Convincing Yourself to be Productive Every Day
Posted by Jacques - May 13, 2009
Slackers tend to have this kind of disease that is both a blessing and a curse. We try to live life to its maximum enjoyment but it is often self defeating. People to this day have no idea of the kind of struggle it is for me to get up and do something. I know I have to be productive, but I often never take even the first step towards it.
Procrastination and laziness are my sworn enemies.
Here are the steps that get me mentally prepped for completing tasks.
Continue reading Convincing Yourself to be Productive Every Day…
Earn Slacker Money With Bottled Water
Posted by Jacques - May 9, 2009
Every Saturday is money day here at The Slacker Method, and this time, I’m putting my money where my mouth is by working my own idea.
You see, remembering to bring bottled water with you saves you one dollar. Remembering that a hundred people will forget to bring water to the community garage sale this weekend, will save you one hundred dollars.
My good friend Lily @ purechocolateliving.com reminded me of this good fact as I prepared to sell many of my unneeded trinkets and gadgets (by the way, the chocolate stuff is fantastic!).
So without hesitation I thought of us slackers, needing another way to make money without actually doing anything at all. I bought some water at a wholesale club about $10 for 70 bottles, and then marked them for sale @ one dollar each. I nearly sold out after selling water for only a couple hours. It’s certainly a healthy alternative to selling your body fluids.
Here’s a few things I learned about this method of making cash:
Continue reading Earn Slacker Money With Bottled Water…
Quick Easy Cash for Your Plasma
Posted by Jacques - May 2, 2009
We’re going to start a new tradition here at The Slacker Method due to the economic conditions. Every Saturday, I will provide you a new scheme to make money. We’ll call them Scheming Saturdays. These schemes will be tailored to slackers. They’ll also be quick to utilize, meaning, you might be able to use it tonight if you really wanted to.
Today is about plasma. Some of you may already know this, but it’s really one of the easiest and most effective ways to earn some spending cash quickly. Donating your blood is generally free but selling the plasma within your blood can be relatively lucrative.
Donating your plasma can easily earn you an extra $270/week for about 8 hours of work. Not a bad price to pay. In addition, there are really no educational or physical requirements other than to be healthy and they feed the blood back into you, so you usually won’t feel weak or sick. Plasma is accepted from all blood types. There are special cases where you can earn 4-5 x’s more if you have a rare condition that is beneficial to the plasma collection center. Here are the steps to get you started:
Continue reading Quick Easy Cash for Your Plasma…
Making Vacations Fun Again
Posted by Jacques - April 23, 2009Okay, so I’ve been on a vacation… sort of. But I’m going on another one shortly. One of the things I’ve noticed is that planning a vacation can sometimes be a logistical nightmare and really feel like more work. So the trick for me was to imagine that our vacation was a business trip, and plan it accordingly. I realized, on business trips, I don’t stress about the hotel I’m going to be staying at, or what time my flight will get in. Immediately, the burden of having to create the perfect itinerary and activity schedule melted away. The point of a vacation is to have fun, getaway, and relax. If you don’t do those things, you might as well stay home.
Follow my simple rules for planning a vacation.
1. Stick to the big cities for consistency.
It is possible, but much more difficult to plan a vacation in a smaller city. Big cities tend to have cheaper flights, more options for stay, a larger variety of activities, and some have really functional and cheap mass transit.
2. Always have a vacation bag pre-packed with everything but clothes.
This would be things like bathing suit, travel charger, passport, or other things that you know you’ll take. The clothes you pack will change depending on the weather, but at least this way everything else will be done. Continue reading Making Vacations Fun Again…
What MacGyver and Slackers Have in Common
Posted by Jacques - March 27, 2009
MacGyver, for those of you who don’t know, was a show back in the day about a guy who used his brain power to solve problems. In truth, he has a lot in common with slackers. In fact, I would say if you watch him closely on the show, he really is a slacker. Just one who happens to be caught in life threatening situations and whose day to day responsibilities include saving the world. Of course, he does his best to save the world with the least amount of effort possible, usually involving a paper clip and some explosive chewing gum.
One of the most important lessons we can draw from this, is that when life is constantly handing you lemons, you have to make lemonade… then lemon chiffon cake…. then you use it as a disinfectant. The point is, you will rarely find yourself equipped with the perfect tools on hand when a problem passes by, so you need to be prepared to MacGyverize.
