

Not only that, but as you discover helpful tools, please let us know … we’d all love to hear!

And, here’s something more to consider.  Are you an entrepreneur, consultant, or small business owner who’s ready to take the next big step?  If you want to learn how to create and to keep a successful business running on your own, then this is for you! “How to Create Credibility as a Freelancer” is a booklet with 70 expert-proven tips that will help you recharge your energy and motivation, increase your visibility, and sharpen those vital organizational and time management skills.

Success is within your reach, so don’t wait, http://optimize.thetimefinder.com/tips-booklet/ and get started today!

Let’s explore time together …

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have no material connection with any of the resources mentioned here, and have not received any compensation for writing this content.

Finding time to avoid viruses, malware, phishing sites and other nasty places while exploring the internet is a lot easier if you use LongURL.  The popularity of social networking, with its premium on brevity, has led to a proliferation of URL shorteners like tiny.url, bit.ly, and lots of others.  The problem with these otherwise useful tools is that you have absolutely no idea what website you are going to land on when you click a shortened URL.

So, that’s where LongURL can help.  Basically, it’s a service that gives you the capacity to enter your shortened URL

Here’s a brief video from ComputerGeek396 showing how it works:

At last check, they supported a list of 340 URL shortening services – and are adding more as people suggest them.  Just click this link, enter your short URL in the space provided, and see where the link is taking you.

You can also access a Firefox Extension called Long URL Please (from a different provider) that, when installed, will change shortened URL’s on pages you indicate into Long URLs.  I use this extension for Twitter and Facebook, for example.

The time that you spend checking URL’s up front can save you untold headaches (and lost hours) that could result from stumbling upon a malicious site.  That’s why I encourage you to take a look at LongURL and the Firefox extension (if you use Firefox).

I hope you will find this tool helpful.  And let us know what you think … we’d all love to hear!

And, here’s something more to consider.  Are you an entrepreneur, consultant, or small business owner who’s ready to take the next big step?  If you want to learn how to create and to keep a successful business running on your own, then this is for you! “How to Create Credibility as a Freelancer” is a booklet with 70 expert-proven tips that will help you recharge your energy and motivation, increase your visibility, and sharpen those vital organizational and time management skills.

Success is within your reach, so don’t wait, http://optimize.thetimefinder.com/tips-booklet/ and get started today!

Let’s explore time together …

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have no material connection with Long URL, and have not received any compensation for writing this content.

Finding time to simply take in the amazing mysteries that time presents is something that we seldom let ourselves do.  And yet, those mysteries are with us every moment, as we live and breathe and work and play within time.

Consider how the merest snatch of a song or a scent of lilac or newly mowed grass can bring to mind a moment from long ago as if it were happening right now.  Or think about how time can feel like it ticks by so slowly when you are waiting for a happily anticipated event – meanwhile seeming to rush by at triple speed when you are feverishly trying to meet a deadline.

The thing is that time is objectively concrete and measurable, yet our experience of it is highly subjective.  It is also universal – one of the things in life that absolutely ALL of us experience.  So, it’s a place where uniqueness and universality bump into one another frequently – and often the result can feel like mystery.

• “How is it possible that this moment from 27 years ago can feel so real to me today?”
• “Why does time feel like it moves faster as I get older?”
• “Where did the time go?”

Do you ever ponder the mystery of what happened to April 29, 1967?  Or July 17, 2003?  Where, indeed, does the time go?

Well, here’s one graphic representation of, if not where the time goes, at least what happens as it passes.  This ingenious use of technology by Frans Hofmeester illustrates the growth of his daughter Lotte, from birth to age 12 … all in the space of a brief video.

Shared by Alison, a long-time reader of The Time Finder, this video offers a condensed view of change over time that I found fascinating – and I offer it to you today!

Lotte Time Lapse: Birth to 12 years in 2 min. 45. from Frans Hofmeester on Vimeo.

It is amazing and humbling to see 12 years of growth compressed into just a few minutes – and to consider how our experience of time can be just that malleable and plastic.  I think about the moments that loom large in our lives, and how we carry them with us while other moments fade.

Time and memory.  Time and duration.  There are so many mysteries about time … the deeper youwe delve into them, the more time opens up its rich treasures to us!

Do you let yourself step toward the mystery of time?  Are there ways that it confounds and fascinates you, too?  Let us know what you think … we’d all love to hear!

And, stepping back into more day-to-day thoughts about time, are you an entrepreneur, consultant, or small business owner who’s ready to take the next big step?  If you want to learn how to create and to keep a successful business running on your own, then this is for you! “How to Create Credibility as a Freelancer” is a booklet with 70 expert-proven tips that will help you recharge your energy and motivation, increase your visibility, and sharpen those vital organizational and time management skills.

