the air

It seems like one the hottest topics in the world is Global Warming. No matter where you obtain your news, it seems that almost every news media in the world is writing about the harmful effects of pollution. Let’s face it, even members of our communities are pitching in to do every little part to combat global warming. So I have a proposition for you. Why don’t you trash all the paper in your life and move towards a paperless one? I started moving myself towards that and I can proudly say that my life is far more organized than it ever was.

What many critics of the “paperless office” concept won’t tell you is that the transition can be as easy or as hard as you make it. The transition can be done in phases and if you give it a chance, it can actually make your life far more easier to manage than ever before. Here are the key things I changed:

• I have a FranklinCovey paper-based organizer
• I have 3 digital calendars, all synchronized
• I only print documents if a hard copy is required
• I “jot” down notes on my computer

The Paper Organizer

While I’m on the move, I don’t necessarily have my laptop with me. For those times, I keep a FranklinCovey organizer with me (any organizer will do). This helps me quickly write down appointments, glance at my schedule, and quickly plan out the day. Since I don’t have a PDA, the paper organizer substitutes nicely. The only trick here is that every night, I update my calendars and task lists on my laptop. Needless to say, if I didn’t do this, it would totally defeat the purpose of a paperless based life.

3 Calendars Surround Me

The first question that probably comes to your head is, “why do I have 3 electronic calendars that are all synchronized?” The answer is simply, it offers me the greatest flexibility:

• iCal: the primary calendar
• iPod Touch: the mobile calendar
• Google Calendar: the web-based calendar

Most of my calendar events are created in iCal, the calendar application included with every Mac. Every night, I manually type in new events that I wrote down in my organizer; even if the event has already elapsed. This helps me maintain a record of all my scheduled events and pinpoint any meeting for future reference. By putting a copy of my calendar on my iPod Touch, I am able to keep my calendar with me no matter where I am since my iPod goes everywhere with me. I generally don’t create events on my iPod because it is unable to handle multiple calendars. Finally, I keep another copy of my calendar on Google Calendar. This ensures that I have access to my calendar in some form, even if I forget my iPod Touch and do not have access to my laptop.

I do keep a copy of my calendar on my cell phone, but I happen to leave my cell phone at home quite often, so I don’t necessarily think of it as reliable. Furthermore, I maintain separate calendars for my courses so that I can further see how my day is scheduled and plan more efficiently.

No Wasteful Printing

I do not print documents unless I need to submit them in paper format. Even if I am working in a group, I will always make my comments and markups in electronic format. This cuts down on my printing expenses and ensures that I reduce paper waste. Just this past semester, I introduced my groups to the robust reviewing features found in Microsoft Word. All my group members were surprised at how easy it was to view the different changes we all made to the document and quickly accept or deny the changes. It doesn’t matter if your word processor of choice does not have those robust reviewing features. Just make sure that you can peer edit your papers electronically in some form. Another great thing that has helped out is the ability to “print” documents in PDF format. This way, I can have my papers electronically “printed” so that even if I have to pass my document to someone else, all they need is the free PDF viewer to view the document.

Make Notes Electronically

We all have a need to make a quick note somewhere. Why not do it directly on your computer or your paper organizer? I have several “post-it” like notes on my desktop that help me remember things. Every time I need to jot something down, I just use my computer to create the note. Now if I’m in a complete hurry, I’ll use the “scrap” section of my paper organizer, but I never waste my time with sticky notes. They not only make my desk look messy, but they are prone to falling down if the adhesive does not adhere well.

You may never have a truly “paper-less office”, but you can work towards reducing waste and improving efficiency. By just making the alterations I mentioned, I was able to accomplish more work in the same amount of time. Furthermore, my desk was starting to appear more cleaner and more organized. The changes won’t happen overnight and some may not even work for you, but there is no harm in trying. Give it a shot and let me know how it works for you. What other changes do you suggest that would improve efficiency or organization? What are your thoughts on the paperless office concept?

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Every college student wants to be successful and they all want good grades. Whenever they hear about a fellow classmate acing an exam or an assignment, they often credit that student as being smart or naturally gifted. You would have to be a complete idiot to think that every student who does well is smart. In fact, anyone can play the game and beat the system if they knew some of the dirty secrets of a good student.

1. I procrastinate because I enjoy it

There are literally dozens of articles published on the web that discourage students not to procrastinate. If you start an assignment or project early, what do you really accomplish? Sure, you could argue that you’re not up late the night before it’s due, but what if the assignment itself is complicated? I’ve procrastinated countless number of times and more often than not, I’ve earned great grades on those tasks and I’m satisfied. Here’s the trick: if you only need a 90% or better to get an A, why waste energy to get 100%? I succeed because I do the bare minimum to ensure that I get the A. Am I wrong? My grades would argue no.

