The ABCs of Productivity: 8 Tips to Level up Your Home Workspace

streetsmartmasterclass

4 Oct, 2021

a table with documents and a laptop — `Source: Pexels`

Still don’t know how to keep yourself focused on doing your assignments and projects at your home workspace? Or are you still having trouble organizing the piles of papers and the gadgets on your work table? Worry not! This article will give you tips on how to increase your focus and productivity that are all as easy to remember as the ABCs!

Everything surrounding you is considered as a factor as to why you are feeling the way you are right now — the room temperature, the noise, the people around — everything that your senses could perceive. For instance, your work environment affects your mental functionality and your overall mood. In order to achieve utmost productivity, it is essential to invest some time and resources to revamp the area you are working in.

Therefore, if you want to achieve a working environment that can give you both productivity and comfortability, then read along to get some tips to level up your home workspace!

THE ABC’s of Workspace Productivity

Everyone has their own taste when it comes to designing their working environments. Through using the ABCs as acronyms, presented below are fun and easy ways for you to easily take note of the tips on how to achieve your dream workspace!

1. Add Room Scents!

Aromatherapy can help reduce stress while working. It is proven to calm anxiety, improve your mood, and boost your mental functionality. Whenever you need to work on something tedious and you have to sit down for hours in front of the screen, blast off some scents to relieve yourself from the stress.

Adding scented candles, essential oils, or dried flowers inside your room can give you a pop of productivity in no time!

TIP: Lavender scents are effective to refresh your mind. It can also make your room feel and smell really good, too!

2. Bring in plants!

Decorating your work from home workspace with indoor plants radiates relaxation and refreshment. Aside from helping you achieve your desired aesthetic, plants also help clean the air circulating inside your home workspace, thus, improving attentiveness, focus, and creativity.

TIP: Low maintenance plants such as aloe veras are best for home workspaces as they only require minimal water and sunlight to thrive

3. Clean the Clutter

An organized workspace reflects an organized mind. Having a mess-free home office workspace helps keep you focused on your activities and it also increases your levels of concentration as your ideas easily flow through. Cable management, for instance, keeps wires from tangling by using cable organizers. Mini vacuum cleaners are also efficient in cleaning hard-to-reach areas such as keyboard gaps and table edges.

4. Decide on Your Room Color

Color affects mood. It is important to choose what your comfort color is in order to ensure that you will constantly feel comfortable, relaxed, and stay productive all throughout.

TIP: If you have a small workspace, painting your room with light colors such as white, off-white, or pastel tones will make it appear more spacious. In addition, rooms with lighter colors can create a brighter workspace, saving you from consuming electricity!

5. Eliminate Distractions

The presence of distracting noises are hard to avoid especially in a small workspace. Hence, it is good to invest in good noise-canceling earphones in order to block distracting sounds. For some people, the presence of complete silence may also be a distracting factor. Given that everyone has different preferences when it comes to sound, it is important to know where you are most comfortable to work with in order to squeeze the most of your productive juices!

TIP: For those people who work well with white noise, you may try listening to podcasts or Coffivity sounds to help you concentrate on your tasks.

6. Find the Right Lighting

Having a good source of lighting radiates a positive mood in your environment. Placing your desk near where natural light comes in will make you feel more awake and focused. It will also give you a sense of connection with nature, making you feel more relaxed and calm. In the case where natural light does not penetrate well inside your area, you may also opt to put desk lamps in your workspace to achieve a well-lit area.

7. Get an Extension cord

Different kinds of gadgets and devices may be present in your home office workspace such as laptops, cellphones, headphones, and speakers. Given that these gadgets require electricity to function, it is important to provide your workspace with a heavy-duty extension cord for convenience and to keep all of your devices in place.

8. Have Yourself an Ergonomic Workspace!

Work from home workspaces must provide the user comfort in order to maximize productivity. Investing in ergonomic equipment such as office chairs, monitor risers, laptop stands, and wireless mice help improve posture, reduce strains, and provide optimal functionality.

