Round-up: Work rituals, politics

Ah, Friday. This week has seemed consumed by life maintenance stuff: getting estimates and repairs on the house, a pediatrician appointment, etc. Within the next few hours, however, I should have a functional washing machine, so that’s good.

Some links for the week, mine and others:

At CBS MoneyWatch I’m blogging on how you should Upgrade Your Work Rituals. If you do the same job for long enough, you develop little rituals that tell your brain it’s time to start work. Since these become deep habits, they’re a good opportunity to make positive tweaks. Get coffee every morning? Buy a piece of fruit at the coffee shop too (or bring your own). Park in a place where it’s most convenient to take the stairs, rather than the elevator. Next thing you know, you’ve built several flights into your daily life.

I also recommend you Create Your Own Career Insurance Policy. Knowing how you’d get your next job if you needed one (or deal without one) can make you a lot more relaxed at your current job. It requires a robust network and (ideally) some savings, but it’s worth building this up over time.

I write about The Worst Way to Buy Yourself Time to Think. A recent Lifehacker article suggested ways to make yourself look busy, so your colleagues and boss would be reminded that your time is valuable, and not try to foist off stupid tasks on you. I see the point…but I think it’s a losing strategy over the long haul. There are good places to work out there! That said, it is smart not to answer “What are you up to?” with “Nothing” or “Not much.”

At CEO.com I write about What You Can Learn From Marissa Mayer’s Maternity Leave. Yahoo just reported earnings for her first quarter that were ahead of expectations, so she (and the rest of Yahoo) must be doing something right.

At Women&Co I have a piece on 5 Quick Ways to Update Your Social Media Profiles.

And now from some other folks:

RealClearPolitics points out that the entire presidential race may hinge on two Ohio counties. I have this fantasy of a reasoned, national conversation on reforming the process for selecting a president in order to honor all regions and voters in this country while still taking into account the benefits of federalism…and then I wake up. I don’t think you can even buy airtime in Cincinnati anymore.

Actually, I’ve been enjoying RealClearPolitics in general because they do links from both liberal and conservative commentators so you see people from both sides saying the election is a done deal for their guy. This cannot all be true, so it’s a bit amusing.

I don’t want to touch the Mourdock thing in Indiana with a 10-foot pole, but one of the more interesting pieces that came out of it was a column from Tim Carney at the Washington Examiner in which he interviewed women who were conceived through rapes, or had children after being raped. Abortion is such a polarizing issue (and Carney certainly has his opinions) but I thought this was a very human way of looking at a topic that most people speak about in slogans. That’s kind of rare, and I appreciate it. 

Speaking of voting (and on a much lighter note!), you can register your opinion on whether Cloud of the Wandering Scientist blog should use her real name or a pseudonym on her children’s book that will be released soon.

Thirty minutes into the second two-hour washer delivery window (they missed the first and gave me another), and they haven’t shown up yet…