2. When the going gets tough, the tough get going

This is probably the biggest key to any good student’s success. I’m sure you have heard of the saying “when the going gets tough, the tough get going.”But did you know that there is a steep price to pay for success? When I have to get my work done, I make sure that I get the work done no matter what. If that means I cannot sleep for two days straight, then dammit, I will be up for 2 days straight working on that assignment. You have got to be willing to sacrifice anything and anyone for your success. Would you rather attend your girlfriend’s birthday party or study for that exam? Just remember, you paid for your college education, you didn’t buy your girlfriend. So get your money’s worth.

3. Good students always use their resources and aren’t shy

No student was born with Calculus already learned. The fact is that if you don’t seek out help or take advantage of the resources at your disposal, you’re not going to succeed. That means, go to your professor’s and teaching assistant’s (TA’s) office hours. Ask your friends, your classmates, or those who have previously taken that course for assistance. Remember, people may laugh or poke fun at you for asking for help, but in the end, it will be you who has the last laugh when they see the awesome grades you earned. Ask questions in class, no matter how stupid it is. The only stupid thing you could do is to not ask any questions. Who cares if your question is dumb or your answer is wrong? If you at least attempt to ask or answer, it shows you have courage and the guts to learn the material. So don’t be shy and use and abuse your resources.

4. Stay ahead or you’ll lose

If you procrastinate like me, then you better be damn good at staying ahead of the course schedule. That doesn’t mean you need to read ahead. It means you should know when the deadlines are for every assignment, exam, projects, etc. Why? If you know what is due when, then you can prepare accordingly so that you are not caught off-guard. I’ve seen so many of my fellow classmates surprised in class when the professor hands out quizzes or collects assignments. Many professors are notorious for not announcing any deadlines, so know your schedule inside out. Face it, all those kids who do well (I mean those who don’t cheat), all know what is due and when. If they don’t, you should take the upper hand and be their role model.

Those are just a few of the dirty secrets of a good student. But what are your secrets to success? Maybe you have your own dirty little secrets? Share them in the comments so that we can all be dirty good students.

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Many colleges across the United States offer courses that have teaching assistants in addition to the professors. These teaching assistants (TA) supplement the instruction and lectures provided by the professor. Some courses have multiple TA’s while others only have one TA. However, what students do not realize is that most of these TA’s can be lifesavers and can genuinely help you succeed. However, did you know that these TA’s can also influence your overall grade? Prepare yourself for some confessions of a teaching assistant.

TA’s do NOT teach, they supplement

I can’t tell you how many times students have approached me and asked for help. Generally, that’s a good thing because it ensures that I maintain a good rapport with the students as well as pinpoint weaknesses in the professor’s lectures. However, as a TA, it is NOT my job to teach you the material. Rather, it is my job to help you understand the professor’s lecture better and help you learn the material. This does not mean that I have to sit down with you halfway through the semester and teach you everything from scratch. As a TA, I’m also a student who has his own work to deal with. How can you expect me to spare more time than my office hours to help you? Put it this way, would you be willing to spare a few hours explaining the material to a total stranger on a weekly or daily basis? Probably not.

We can make exceptions to the syllabus

Most professors want you to think that the information in the syllabus is set in stone. However, that is not always the case. If your course has a strict no-late assignment policy, you may be out of luck with the professor. However, go talk to your TA and explain why he/she should make an exception in your case. Quite a few times, TA’s make exceptions for accepting late homework due to a student’s extenuating circumstances. These may include, but certainly not limited to:

• the student was sick (be prepared to show doctor’s note
• the TA and/or professor were unable to answer pertinent questions about the assignment when it was assigned
• the student is borderline and the late assignment can boost them over

We cannot simply change your grade, but we can talk to the professor and present your case on your behalf. The professors are probably not willing to listen to you, but any professor will almost always listen to their TA(s).

We do NOT assign grades

I don’t know why, but it seems like almost every student thinks that TA’s can assign grades. First, you have to remember that grades are earned. You earn your grade, and I cannot simply give you an A for trying while you fail all your exams. However, I can help you learn the material. I can help you prepare for the exams if you are willing to come prepared to our meetings. If you show effort, you will succeed and the TA’s can take that into account if your are border-line. How? If you are border-line, we can recommend that you earn a few participation points or even ask that an assignment or exam be regraded. Often, I notice that a few extra points are merited after a regrade.

Do NOT make me angry

If a TA is incapable of helping you, or is unwilling, or doesn’t know the material, do not be tempted to mouth-off to them. You may think that we may not have much say in your grade, but we have significant say with the professor. To put it frankly, I can grade your assignments extra hard and be extremely strict with the grading. I could also go and tell the professor to do the same. Even if you ask for a regrade, I can simply say agree to regrade it and come back the next day and say, “everything seems fine to me. I’m not awarding any extra points.” The best part is that you’ll have a very tough time proving to the authorities that I am being unjust since the burden of proof is on you. The moral is: be nice to your TA’s and they will be nice to you.

