Most people have a list of life goals that include the phrase “to be successful at …” However, failures are an inevitable part of life; a part that cannot be avoided, and people must learn to plan for setbacks as well as working for triumphs. Although failures cannot be avoided, the chances of failing at specific tasks can be reduced through various strategies, including persistence, planning, and problem-solving.

Persistence

In order to be successful at anything, people need to understand that failure must not stop them from trying repeatedly. For example, if an individual has set a goal of learning to type, they must understand that the goal cannot be achieved in a single day or even two. Rather, persistent practice and the desire to succeed will allow the individual to master the required typing techniques, and in a short span of time.

Planning

Furthermore, in order to succeed, it’s important to always design a contingency plan so that the next best alternative can be adopted with relative ease if the initial plan is not successful. For example, if someone plans to give a speech to a large audience, they need to be aware that there’s a good chance that there will be a momentary distraction during the speech that can result in the that person forgetting where they are in the speech. This will require a contingency plan, not to prevent the distraction, but to compensate for it. It’s useful to have a short quote or phrase relevant to the speech, or a brief outline on a piece of paper, ready for referral if the speech is forgotten midway through. Moreover, chances of failure can be reduced by practicing the speech repeatedly before the big day in front of friends and family. This will ensure that the speech is delivered perfectly in spite of distractions.

Some might consider this kind of thinking as “planning to fail.” On the contrary, it’s planning to succeed. This strategy simply means that you go through the various possible outcomes (including failure) and work out how you will respond to each before the fact. Learning how to re-start a speech midway through is one such strategy, but there are many others.

Problem-Solving

An individual that aspires to be successful in everything and anything must be prepared to deal with all of the various scenarios that can arise during the actual execution of the plan. This does not only require contingency plans and practice, but rather also requires the confidence that success can be achieved despite the odds. It is important to believe that you are capable of carrying out a task, regardless of the many distractions or things that could go wrong, instead of thinking you cannot do it without even trying.

Having confidence in your ability and devising strategies beforehand can allow you to succeed at virtually any task that comes your way. It’s possible to do anything very well, from typing really fast to giving a speech without any anxiety, if you plan and practice for it.

Just take the time and figure out your plan of action before you start. You can be successful at anything you want, as long as you have planned in advance, and have also “planned to fail,” so don’t think that anything is out of reach for you. It’s possible to do anything we set our minds to – anything at all.

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It might be true that university life is nothing like it was 15 years ago. The Internet has overhauled how our academic life is now experienced; from Wikipedia to Massive Open Online Courses, our academic performance and potential are ever-growing. But as scientists and IT specialists delve deeper into how university students can make the most of their academic potential, new ideas in the form of apps and online platforms are coming into being, to make student life a bit easier and perhaps a lot more bearable.

Sumpto

As with any social group, some people tend to be more popular than others. The Sumpto developer, a 2011 graduate by the name of Kosinksi, conceptualized a way he could take advantage of university-level student popularity. Sumpto is fundamentally a point-collecting platform that allows students to collect rewards and ultimately have brands and other commercial companies shower them with free samples, discount promotions, deals and promotions on yet to be released products. Not too shabby, right?

Those students that gather certain amounts of rewards by connecting their Facebook, Twitter and other accounts with Sumpto are then given prizes in form of free promotions and exclusive deals. Similar social influence platforms already exist, but Sumpto is the first to solely target college students.

Sumpto is a digital tool which even though it steers away from the educational aspect of universities, it offers a great way of enjoying one’s popularity in a persistently tangible manner.

Ultimate Typing™

You write assignments and mid-term essays, you tweet and Facebook a lot, you text with your smartphone, all day and especially all night.

Students and younger adults tend to spend a lot of their time tapping on keys, be it on laptops, PCs or smartphones. This makes it very clear that poor typing skills can lead to extra hours in front of a laptop or computer. And if we are to be honest, university life is not meant solely for indoor activity.

