Stay Sane When You’re Overworked

Stay Sane When You’re Overworked

Sometimes it’s easy to pretend to not have lives outside of work, but this is not true nor is it healthy. Everyone needs a good balance between their work life and personal life. Sue Hawkes, CEO of YESS!, a business coaching firm, has three tips for those who want to bring more sanity into their schedules.

1. Stop and breathe. A true work/life balance only happens under ideal circumstances. In the real world, even if your schedule is imbalanced, you can still create balance internally. Literally give yourself a few minutes of quiet to just breathe. Hawkes calls it an “emotional equilibrium” that gives busy people the ability to cope better with challenges and get more control of their responses to situations.
2. Learn to say no. Never feel guilty about saying no to some things. Prioritize what’s important to you so that you don’t feel overwhelmed and over committed all the time. When you are asked to do something, Hawkes suggests making a list of all of the tasks and responsibilities associated with the commitment before you agree. “Finding balance is a matter of saying yes and no to what fulfills you and your life without over committing,” she says.
3. Don’t be afraid to delegate. “At times, you have to let go and let others take the lead,” Hawkes says. When you’ve overextended your schedule, take a look at what’s ahead and give others in your office the opportunity to take on new projects or responsibilities. “A leader empowers others by giving them space to lead or take a larger role, thus lightening the leader’s load,” she says.

Source: “Work/Life Balance Isn’t Possible,” November 2017. suehawkes.com.

Pro Tips for a Top-Notch DIY Paint Job

Pro Tips for a Top-Notch DIY Paint Job

When painting a room, the time, effort, and money you spend on the materials can make a big difference. Josh Max, a professional painter with 10 years of experience, detailed the “right” way to paint in a recent article in The New York Times.

Gather the right supplies. Take the measurements of your wall and ceiling to a hardware store that can help you pinpoint exactly what type of paint and supplies you’ll need. Max recommends a two-and-a-half-inch angled paint brush, two nine-inch medium nap roller covers, and one sturdy nine-inch roller handle.

Consider the type of paint. Max recommends water-based latex flat paint for ceilings, flat or eggshell finish for walls, and eggshell or semi-gloss for windowsills and doors.

Cover unpainted surfaces with tape. Roll nonstick painter’s blue tape along floorboards, windowsills, doorknobs, hinges, and any other unpainted surfaces. Max warns against using regular masking tape because it can be difficult to peel off afterwards.

Repair wall cracks. Use a spackling compound and sandpaper to repair any unevenness in walls. Do a few light coats of spackling, instead of just one thick one, Max advises. Apply a coat of quick-drying latex primer over it.

Sweep and mop floors. Dust bunnies can stick to a freshly painted wall or fall into a can of paint. Make sure to clean the room before you paint.

Pour the right amount of paint. Shake your gallon of paint, then pour it into your quart container until it’s about three-quarters full. Don’t overfill or underfill. Dip your brush in the paint about an inch, careful not to oversaturate it.

Strategize your brush technique. Start by using the brush to “cut” in where the ceiling meets the wall all around the room, Max suggests. Do the brushwork before you start rolling because it will take longer. Wherever detail is required on the walls, be sure to use a brush and not a roller.

Don’t roll paint on walls vertically. Pour about half a gallon of paint into a linted paint tray and then dip your roller into it. Roll your roller back and forth until it’s covered in equal amounts. Then, roll the paint on smoothly in long, even strokes. Start near the ceiling and work down and diagonally, instead of straight. Max says this will help to avoid vertical lines appearing at the end. Also, resist the urge to apply pressure.

Keep paint wet during breaks. If you take a break from your work for more than a few minutes, wrap your brushes in aluminum foil and cover the paint pan with plastic. Otherwise, you’ll find some dried paint in your pan.

Source: “The Right Way to Paint Your Apartment, According to a Pro,” The New York Times (Nov. 24, 2017)

Overlooked Dirt Spots Buyers Will Notice

Overlooked Dirt Spots Buyers Will Notice

Make sure your home sellers pay attention to several areas in a home that often go uncleaned but could stand out to potential buyers. Jan M. Dougherty, author of The Lost Art of House Cleaning: A Clean House Is a Happy Home, shared with HouseLogic several spots that homeowners are likely missing, including:

1. Light fixtures

Light fixtures can be a magnet for dust and dead bugs. Spritz and wipe them with a cleaning solution to get them shining again.

2. The body of the toilet

Dougherty recommends washing the porcelain thrones all over. Start with the top of the tank and spray all around—the lid, under the lid, the seat, the surrounding floor, and the walls behind the toilet, Dougherty recommends.

