CenterBeam NewsLog

FORTUNE: Secrets of greatness: How I work - Mar. 16, 2006

Link: FORTUNE: Secrets of greatness: How I work - Mar. 16, 2006.

Rough Type: Nicholas Carr's Blog: Pretty vacant

Link: Rough Type: Nicholas Carr's Blog: Pretty vacant.

Small Business Pipeline | Is Your Computer Killing You?

Link: Small Business Pipeline | Is Your Computer Killing You?.

Google: Ten Golden Rules - Issues 2006 - MSNBC.com

Link: Google: Ten Golden Rules - Issues 2006 - MSNBC.com.

WSJ.com - Can It

Link: WSJ.com - Can It.

lifehack.org ? Blog Archive ? Six Ways on Getting More Done each day

Link: lifehack.org ? Blog Archive ? Six Ways on Getting More Done each day.

Six Ways on Getting More Done each day Once people got organized and they can handle tasks well, usually they want more out of their time. They want to accomplish more things. When I present an introduction on time management in the organization I am working for, I got these questions a lot from people: “How can I really can more done?”. In my opinion, there are six tips that I had to assist you on getting more done: 1. Focus high importance tasks first This is the number one thing you want to do if you want to accomplish more. Prioritize your tasks into high importance to low importance. In my definition, “accomplish more” means getting more value out of an interval of time. If you are choosing to watch TV over completing your project that is due tomorrow, you are definitely getting your priority wrong. By spending time onto higher importance tasks, you will squeeze more value out of your time.

The New Yorker: PRINTABLES

Link: The New Yorker: PRINTABLES.

SPACE CASE by ANTHONY LANE “Star Wars: Episode III.” Issue of 2005-05-23 Posted 2005-05-16

Sith. What kind of a word is that? Sith. It sounds to me like the noise that emerges when you block one nostril and blow through the other, but to George Lucas it is a name that trumpets evil. What is proved beyond question by “Star Wars: Episode III—Revenge of the Sith,” the latest—and, you will be shattered to hear, the last—installment of his sci-fi bonanza, is that Lucas, though his eye may be greedy for sensation, has an ear of purest cloth. All those who concoct imagined worlds must populate and name them, and the resonance of those names is a fairly accurate guide to the mettle of the imagination in question. Tolkien, earthed in Old English, had a head start that led him straight to the flinty perfection of Mordor and Orc. Here, by contrast, are some Lucas inventions: Palpatine. Sidious. Mace Windu. (Isn’t that something you spray on colicky babies?) Bail Organa. And Sith.

The Dark Side of The Force Made Me Do It

Link: The Dark Side of The Force Made Me Do It.

The Dark Side of The Force Made Me Do It By Jim Wagner

Managers beware: The May 19th launch of the last installment of the "Star Wars" movie saga is likely to coincide with a rash of missing employees.
That's the finding by outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. The company said it expects to see a significant spike in absenteeism between May 19 - 20 as throngs of "Star Wars" fans call in sick to catch their final glimpse of Yoda & crew in action.

WSJ.com - Tastings

Link: WSJ.com - Tastings.

Making Friends With Red Bordeaux Classy Taste and Good Value From Uncommon Names; France's Big Comeback? May 13, 2005; Page W6 Kuenley Chiu, a doctoral candidate in astronomy at Johns Hopkins University, had a very down-to-earth question for us: "I keep reading about the flood of cheap wine from Bordeaux that is supposed to have French vintners crying at the low prices. But where are these wines to be found over here? I was hoping that poor graduate student classmates and I could stock up while the getting is good." That's such a fine question that we immediately set out on a large tasting of inexpensive Bordeaux to answer it.

WSJ.com - Work & Family

Link: WSJ.com - Work & Family.

How and Why We Lie at the Office: From Pilfered Pens to Padded Accounts

Amid the uproar about top executives cooking the books, another ethical meltdown has gone largely unnoticed.

Rank-and-file employees are lying more often at work, by some measures. Employees calling in sick have hit a five-year high, and three-fifths of those who do so aren't sick at all, but are tending to personal needs or just feel entitled to a day off, says a 2004 survey of 305 employers by CCH Inc. In a separate survey last year of 1,316 workers by Kronos Inc., a labor-management and consulting concern, more than one-third of workers admit to having lied about their need for sick days.