Software like Ultimate Typing™ is designed to effortlessly and easily improve typing speed and accuracy, thus saving many typing hours for students. With a scientifically designed structure and a research-based approach informed by the latest methodology on efficient typing technologies, the software offers students the opportunity to get the skill of accurate, lightning fast typing.

Piazza.com

Forums and discussion boards are the most popular Q&A platforms students use to ask and answer questions, and learn information pertaining to their classes. Today one company is attempting to entirely replace these outdated Q&A platforms with a more streamlined and efficient platform: piazza.com.

Piazza.com is already used by renowned universities including MIT, Berkeley, and Stanford and its popularity is ever-growing as more people realize its usefulness in the educational realm. Piazza allows people to ask and explore different aspects of their classes, to ask or answer questions, and provide their own notes to help other students with their studying or assignments.

The platform functions like a forum where a class is created and then pertinent questions are asked. People have the chance to explore different replies, provide their own reactions, and overall contribute actively in the understanding  and dissemination of knowledge outside the class.

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Setting goals is relatively easy, while achieving them is sometimes quite difficult. This means that many of us fail to achieve most of our goals. Inability to achieve goals is often largely due to the fact that the goals set are unrealistic and unachievable in the given circumstances, or that we fail to take measurable steps in order to achieve the desired goals.

Setting goals involves a simple procedure that starts with initially identifying a motivation to achieve the goal. The goals you set must be specific and define what you aim to achieve. You must also decide the course of action that you will take in order to achieve the desired goal. Secondly, all goals must be measurable. Finally, you must initially start small rather than trying to achieve long term goals in a short span of time. This means that the goals you set must be achievable and realistic along with being time bounded.

For example, simply stating your goal as “losing weight” might not ultimately lead you to achieve your goal. You must break it into short term goals and identify a time period while also quantifying the goal. A more realistic goal will therefore be to “lose X pounds per week by exercising and dieting regularly.”

You must also try to enhance your accountability as this is likely to force you to work on habits that will ultimately help you in achieving your goals. Furthermore, you must learn to be lenient on yourself. So what if you have not been able to lose precisely the weight that you aimed for that week? Learn lessons from your failure and move forward to achieve better results next time. Keep remembering your source of motivation and this will push you towards achieving your goals.

Remember, goals are not made to be left unfulfilled. Your serious determination and hard work will allow you to achieve your goals in the stated time period.

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Focusing on delivering a “perfect” project usually results in cost overruns and missed deadlines. Designing and developing a perfect project requires perfect working environment – something which is seldom found within the complexities of the real world. A perfectionist is often unable to add value to the project, and instead can create stress and tension for co-workers and colleagues working on the same tasks.

Focusing on minute details from the beginning of the project often results in unnecessary delays which might be costly for you or your business. The key is to initially focus on completing the task at hand rather than ensuring that every tiny detail is perfect. Once the project is up and running and the main design is completed, the remaining time can easily be utilized to polish the work and make sure that there are no obvious mistakes. Over-obsession with perfection can prove to be dangerous for you as the task at hand might never get completed, and you might end up losing interest in that project altogether.

Perfectionists are usually obsessed with ensuring that no mistakes are made during the course of the task and a typist can be a perfect example of a perfectionist. If you’re a touch typist then you’re working without actually glancing at the keyboard, which means the slightest mistake you see on the screen might make you feel obliged to erase the data immediately and rewrite it, rather than continuing on with your typing. However, even if you don’t make lots of mistakes, it might be more efficient to wait until you’re finished, and then go back through and correct all the mistakes at the same time. This will give you the chance to review grammar and word choices as well. In addition, you can let the spelling and grammar checkers generally available in the word processing program help you with this task, rather than staying on the “perfectionist” side of the issue and believing that you have to do all the corrections yourself, without relying on outside help. Such a perfectionist attitude might actually result in more effort and time being expended during a task than would otherwise have been required.

This by no means indicates that “getting it done” is always better than striving for perfection. It simply means that the last few hours, minutes, or days of the project development cycle can be used to rectify mistakes, and the initial focus must be to lay the foundation and convert the ideas into action.