3. Drawer organizers

Use a handy vac or spray a rag with vinegar and wipe away any dirt or crumbs that have accumulated in drawers throughout the home.

4. Ice maker

Clean and sanitize the entire system periodically. Old ice can absorb food odors, Dougherty says. Pull out the ice bin, dump the ice, and wash the bin and ice maker with vinegar, Dougherty recommends. Be sure to wipe the ice maker with a dry rag to get rid of any remaining moisture before putting it back in place.

5. Appliance handles

“One night a week, I take the knobs off the stove, remove the dish and the grease screen from the [over-the-range] microwave, and take the bowl with utensils that sits next to my stove and put them all in the dishwasher,” Dougherty says. “Do this before bed and by the morning you’ve cleaned half your kitchen, yet touched nothing.”

Read about the other forgotten cleaning spots and how to clean them at HouseLogic.

Source: “‘Yikes!’ 7 Filthy Spots Everyone Sees But You,” HouseLogic (November 2017)

How Neighborly Are Americans? Not Very

How Neighborly Are Americans? Not Very

Nearly 30 percent of Americans admit they don’t know their neighbor’s first name. But at least 90 percent have smiled or spoken to their neighbors—at least once, according to a new survey of more than 1,000 Americans released by Safehome.org, a home security systems review resource.

Fifty-three percent of Americans say they’ve introduced themselves when a new neighbor initially moved in, but they won’t likely become best buddies. Only a fraction of Americans—34 percent—say they’ve been in their neighbor’s home or vice versa, and only 16 percent have hung out with neighbors outside of the neighborhood.

Baby boomers tend to be the most neighborly generation, according to the survey. Sixty-seven percent of baby boomers said they’ve spoken to their next-door neighbor frequently, while only 36 percent of millennials have said they’ve done the same.

In a look at neighborly behavior across ethnic lines, Asian-Americans were found to participate the least among in neighborly reactions at 39 percent, followed by Hispanic participants at 40 percent. Caucasians and African-Americans performed more neighborly reactions—such as smiling and chatting—at 49 percent and 46 percent, respectively. Sixty-three percent of all respondents reported not often speaking to neighbors of a different race.

“Knowing your neighbors doesn’t just extend your social circle—it can also have a good effect on your mental and physical health and increase the security of your home,” according to the Safehome.org report. “You may even have a friend, partner, confidante, or baby sitter living next door that you never even knew existed.”

Source: “A Nation of Neighbors,” Safehome.org (November 2017)

Post-Turkey Slump? Loan Demand Drops

Post-Turkey Slump? Loan Demand Drops

The Thanksgiving holiday may have taken a bite out of mortgage applications last week. Mortgage applications dropped 3.1 percent for the week on a seasonally adjusted report, which included the Thanksgiving holiday, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported Wednesday. The MBA’s mortgage index reflects demand for refinancing and home purchase applications.

Refinancing applications plunged 8 percent last week, the lowest level since January, the MBA reported. Refinance applications are now 18 percent below a year ago.

Mortgage applications for home purchases did eke out a nearly 2 percent increase from last week. Purchase applications are 6 percent higher than a year ago.

Overall, interest rates offered little incentive for homeowners or home shoppers. The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was 4.20 percent last week, which was basically the same average as the year prior, the MBA reports.

Source: “Weekly Mortgage Applications Fall 3.1%, as Interest Rates Offer No Incentive,” CNBC (Nov. 29, 2017)

This Is How Fast a Home Sells Today

This Is How Fast a Home Sells Today

Homes today spend a median time of three weeks on the market—far shorter than the median of 11 weeks five years ago, according to new data from the National Association of REALTORS®. “The inventory shortage and the growing economy and job creation has increased the interest in home buying,” says NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “There is just not enough inventory; people need to fight over the few homes available on the market.”

Historically, about 1.2 million new homes are built every year, but this year, only about 800,000 have been constructed. “It’s been below that in prior years, and in the past decade, greatly lower than that,” Yun says. “Today’s shortage is largely explained by a decade of underproduction.”

Some markets are so hot that even three weeks is too long for a home to sit. “If we make it three weeks in our market, there is something wrong,” Boston-area real estate agent Darlene Umina told CNNMoney. “These days, you know within the first weekend whether the price was right.” Umina says she hosted an open house earlier this year that resulted in 18 offers on the home. Three of those offers were cash.

In San Francisco, real estate pro Erin Thomas says she’s had buyers arrive at open houses and submit an offer on the spot. She also says offers above the list price and without contingencies are becoming more commonplace.

Source: “This Is How Long it Takes to Sell a House,” CNNMoney (Nov. 27, 2017)