Productivity is the Key to Success!

The growing platform of online media paved way for more opportunities such as for learning and for working — that could be of reach even in the comfort of your own homes.

With that said, personalizing your home workspace is essential to make yourself feel more comfortable as it provides you with the right work-life balance you need. Hence, it gives you a sense of efficacy, creativity, and organization, wherein it improves how you function both mentally and physically.

Now that you already know some tips to stay productive, it is your time to revamp your home workspace in order to give it a new feel!

Find this article helpful? Share this link to teach others about tips to stay productive in their home workspaces!

Learning the Basics: Washing Clothes

streetsmartmasterclass

4 Oct, 2021

Washing clothes is one of the basic life skills that everyone should learn. Despite it being a common household chore, a lot of people still have a hard time with it. So it’s a good practice to start learning at a young age.

Doing the laundry seems easy but there’s a lot of things going on. It starts with care labels, treating stains, and technique. Be able to take good care of your clothes by washing them the right way!

Care Labels

You can see washing labels or care labels on the clothes tags. You must take a look at the labels to know how to clean and maintain your clothes. Following it will result in your garments lasting longer.

Washing Labels

Washing labels are displayed as a bucket or tub with water. When you see a plain bucket filled with water that means the clothing is machine washable. You’ll see numbers or dot/s inside the bucket when clothes are machine washable.

One dot or 30° means that you wash it with cold water. Two dots or 40° tells you to use warm water. Three dots or 60° means wash hot is required.

For some fabrics, you’ll see a bucket with a line or two below it. One line means synthetic cycle while two means gentle wash cycle. These are cycle options you should set your washing machine.

When you see a hand along with the bucket symbol, you should handwash it. A garment with a crossed bucket symbol on its tag shouldn’t be washed. And if you see a symbol that looks like a candy wrapper with an X on it, it means you shouldn’t wring it.

Bleaching Labels

Bleach is usually used to make your white shirts brighter or to remove stains. But, take note of bleaching labels; it’s the triangular symbols. A plain triangle means bleaching is allowed. A crossed one means you shouldn’t. If you see a triangle with lines inside, use non-chlorine bleach.

Drying Labels

Drying labels are represented by circles and squares. A circle means you can tumble dry at any temperature. When you see a dot inside the circle, it must be in a low heat setting; three dots means high heat.

A line below a dryer symbol indicates permanent press setting and two lines means delicate/gentle. A square with three lines implies drip drying. A flat line inside would mean flat drying and a drooping line means to hang it.

Ironing Labels

You’ll see an iron with one to three dots inside depicting the best temperature to iron (cool to hot). Don’t iron it when you see a crossed-out symbol. Steaming is not allowed when you see a crossed-out parallel line on the bottom of the iron symbol.

Dry-Cleaning Labels

A circle also means that it could be dry cleaned. When you see letters inside the circle, those are for the dry cleaners.

Treating Stains

You’ll encounter tough stains that won’t be gone simply by washing it. You can use different household items to remove and treat stains.

Vinegar

You can use vinegar to remove tomato, crayon, vomit, grass, and coffee stains to name a few. You usually just soak stained clothes with mixed parts of vinegar and water. Be careful with using vinegar in laundry. Check the measurements and details about the stains you’re trying to treat.

Baking Soda

Using baking soda in laundry doesn’t just remove stains, it also helps get rid of bad odor. Sometimes baking soda is mixed with vinegar. You can also just mix it with water to create a paste. It’s used for wine, sweat, tea, and old stains.

Hydrogen Peroxide

Hydrogen Peroxide is highly known to remove blood stains. This is a good trick especially when girls get their undergarments stained on their period.

Dishwashing Soap

Dishwashing soap is known to cut grease for dishes but you can also use it on your clothes. Oil-based stains like makeup stains can be removed with dishwashing soap. Just rub some soap on it and let it sit for a while before washing it.

Tips

Separate Clothes Before Washing

Separate the light and dark-colored ones. You should also separate different fabrics like denim, cotton, and delicates.

