Clear Your Tabs. Clear Your Mind.

Computers are like toddlers. If they stay up past nap time or bed time, no chance they're going to do what you want. No chance.

Have you ever thought of your computer like your most important employee in your business? I mean, I feel like I'm working with it my entire workday. Are you spending more time in conversation or on your screen? Like any employee, I want them to be at their best self when they're working with my team. Here's how I ensure my Computer is my focused partner, and we work together, instead of constantly butting heads. 1.) "Buddy, you need a nap." - Restart your machine. Daily. It's like an instant power nap for your computer. It clears the deck for the next day, making it easier to focus. Restarting also solves most technical issues from having your machine on too long. I'm at the point now, where I restart my computer 3 times a day: Start, Lunch, End.

2.) "I feel like my brain has too many tabs open." - Did you know computers still only do one task at a time? Processors are just so fast at task switching we measure it in Billions of cycles per second. Humans can't mentally catch up with that. Yes, @ me with your open tab count. Then close them all. You're ok. There's history if it was that tab. You don't need 12 Canva tabs open while you work on one image. Anytime I'm switching time blocks, I close them all. Well, 60% of the time. Ok, sometimes.

3.) "Turn the lights out before you leave the room."- Too many open apps on your computer will drain its resources and processing power. If you're done with something for the day, save and close it. Don't just walk away mid-sent...

4.) "Remember the movie Men in Black?" Ctrl+Shift+R (PC) or Cmd+Shift+R (Mac) in any browser tab will cause your computer to pull a fresh copy of that site. It's like the ​Neuralyzer​ that makes you forget things (PG-13 Language). This is my secret trick that makes me look like I have the "magic touch"

5.) "Are you working close tonight?" When was the last time you actually shut your computer down? Like people, most laptops are not designed to be awake 24/7. Not only does this extend the life of your computer, it's also an extra step to prevent the temptation of "let me check on this one thing..." when you should be focused on family time or something else.

Rather than fight how your computer works, add these 5 habits to use its strengths in your favor. Either you work with your technology or work against it. I for one, want these to be tools to help me, and not constant sources of aggravation. Save the back and forth fights for your AI prompts.