Here’s how we can get in trouble

Believe it or not, we can get into a lot of trouble if we don’t do our jobs correctly. Obviously, we cannot fraternize with students. That means, we cannot accept gifts, go to parties with you, we cannot go out on dates, and we cannot have any sexual relationships with our students. However, we also have to uphold very high ethical standards. If students are cheating and we fail to catch them, we can lose our jobs. If we have scheduled office hours and we are consistently late or not present, we can and most likely will lose our jobs. If we help students cheat, we will lose our jobs. But here’s how things get really bad for us. If we lose our jobs, chances are we could be recommended for further disciplinary actions by the dean of the college or even the Dean of Students. So it is YOUR responsibility that we are doing our job ethically and professionally. Hell, you’re paying to learn, so you might as well ensure that you are receiving the best bang for your buck.

I was a teaching assistant for the fall 2006 semester at Northern Illinois University. This post is not designed to be an exhaustive take on teaching assistants, but generally, these issues are common amongst all teaching assistants at most colleges. If you have any observations to add, please do so in the comments.

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Earlier today, I checked my grades and I am simply stunned. For the first time in my life, I have earned straight A’s. This translates into a semester GPA of 4.0 and an overall GPA of 3.85; otherwise known as a perfect semester.

Here’s a breakdown by course:

• MEE210 (Statics): A
• ISYE495 (Senior Design): A
• ISYE 480 (Simulation & Modeling): A
• ARTH282 (Introduction to Art History): A
• FLCL271 (Ancient Greek Mythology): A

How was your semester? Don’t panic if you did not do as well as you wanted to. After many years of studying my habits and tweaking them, I have finally found a great formula for success that works for me. Will it work for you? It may or may not, but the only way to find out is to actually try it. Unlike what other people might encourage you to try, my approach is simple and focuses on immediate results. Stay tuned for a post that will teach you more.

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To me, JohnChow.com is a fast growing blog about making money through an online blog. The best part about making money online is the prospect of never having to work in a traditional job ever again. Just take a look at John Chow’s November earnings; he brought in over $25,000. Who says that they would not mind earning that much money per month. Do the math: if John continues to earn approximately $25,000 a month for 12 months, he’s rolling in a smooth $300,000. And all that cash is just from his one blog about making money. You’d be stupid not to listen to him and try monetizing your blog. But I must digress because I stopped reading John Chow’s blog because of just that, his over monetization of what used to be a quality blog.

Stop With The Damn Reviews

One of the things that I started to hate about John’s blog are the thousands of ReviewMe reviews he does. To put it frankly, customers don’t order this review for John’s endorsement. Rather, they order the obnoxiously over-priced “reviews” for the traffic. If you think about it, it’s not that bad of a deal because for only $400 you can go ahead and experience a nice little boost in traffic for a few days. Of course, there are those who ordered those reviews for John’s endorsement, but it seems like John’s always supporting those who have new ideas on how to make money online.

Another problem with the ReviewMe reviews is that they are not all standardized in structure. Some have in-depth analysis while others just have a quick run-through and John’s two cents. John not only needs to be more selective about his reviews, but also needs to develop a standard approach in reviewing each site. That way, each and every customer can expect the same level of service from John. Shame on you John for not doing this from the beginning!

Why Do You Have Poor Content?

I understand that John’s blog has taken a turn and is now primarily focused on helping others make money. In fact, JohnChow.com is, in itself, a case study that documents how a blog can rise quickly and become a perennial cash cow. However, John’s blog doesn’t really help in the actual implementation of advertising or provide the technical knowledge one would need to have successful ads. From the looks of it, John just likes to write about companies and persons who are promoting online advertising in some form, but he fails to really help his readers.

Sure the companies that have developed the various technologies have exhaustive and well-documented wikis that can bring anyone up to speed. But the main question I have is why doesn’t John write about how bloggers can come up with great content. In order for any blogger to make money online, he/she must have great content. Isn’t that why thousands read his blog everyday because he has great content? I think people just read his blog because they think that their blog is going to become the next hottest thing in the blogosphere. Maybe it will maybe it won’t, but John needs to start teaching his readers how to find the right material and the right niche.

John is Evil

John has killed pandas and he hates the environment. Don’t believe me? Just take a look at his blog’s header image; it’s a Lamborghini Reventon. His endorsement of such a vehicle is bad for the environment. Hell, I bet that car doesn’t even get more than 15 miles per gallon on the highway. How sad is that? John, you should be slapped for promoting a vehicle that receives a similar mileage as the Hummer.

And that’s why I stopped reading JohnChow.com. For those of you who are dreaming of making it big through blogging, don’t quit your day job just yet. For those of you who are making it big through blogging, aren’t you special? And yes, my blog is ad-free and I promote anti-web advertising technology. Now I’m just as evil as John

I wrote this post as a joke and in no way am I suggesting that you stop reading JohnChow.com. I’ve never actually met the man, but what he is doing is definitely a great thing. So before you decide to write hate-mail, please be sure to include in your subject line: “I hate your post Nik!” Thanks.

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