Success is within your reach, so don’t wait, click this link and get started today!

Let’s explore time together …

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have no material connection with Frans Hofmeester or Vimeo, and have not received any compensation for writing this content.

Finding time to keep up with what’s new and to make the most of the technological tools available is an ongoing challenge.  There are so many wonderful applications and time-saving software tools out there, that it can actually be a little bit overwhelming.

That’s why I appreciate venues like lifehacker, where you can review lists of tools and apps that have already been vetted.  I find the reviews to be clear, entertaining, and very useful.  Often I’ll find something new to tell my VA about, or I’ll learn a trick that saves time (and, by extension, money)!

The first post I wanted to share with you today offers 10 tricks that can enhance your efficiency when using Gmail.  It’s titled Top 10 Clever Tricks Built Right Into Gmail and I was especially taken with this trick (it’s #7 on the list):

Restore Your Contacts List if You Mess It Up:  You may not know this, but Gmail automatically backs up your contact list regularly, so if you ever mess it up—lose a contact, accidentally sync an older set of contacts, or even delete your entire address book by accident, you can restore it to exactly the way it was at any point in time. Just head to your contact list in Gmail, click the “More” button, and choose “Restore Contacts”.

And, as a bonus, lifehacker offers an accessible and comprehensive Guide for making the most of the new Gmail.  It’s worth a look!

Another feature that I like to check in lifehacker is their weekly Download Roundup.  This past week’s Top Downloads included a tool called Springpad that looked intriguing.  In the review, it’s compared to Pinterest and Evernote – which in and of itself piqued my interest. It’s free, and the reviewer was very enthusiastic:

It’s a fantastic, easy-to-use webapp that helps you organize your life, your ideas, and your projects, and once you get started, it’s also a lot of fun to use. Unlike most tools of its ilk, Springpad thinks for you, working like a personal assistant to cut down on the time you spend on the less enjoyable aspects of organizing information—meaning you’ll spend less time organizing things and more time doing them.

Based on the information in lifehacker, I definitely felt that Springpad was worth some further research.  You can start with the article on lifehacker if you’re interested – it’s chock full of useful information about using this tool.

Do you visit lifehacker often?  Consider integrating it into your morning routine … you might find something you need there!  And let us know what you think … we’d all love to hear!

And  are you an entrepreneur, consultant, or small business owner who’s ready to take the next big step?  If you want to learn how to create and to keep a successful business running on your own, then this is for you! “How to Create Credibility as a Freelancer” is a booklet with 70 expert-proven tips that will help you recharge your energy and motivation, increase your visibility, and sharpen those vital organizational and time management skills.

Success is within your reach, so don’t wait, click this link and get started today!

Let’s explore time together …

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have no material connection with lifehacker or any of the other tools mentioned, and have not received any compensation for writing this content.

Finding time to inject a little fun into your on-line life can certainly add to your day.  That’s just one of the reasons that I was intrigued when my VA told me about a site she visits every morning called Woot.

Founded in 2004, Woot’s slogan is “One Day, One Deal” – and that’s just what they offer.  Every night, at midnight (Central Time) a new, discounted deal is posted on the site.  The item for sale remains available until it’s sold out.  Depending on the item, this can sometimes happen very quickly.  Often the items are technological and they may be new or refurbished (this is always clearly stated).

Woot’s marketing style is quite irreverent, and their product descriptions are, themselves, often very entertaining to read.  There is a very active community of Wooters, and the Woot Twitter feed was, as of a year or so ago, one of the top 100 most-followed, according to Wikipedia.

The collection of items offered on Woot is often technological – but can range quite widely.  Since 2006, for example, here’s a sampling of items my VA has purchased:

• Vornado Zippi Fan – 2 Pack
• Plantronics 222 Bluetooth Headset
• Pure Digital Flip Ultra Series F260 Camcorder
• Isotoner Ladies Suede Gloves
• Gourmet Cedar Grilling Planks 12-Pack
• Panasonic 14.1MP Digital Camera
• Lock & Lock BPA-Free Airtight Stackable 28-Piece Set

As I said, it’s a wide-ranging collection of items!

Are you interested in checking Woot?  Consider integrating it into your morning routine … you might find something you need there!  And let us know what you think … we’d all love to hear!

And  are you an entrepreneur, consultant, or small business owner who’s ready to take the next big step?  If you want to learn how to create and to keep a successful business running on your own, then this is for you! “How to Create Credibility as a Freelancer” is a booklet with 70 expert-proven tips that will help you recharge your energy and motivation, increase your visibility, and sharpen those vital organizational and time management skills.

Success is within your reach, so don’t wait, click this link and get started today!

Let’s explore time together …

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have no material connection with Woot and have not received any compensation for writing this content.