Work + Money

by Alexandra Pauline - August 6th, 2012

Young Businesswoman on Downtown Sidewalk

Take Charge of Your Portable Technology

Tablets have put cutting edge convenience at our finger tips - literally. But are you using your high tech gadgets to their fullest potential? Whether you're wrangling your kids or running your business on the go, these FREE apps are totally Fab & Fru - and will save you time, money and unnecessary stress!

Dropbox

How many times have you lost one of those supposedly handy little jump drives right before an important presentation?! Dropbox is a FREE way to save your files - without having to tote around anything but your tablet! It works as a cloud, so you can access your docs from a computer, but it doesn't take up any of your memory - and has the ability to back up video and audio files too!

Screen Shot 2012-08-06 at 2.00.27 PM

Cam Scanner

This FREE app uses your tablet's camera as a portable scanner. If you need a copy of an important document, or want to make sure you have a collection of your receip

I just threw our annual summer BBQ, and it would have been called the party of the season, if we still referred to entertaining that way. Most of us have stopped using the word entertaining as a verb. In fact, "entertaining" is now passive - and it's an adjective.

For example, you might refer to one of the less disgusting, more amusing antics of the Kardashians, as entertaining. As in, "The Kardashians were less hateful and foul with each other this week. The show was almost entertaining."

But, I digress (as I often do).

My point is people don't give a lot of dinner parties or events at home. They don't invite people over with the intention of showing them a good time. They don't spruce up their homes and put out nice towels, new soap and clean off the counters. They don't construct a menu and make a special shopping trip, and take time to make the food, or at least assemble it attractively.

Instead, they might have someone over "to chill." Have someone "hang out." C

Candy jars, stuffed animals, children's artwork - all things we love to keep on display at work. Well, guess what? These cute items are actually among a list of things that should NOT be kept near your work space (or at least not in large quantities). According to Shine's Senior Editor, Lylah Alphonse, these objects may seem innocent, but can actually have a negative effect on your office environment. Watch today’s episode of “The Shine” and see what should and shouldn't be kept on your office desk.

Looking for more advice on office etiquette? Check out our style tips on what not to wear to the office.

The harder you work the luckier you get

As a working mother, the question I'm most often asked is:

"How on earth do you do it all?"

Now, I'm not going to go there, really, because we all know that no one does it all. So you've gotta assume that I don't, either. And it's true. I don't garden, I don't raise chickens, I barely watch TV, and I've got several sewing projects that have been waiting for completion for about four years.

But yep, I do write, and I get paid for it, and I run a blog network that earns revenue. And I also write books, raise three kids, and do my best to get dinner on the table most nights. So it's a legitimate question, because it is a lot.

My answer contains several parts, so I'll just tackle part of it today. And that part is one of my favorite tricks of the trade: delegating.

I do a lot, but I don't do all that's required of me because I delegate quite a few of those jobs to other people. I tap the skills and