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We tend to associate music with going out, clubbing, restaurant background music, or a relaxing Sunday afternoon at home. We rarely associate music with work, as we tend to think of it as a distracting nuisance. However, this is far from truth: the right genre of music can actually boost productivity and even increase our momentum to work past our productivity plateau. That’s the magic of music.

Since in our minds music and pleasure are closely related, when we incorporate music into less pleasurable tasks (i.e. at the office, lab, or study room) we adopt the feel-good vibe music provides, which ultimately translates into a boost in productivity or a more refreshed approach towards an already tiring and tiresome task.

Music apparently allows us to transfer all the positive emotions and moods caused by listening to it, wherever and whenever the music plays. It doesn’t matter (much) whether you listen to your favorite jazz music at a retro jazz bistro, or at your desk, because the emotions it stirs in you will still be the same. While in the club you’d be dancing and moving to the rhythm, at your desk this energy translates from the physical to the mental, boosts your working pace, and lets you finish up a task much earlier! Music positively impacts our mood and emotional state, and fortunately this ability is transferable. It’s not only limited to specific situations (clubbing, hotel lounges, restaurants) but applies to almost any type of location or space we find ourselves in.

Numerous studies have shown how music is beneficial for work-related productivity. Should you or your manager use background music at the office, make sure to opt for instrumental music, as lyrics or the latest music hits tend to have the exact opposite effect on productivity and concentration.

The most significant benefits you can expect to gain from listening to background music while you work include the following:

• Your mood tends to become more positive. You’re more likely to gain a fresh and possibly even better perspective on the task at hand, or come up with solutions or better ways to tackling it.

• It boosts your morale and your confidence as it floods your brain with feel-good stimuli, making it much easier for you to tackle complicated tasks.

• Even if you have no substantial productivity boost, you will get to feel a bit happier, which is still pretty significant!

• Tasks such as touch typing or speed reading a report are done with an accelerated rhythm thanks to the boost music gives you.

• It pumps up your energy and motivation to finish a difficult task you’ve been avoiding and postponing that has been haunting you for some time now.

• Slow-tempo music near the closing of your work day will help you relax and provide a sense of serenity and fulfillment after a thoroughly productive day. It’s a self-rewarding kind of present you can give to yourself daily.

It’s free and easy. It’s one of the most efficient ways you can instantly boost your mood at work. It gives you a sense of pleasure and companionship, motivating you to work harder, or at least with not so much negativity!

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The analogy between time available and information awaiting our acknowledgement of them is disproportionate. However, we shouldn’t use this as an excuse for perpetuating our poor knowledge of the world surrounding us. The Internet no matter how many evils is accused of generating, it can be a quality resource of useful knowledge.

As more universities join the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) trend, the availability, sheer amount and quality of knowledge on offer will only improve. A few years back the knowledge available online was scarce and its quality unverifiable or uncertain. However, today we are fortunate enough to have free access to unprecedented amounts of information or knowledge pertaining to any possible matter, topic or field.

1.    Ted-ed Lessons Worth Sharing

TED is mostly known for its exquisitely interesting speakers and even more astonishing insights enriching the WWW. TED is now also providing lessons which also contribute to the mission of TED in spreading new ideas. TED offers curated videos of educational nature that are fun to watch as they’re created by top-notch educators and animation specialists

Apart from the video’s one gets to watch, TED-ed also allows users to create their own educational videos and have an impact on the learning community themselves.

2.     Class Central

Think of all the top university courses in a single website, that’s Class Central, an online course aggregator with lectures and lessons from Stanford, MIT, Harvard and many other top universities in the US and Europe. The online courses are completely free and one can simultaneously follow more than one course.

3.    Edx

A nonprofit company founded by MIT and Harvard University in a shared effort to provide interactive, free and high quality courses to learners from around the world. The courses on offer are particularly known for their interactivity, quality and learning experience that offer to learners.