Don’t Put Detergent Directly on Clothes

It’s better to mix detergent into the water than putting it on clothes. Putting it on clothes can cause stains and damage the fabric. Mixing it into the water will also make sure that the soap is distributed to the whole load.

Zip and Button

Don’t forget to close zippers and buttons. Closing zippers would avoid damaging other clothes with it. Buttoning up your blouses, shirts, sleeves, and collar will protect it when spun in the washer.

Do a Bleed Test

A bleed test will help you know if your new clothes protect your other garments. By soaking new clothes alone in a tub, you’d see if the dye bleeds.

You can wash your clothes with the right handling and care. Check the labels and be mindful of how you do your laundry. Don’t be afraid of stains because you can remove them. Happy washing!

Build Credit Score Up for a Brighter Future

streetsmartmasterclass

4 Oct, 2021

It was once said that the youth is the hope for the future. Of course, this means that it is important for children and teenagers to be financially knowledgeable about the world of finances. No doubt, this adulting aspect of life may seem daunting, but it’s crucial for youngsters to have a reliable financial foundation.

In order to be able to manage money well, having a good credit score is a fundamental need. So when the time is right, you would be able to reap the benefits of building your credit score early on. These include saving from different insurances, having several housing options, being validated for higher credit limits, and getting approved for lower interest rates on credit cards. So, here’s your one stop answer on how to increase your credit score early on!

Know the Requirements

It may seem like a race to get a good credit score at such an early age, but you have to remember that one of the main requirements in getting a credit card is having a job. A steady income is needed by law for credit card issuers to give you a card if you are under the age of 21. And no, an allowance does not count, so how will you be able to build your credit score then?

1. Start a Savings or Checking Account

Beginning with an impressive banking history is a good step to having a good credit store and sturdy financial foundation. You must also be familiarized with regularly depositing money into your account.

If you’re a teenager who plans to open a checking account, you have to plan your spending intelligently to avoid debit card charges and overdrafts.

Overdrafts are when the bank allows you to borrow money through your account by giving more money than what you have. These should only be used in case of emergencies or for short-term borrowing.

2. Learn How Credit Cards Work

Before charging into the unknown, you must be ready. Do you handle your income or allowance well? Are you responsible with how you meet deadlines? Do you manage your account well? Do you avoid overdrafts on your own?

You have to be aware of all the important information about credit cards and be responsible enough to handle one. This includes knowing that your credit card balance should be paid immediately. This would help you reach a good credit score faster.

3. Try to Get a Job

If you’re a teenager, you can try to get a job already. This would help you become more experienced in financial management so you would know the value of money. Plus, being able to stay employed reflects well on your responsibility and you would be better at saving money because you know how hard it is to earn.

Taking on a job may also help you learn more about how credit cards work, especially if you encounter them on a daily basis. Moreover, being around adults also helps you learn better money managing strategies firsthand.

4. Ask Your Parents to Put Your Name on a Household Bill

One of the most common things to help you earn credit score brownie points for your credit score check is paying for bills. By asking your parents to let you pay at least one household bill, you are able to look more responsible. It also helps you build a payment record.

You can also be added as the authorized user on your parent’s credit card. This would allow them to train you with better spending habits. All your purchases and payments recorded under this credit card would also be listed on your very own credit report. But, what allows you to have a free credit score is that you’re not legally responsible for any debt it may get.

5. Check Out Available Credit Cards

Fear not, as there is yet another way for you to gain a free credit score. This is in line with the notion that you can build credit alone, without involving your parents. While it may sound challenging, it is not totally impossible. You may start by asking help from your parents to apply for credit at a bank and/or credit union where they have a checking account.

Some cards available for kids and teens include:

Retail credit card

It is a lone credit card option that children and teenagers can use. It has limited purposes that accept little to no credit history, with credit limits held at 300 to 500 US dollars only. The only downside is that these cards have high-interest rates. So, you must pay the balance in full monthly to avoid big charges. You must also avoid being tempted by shopping crazes.