For instance, today, I had a lot of cleaning to do, but I didn’t want to have to run to the store and buy carpet stain cleaner, floor cleaning solution, etc. so I made do with normal household items. I had a lot of vinegar, so for the carpet, I mixed half a cup of baking soda with a little bit of vinegar, rubbed it into the carpet stains, and vacuumed it up when it dried. For floor cleaner, I used a few drops of dish soap with 2:1 water and vinegar. Finally, I was hungry, so I added some vinegar and mayo to some Tuna, and ate it. Continue reading What MacGyver and Slackers Have in Common…
How to Procrastinate Effectively
Posted by Jacques - March 13, 2009
Sorry guys I know I haven’t written a post in a while, but it was part of my plan to write this post *wink*. Actually, procrastination is a topic close to my heart. It’s one of the slacker techniques we use to be productive and effective. Huh? Effective you say? Yes, it’s true.
Slackers are lazy people, we don’t like to expend energy and time. If a task can be done later, why do it today? Often times you will find that many of these important tasks can put off and some of them can be delayed indefinitely. But there’s a key to successful slacking. That key is found in the margin of error between being that guy who pulled off that amazing project in one night and managing to do more than everyone else, or that other guy who is always late, missing deadlines, and no longer works for the company.
Here are the key points to procrastinating effectively:
Continue reading How to Procrastinate Effectively…
Stay Warm With Little Fuss
Posted by Jacques - March 5, 2009
So it’s been a little chilly around here lately and keeping warm is a tiresome chore. I’m too lazy to wrap myself in layers of insulation, and then have to peel it off later, and find it too cumbersome to change the thermostat. When I was younger, my parents used to make me chop wood and then light a fire. WHAT A PAIN! Here are some things I do to stay warm without as little fuss as possible.
1. Open your oven and set it to 200 degrees.
Don’t worry about your electric bill, it’s not like baking food once in a while has a serious impact on your power usage. Also, when do you bake at 200 degrees? I was able to increase the average temperature in my house by 2 degrees and the nearby area of the kitchen 5-10 degrees.
Continue reading Stay Warm With Little Fuss…
10 Cheap Ways for Having Fun and Wasting Time
Posted by Jacques - March 1, 2009
Having fun on the cheap is a handy tool in the slacker methodology. Making money can be a pain, so a way of avoiding that need is to generate less demand. After all, spending less is much easier than working two jobs. If you can spend extremely little, then you may only need to work every other year and live off the savings.
1. Sign up for free sweepstakes.
Nothing is more satisfying than winning something for doing nothing. Blogs seem to be among the best odds, as little known blogs will try to generate traffic through these methods but the competition isn’t nearly as steep as the local lottery. Do enough of these and you will win something. Guaranteed.
2. Pick up a hobby that pays you back.
When I first started web design, it was a hobby. I just enjoyed making websites and little flaming graphics (HOT DEALS!). Now, it is a strong business that brings in serious dough. You don’t need to be nearly as ambitious though. Starting a garden can save money (FYI, Tomatoes have the best ROI), and buying something at garage sales, fixing it up, and selling it on craigslist also seems to be a good way to go.
Continue reading 10 Cheap Ways for Having Fun and Wasting Time…
9 Ideas for Living Portable and Disaster Proof
Posted by Jacques - February 25, 2009
Not only can it be a pain to setup everything in your life from your address book to your filing system, but moving or changing that setup can be a nightmare. Sometimes a process is so dependent on all the right conditions, that if a little thing changes, such as your computer catching fire, you have no way of being able to function. And it isn’t just limited to technology, it can be as simple as needing a change of clothes.
The solution to this is to design your life to be completely fluid. I’m almost there, and when I’m done I will be able to relocate anywhere in the US and survive various small disasters and still get things done. For example, a computer breaking down is something that will probably happen to everyone. If that happened to you right now, could you deal with it? Would you lose something precious?
Here are some concepts for how you can streamline your life to be completely portable, disaster-proof, and easy.
Continue reading 9 Ideas for Living Portable and Disaster Proof…
Slacker Method for Writing Long B.S. Papers and Business Plans
Posted by Jacques - February 22, 2009
Writing can sometimes be a chore if it’s something you’re forced into doing. Whether we’re writing a business plan or an essay, we sometimes have to dress up an idea with lots of words in order to make people feel at ease with what we’re saying.
Here are a few tips for overcoming writer’s block, length, and a host of other problems slackers often face in having to provide more information than necessary.
1. Start with an outline and break out your ideas.
Sometimes we have things to say, but it’s just a matter of not knowing how much detail we need to meet the desired length of content. Intro-Body-Conclusion is a good standard. Then break down from there. For example, the body section can be broken down into your key points. The key points can be broken down into sentences, and the sentences can be elaborated upon. Using the power of exponential growth (or pyramid schemes) you’ll have a mountain of words in no time. Continue reading Slacker Method for Writing Long B.S. Papers and Business Plans…
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