The only profit the Edx makes is to collect data on how technology is in the process of overhauling the learning paradigm at an academic level and beyond.

4.    SkillShare: Learn Differently

SkillShare is one of its kind learning platform in which people get to share their skills with others in a common effort to spread their knowledge and so more people will acquire these skills. From branding, photography, entrepreneurship and design skills, you can literally find thousands of skills you could hone or master. It’s a skill teaching and sharing platform allowing people no matter their geographical location to have access to invaluable skills and knowledge. As SkillShare itself states, it’s about real people sharing real-world skills.

5.CreativeLIVE

This online learning platform focuses on creative disciplines and courses, mostly photography, video and design, software development and business startups. CreativeLIVE targets individuals in creative or artistic professions as well as those in entrepreneurial ones, its goal being the dissemination of creative knowledge and skills.

Its underlying mission is to provide valuable knowledge on channeling creativity in whichever field one specializes in and unveil the potential this newly found creativity offers. CreativeLIVE instructors are leading, awarded professors, authors and creative professionals from around the world.

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Once upon a time, when humans had to fight off attacking barbarians, their bodies developed a system to divert all energy and focus to the muscles during periods of extreme stress. The biology was simple—when there was danger, the body would produce certain chemicals such as cortisol and epinephrine to shut off areas of the brain needed for higher levels of thinking and memory, and divert all energy to the muscles for the “fight or flight” response. This system worked very well, and the human race survived to eventually live in relative safety in modern times. The biological “danger” response remains, and though the dangers have evolved, the body’s reaction to stress has not. This is why people tend to forget things when under pressure, and explains why victims of trauma often cannot consciously remember what happened. It is also why police officers and the military train their maneuvers and methods over and over again, so that they become a part of what is called their “muscle memory”—taken out of the realm of the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus, and engrained in the parts of the brain that have been evolved to kick into overdrive under dangerous circumstances.

Studies over the years have shown that on a short-term basis, stress and the cortisol reaction are not harmful to humans. As a matter of fact, some scientists believe that short periods of stress can actually help memory as the cortisol and epinephrine sharpen focus. However, if stress persists over time, or if a body is repeatedly subjected to it, the effects can be devastating. The chemicals that are produced to help the body think fast, fight hard, and flee quickly, are meant for short term use, and if the stress, or perceived danger, doesn’t go away, the brain keeps on pumping those powerful drugs into the blood. Long term, these substances are toxic and can permanently damage the hippocampus and the prefrontal cortex—two parts of the brain that are responsible for memory and learning. What is worse, the hippocampus is also the part of the brain responsible for regulating the release of cortisol, so as it deteriorates, the body loses the ability to shut off the very chemical that is now damaging it.

Stress is a part of daily life. So what can be done to offset the damage that it is doing to the brain and specifically the memory? The first, simplest, and most seemingly impossible task is to reduce the stressful events that are causing the overload in the first place. Often a person’s own behaviors and habits increase the amounts of stress they put themselves under. If any of these stressors can be removed, the body has that much less perceived danger to deal with. It can be as simple as leaving for work earlier so as to not have to chase the bus down the street in the morning. Secondly, methods such as yoga, meditation, and prayer are shown to lessen the stress reaction in the brain as the body becomes calm. Changing the way the mind and body perceive stressful events by consciously relaxing during or directly after those events can help to condition the hippocampus to dump less cortisol into the blood. Learning to deal with chronic stress, and letting go of baggage that lingers and presses those emotional danger buttons after the events have passed, can help break the dangerous cycle of cortisol and epinephrine overload and save the brain’s memory centers from deterioration.

Life is full of stress. The human body is a marvel that has long known how to adapt to whatever dangers are placed in its path. In modern times, the body reacts to stressful events much the same as early human bodies reacted to more life-threatening stressors. The difference is that in this day and age, the stress is less dangerous, but more chronic—and the damage to the memory centers of the brain can be its own danger. By being aware of the link between stress and memory loss and by taking steps to manage the cycle, modern humans can preserve their brain—and their memories.

