Hate doing the laundry? Detest washing the dishes? Do you often put off taking the dog for a walk because you'd rather be cozy in bed watching Law and Order reruns? We've all been there. When it comes to chores and other stuff on our To Do Lists that we loathe doing, we may find ourselves procrastinating -- so much so that we may come home to find the electricity has been shut off due to unpaid bills, we barely have any clean clothes to wear, or the leak we left unattended for weeks now poses a flood risk. While we may never actually grow to like these tasks, here's a valuable tip for helping you carry them out quicker and make them more bearable: With task enhancement, you add a positive stimulus/distraction to the mix so as to give your mind something more enjoyable to focus on while you complete the task. For example, I hate doing exercise after work, but I remind myself that it goes a long way toward keeping the pounds off. If I didn't have my iPod wit...

As satisfying as the feeling of completing a project or getting a pat on the back from the boss may be, being overworked is never a good thing. It means you have less time for the things and people you value in your life. If you're under a great deal of stress, you may be suffering from sleep deprivation, anxiety, depression, and other health issues. That's why it's always best to work smarter rather than harder. Assess your work day and see if there's any way you can reshuffle your tasks/agenda so as to give you a little breathing room. Maybe you could use a temp or assistant, or perhaps you can ask your boss if he or she can cut back on the number of jobs being thrown your way. And if you feel that all the extra work merits a promotion or pay increase, let your supervisor know. You may very well be rewarded handsomely for the extra time you're putting it, but you won't know for sure until you broach the subject. At the end of the day, employers really ...

Do you strive to be good at the things you do in life, or do you try to be the very best at them? In my case, it all depends on whether I enjoy doing the task or activity in question. I like to sharpen my skills as much as I can at things that I truly enjoy doing -- whether it's reading, writing, or vocabulary. My goals in life include reading as many books and writing as many things -- whether books or blog posts -- as I possibly can. I want to be known as *the* writer or wordsmith among my peers. To me, that is the ultimate compliment. But if it's something I have little interest in doing from the outset -- like fixing or assembling things around the house, or putting together Excel spreadsheets at work, it's hard for me to summon the motivation to become good at it. In such scenarios, I try to complete the task with as little effort as possible, or with the aid of someone else. I'm just one of those people who really disdains spending time doing things that bri...