Secured credit card

Having a secured credit card can be another choice for you. It is like a credit card except that it needs a security deposit against the credit limit. These cards let you deposit a small amount of 200 US dollars. This option can be used along with being an authorized user of your parent’s credit card.

There are a lot of ways to get a good credit score up and running, but the main thing you need to remember is responsibility! Don’t forget to manage your money wisely so you can enjoy its benefits early!

Keep These Important Documents Safe and Secure for Hassle-Free Transactions

streetsmartmasterclass

4 Oct, 2021

Perhaps you have not given any thoughts about securing your passport, driver’s license, or medical records. After all, you can always depend on your parents or guardians to take care of these papers. But as early as now, you must learn the life-saving skill of document-keeping.

What important documents should I keep a copy of? Where do I put them? These matters may feel overwhelming, but do not worry because the following paragraphs will answer these questions.

Legal Identification

Among all other documents, you should put prime consideration on those that attest to your identity. These legal identification documents include birth certificates, passports, adoption and citizenship papers, driver’s licenses, social security cards, and even school IDs.

It is almost certain that you will be required to submit these legal identification documents in your future endeavors. For instance, admissions for universities and scholarships require the applicant to submit a birth certificate. In case you don’t have a copy of it, it may make the application process more difficult.

You will also need to present valid IDs when traveling. Immigration officers in airports uphold strict regulations when it comes to passports and travel documents. Failure to present them may cost you your flight and may also lead to more inconvenience.

You have to note that keeping duplicate copies of these documents is strongly advised. This way, you will have a spare copy you can pull out whenever you need it.

Tax Documents

At your age, the idea of keeping tax documents may seem preposterous. But once you start working or building your business, you will realize that these tax-related papers are there to protect you from conflict with the law.

Valuable tax documents include income tax returns, 1099 forms, and other receipts. As they get renewed yearly, you need to make sure that your tax returns are updated. The Internal Revenue Service suggests that one should store tax documents of the last three years, but you can always go beyond that.

Medical Records

Health conditions are delicate concerns, and they should not be taken lightly. For instance, having severe allergies to some food items means that you need to get special meals during flights. By presenting the relevant medical records, you are letting the people around you know that you have specialized needs and you are also protecting yourself from possible harm.

Some of the medical documents you need to have in hand are immunization records, allergic reaction response plans, personal medical history, and family health history. You should also make it a point to visit your physician from time to time so that you can update your medical records.

School Records

For future ventures such as university and job applications, school records would be an essential item in your checklist. Your transcript, diploma, and other certificates give the employers or the admissions department an idea about your academic competence. As such, you have to ensure that you have these important docs always ready.

You may secure copies of your diploma and transcripts from your school or university registrar. Because a lot of students are requesting these certificates, it may take a couple of days or even weeks to claim them. So, it is better to request your school records ahead of time.

Financial Documents

Financial papers might be another set of documents that you feel are too “adult” for you. However, setting up one’s finances does not have an age restriction. The sooner you can start organizing your financial documents, the easier it will be for you once your assets start growing.

In terms of finances, important documents to keep include investment statements, bank account records, insurance policies, and the like. You should get your parents’ help in securing these documents, especially if you are under 18.

How to Keep These Documents Safe?

Now that you have the important documents list, your next step is to identify the proper way to keep them safe and secure. There are two main methods of storing documents – physical and digital.

You may store physical copies of your documents in any file cabinet you have at home. You may even use a safe or vault. Just make sure that the area is dry and is not infested with insects. It should also be easily accessible so that you can find it quickly should you need it.

For digital storage, you may opt to upload digital files to cloud-based services, such as Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive. As a backup, you can also save copies on your hard drive. This method of storage will come in handy, especially for online transactions.

It is better to store your documents using both physical and digital storage methods. Doing both maximizes convenience and helps give you more options. So, what are you waiting for? Get up and start collecting these documents now!