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Are you one of those “Yes” people? The people who always are on the run because of their inability to say no to anyone, not even themselves? While such people are quite kind and gentle with everyone without exception, they tend to try to please everyone, often at the expense of their own unattended needs. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a commendable thing to do, being helpful to others. However, there are a couple of things you need consider: first, you risk others taking advantage of your good heart; and second, you’ll find that you have no time to focus on what matters to you – your goals, your principles, yourself. Often, not having the willpower to turn down things doesn’t only relate to your interactions with other people. It might also mean you cannot exercise self-control more generally, as when dieting, or trying to cut back on your smoking, for instance.

Going from I-will-please-every-single-person-on-earth to let’s focus-on-me-now is a slow and perhaps painful process, but this change in attitude is definitely possible.

Seeing the bigger picture.

When you visualize how a present action might affect your future it makes it easier for you to resist the temptation of yielding to yet another cigarette, or cupcake.

The idea is to live and see the present you through future lenses, to be constantly reminded of the immediate and upcoming consequence of any of your actions. This is a strategy for being in control of your willpower in the present; it’s about becoming impervious to your own weaknesses.

Boost your “I will not” willpower.

Thankfully, the ability to refuse or turn down any temptation is not inherent, it can be learned. It mostly resides in the ability to stick to certain goals, to keep our minds focused on what the end result of a struggle might be.

For instance, if you find it hard to set aside time every day to work on your speed reading skills, you might be tempted to keep putting it off and playing computer games instead. In this instance, it would be helpful to visualize a typical workday after you’ve increased your reading speed, where you have the extra time you need to get through your projects, meaning that you’re much less stressed and much more productive. Having your target immediately accessible at all times in your mind will almost ensure you will have the I won’t power needed to succeed.

Turn negatives into positives.

This is a great way to trick your brain to work with you instead of against you. Next time you’re in a mental argument and you’re saying to yourself, “No, I don’t need this extra serving of red velvet cake, I already had one. No I won’t eat it!” try this instead:  turn the conversation into something positive or constructive, like “I think I will go for a walk” or “I will call Mary.”

By turning a negative into a positive you comfort your brain, because you don’t let it feel there’s something it’s deprived of. In fact you take that need completely out of the picture and focus on something less damaging.

The overall idea to strengthen your power to say no comes down to three different but intertwined aspects of willpower:

•  Strengthening your power to refuse temptation and distractions that are pleasant in the moment but harmful in the long term.

• Advancing your goals and principles over any mundane and not essentially useful habit or lifestyle choice; that is, being able to let your constructive, beneficial needs prevail.

•  Acquiring the power to say no by focusing on what you want to say yes to.

Remember, your power to focus on the things that matter can defeat your weakness to yield any day.

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You’ve probably seen the gloom-and-doom announcers on television shows using ominous-looking statistics and “true life” stories to terrorize their audience into thinking that technology is a self-inflicted doom we brought on ourselves, making us dumb, lethargic, and mind-numb. On the other hand, the advertisements on those shows are usually from technology giants (and you know who I’m referring to all right) that are trying to convince you that their latest smartphone version is different than the last one, and is exactly what you need to be smart, energetic, and totally alive and connected. Apparently, to survive in this world of contradictions you either need to be bipolar, or to not really pay much attention to what self-titled scientists have to say – or technology advertisers, either.

We genuinely believe that mobile devices are a great tool. However, there’s a caveat: we need to know how to use a device constructively, otherwise all the potential benefits disappear. Knowing what’s up for grabs and what should be best avoided is a great start to making your smartphone your friend. A recent marketing report tracing the tendencies of mobile device usage and health-promoting practices has revealed some hopeful predictions as to how people will be using their mobile devices to benefit their health in 2013.

People will consciously employ technology to promote their well-being, according to the market report by Sharp Brains, an innovation and research organization focusing on brain health marketing trends.

In 2013, it’s estimated that people will be self-diagnosing certain brain injuries or conditions, using their tablets and mobile devices to improve cognitive skills. New services offered by health organizations and medical companies using biometric-based technologies will serve for better assessing brain functions and performance. Some of the predictions of this marketing report include the following:

•  Teens and adult members of the American Automobile Association (AAA) will make use of online practice activities in order to improve their driving performance and safety.

•  Thousands of people suffering from insomnia and depression will be treated with fully computerized cognitive behavioral therapy.

• Nonprofessional athletes will be able to diagnose brain concussion thanks to web-based cognitive brain tests.

• Tablet-based screening for Alzheimer’s and mild cognitive impairment will be individuals’ first option for diagnosis, with neuroimaging in second place.

• Around one million USA residents will complete their brain health checkup through a tablet or other mobile device sometime in 2013.

• Insurance companies will launch educational and promotional campaigns that will engage people in taking steps for achieving brain wellness.

• People suffering from multiple sclerosis will be offered web-based cognitive training practices in order to enhance their drug-administration therapy.

However, despite these promising predictions 2013 holds for us, mobile device abuse is certainly on the rise. Younger people in particular seem to be caught up in their mobile devices in ways that do not exactly promote brain health, or enhance cognitive abilities.

Another thorny issue surrounding mobile devices is how they absorbs time otherwise spent on face-to-face communication, depriving people of this necessary, intimate interaction and providing instead a faceless, impersonal communication as a supposed equivalent. It all boils down to responsible and forward-looking utilization of your device. It’s a pocket-sized but powerful tool, and we ought to learn how to efficiently use it to promote brain health and minimize brain-associated health risks.

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We spend the entire work week eagerly waiting for the weekend – but then we spend the weekend doing absolutely nothing, or at least nothing constructive. If you’re one of the people who falls into this category and who misuses the possibilities these two-day break offers, keep reading! Of course you need rest and sleep to make up for the crazy week that just passed, but finding a way to squeeze few self-improving activities into the weekend will be worthwhile in the long-term. Come to think about it, you have 52 weekends (counting both a Saturday and a Sunday) to achieve great things. That’s 52 opportunities for improvement, and it’s all possible if you set your mind to it.

•    Perfecting an old skill or habit

It’s never too late to refine a skill or take a hobby a bit more seriously. If it’s something you really love, you will find the motivation and impetus to make it happen.

•    Time management

One of the most frustrating characteristics of modern life is that we lead too-busy lives (or have really poor time management skills). There are many ways in which you can improve how you manage your time and how much you can achieve in specific time periods. We’re not talking multitasking, but something entirely different. For instance, if you learn to speed read, you can save hours of reading time without sacrificing content comprehension or information retainment. So yes, time management boils down to time-efficient skill development.

•    Unleashing your creativity

How-to guides on the Internet are a modern and very well-known trend. You can find many quality instructional videos and how-to articles for just about anything. Lifehacker, Instructables, How Stuff Works and eHow are only a few of the great online sources for absorbing knowledge and mastering practical skills.

•    Learning ravenously

Make it your life’s mission to gather quality, useful knowledge. We have access to such insane amounts of information, it would be a shame not to at least try to take in some of the best of it.

•    Helping others

I know, it sounds so maddeningly clichéd that you almost zone out each time you hear “help others, volunteer” but it is nonetheless one of the greatest investments you can make during your weekends. It doesn’t necessarily have to be in a shelter, at a community or a charity club. Help those next to you, a neighbor, your partner, your dad. Giving help and your services unconditionally is very rewarding, teaching you the importance of philanthropy and empathy.

Whether you choose to try a few of the things mentioned here, or have ideas of your own, what matters is that you find the most fitting weekend investments for yourself. If you think about it, you never vividly remember those weekends you slept in and dragged yourself from couch to bed all day watching TV show marathons, you remember those mini mountain excursions, that unplanned picnic, and of course that Sunday you decided to see what that language programming seminar really was all about. Make the most of your time, and get the most out of your life!

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