New Tips And Triks For You

It's an enviable problem, but a problem all the same: Many people who manage to save enough for retirement find it agonizing to start spending that money when the day finally comes. As a result, they needlessly deny themselves the simple pleasures and occasional splurges that can make the difference between a dream retirement and a dreary one.

More Americans face the opposite dilemma, of course. According to the 2013 Retirement Confidence Survey from the Employee Benefit Research Institute, nearly 3 out of 10 people have virtually nothing saved for retirement, and 57% have less than $25,000 in total savings and investments.

But at the other end of the savings spectrum are those frugal retirees who have been prudent or lucky enough to set aside a serious pile of cash. For them, the challenge is shifting from saving mode to spending mode once they retire. And, perhaps not surprisingly, it's often the very best savers who have the greatest trouble doing that.

If this sounds at all like you, here are some ideas that might help you spend your money.

"There are both rational and irrational reasons to be reluctant to spend," says Jeffrey R. Brown, Ph.D., a professor of finance and a retirement expert at the University of Illinois in Champaign, Ill. A rational reason might be to have enough money to cover a lengthy nursing home stay if that's ever needed, Brown says. Another one might be to send a grandchild to an expensive college someday. Less rational, he says, is hoarding assets simply because you can't bear to see your net worth decline.

Of course, even the most rational concerns can often be addressed in ways other than setting aside enough cash to pay for them with one big check. The possibility of a large nursing home bill can be insured against with a long-term care policy. Annual contributions to a grandchild's 529 plan will go a long way toward paying those college bills.

Many of us grew up believing we should never touch our principal. And while that philosophy can serve us well during our working and saving-for-retirement years, it can also become so ingrained that it's hard to change. So as a first step, you might consider taking some of your dividends and interest in cash rather than reinvesting them -- that is, before they get added to your principal and become off-limits.

If you don't already have one, it's easy to set up a sweep account at a brokerage firm; it will automatically deposit your dividends and interest into a money market account, which you can draw on as needed.

After you pass age 70 one half, the Internal Revenue Service will expect you to cash out a portion of your retirement savings whether you want to or not. Unless you're willing to suffer hefty 50% tax penalties, you'll need to take required minimum distributions, or RMDs, from your individual retirement accounts, except for the Roth kind, based on the life expectancy of someone your age. IRS Publication 590 has the details, as well as tables you can use to determine the correct amount.

According to Michael Garry, a CFP professional with Yardley Wealth Management in Newtown, Pa., you're unlikely to deplete your IRAs by taking RMDs if you maintain a reasonably diversified portfolio of 45% bonds, 50% stocks and 5% cash. In fact, he says, your portfolio will probably continue growing.

Since you'll have to take IRA distributions in your 70s anyway, you might want to ask your tax adviser whether it would make sense to withdraw some of that money even earlier in retirement. If you have a big balance in your IRAs, your RMDs could push you into a higher tax bracket. Reducing your IRA balance by starting withdrawals sooner, when your income is likely to be lower, might lessen your future tax burden.

Garry has seen frugal retirees hesitate to spend anything because they have a dollar figure in mind that they want to leave as an inheritance. That's all well and good unless it reaches the point where you're living on cold cereal so your heirs can someday gorge themselves on chateaubriand.

If your heirs really care about you, chances are they'd rather see you living comfortably now than get a few more bucks from your estate when you're no longer around. And if they don't really care about you, you might as well start ordering chateaubriand for yourself.

Sometimes it's more prudent to spend your money than to save it. If your car is running up big repair bills, laying out the cash for a new one might be cheaper in the long run. If your house is ready for a new roof, it's likely to be more cost-effective to replace it now than wait until you start seeing water damage on your ceilings. If you want to go back to school in retirement to prepare yourself for a new career, think of it as an investment in your future rather than an extravagance.

Other big expenditures, such as new furniture or a dream vacation, can be a harder sell to the supersavers among us, Garry says. But consider whether you'd get more happiness from a slightly bigger bottom line on your mutual fund statement or, let's say, a once-in-a-lifetime cruise around the Greek isles. You might find yourself lounging on the beach on Mykonos before you know it.

Copyright 2013, Bankrate Inc.

Newsrooms across the country have been hemorrhaging staff for more than a decade. They've had to cut back on major areas of coverage, including investigative reporting and another important beat: court reporting.

Today, reporters might be dispatched to cover big trials, but everyday lawsuits and court hearings are often overlooked. The courts can provide a rich source of daily stories as well as compelling narrative features, and it doesn't take much time to keep tabs on them when you know what to do.

This piece offers six tips for tracking the legal cases you and your readers, listeners and viewers will want to know about. The tips focus on state courts because they're often free; the federal courts make most cases available online, but they're behind the PACER paywall. They can be tracked via Lexis Nexis, but that also costs money.

Every state has its own court system, with courts in just about every county. Many have websites where you can look through the titles of cases that have been filed recently. Often, you can refine your queries by looking at only civil cases exceeding a particular amount of money, and cases filed within, say, the past week. Skim these to see whether any local public figures or businesses are suing someone - or being sued.

Some courts post these documents online. If they don't, they'll provide you with the names of the attorneys involved, many of whom will be happy to share the PDFs. Not all of them will turn out to be newsworthy, but it only takes a few minutes to skim through them to find out what the core dispute is about - and what kind of legal remedies, including money, the plaintiffs are asking for.

Those same court websites will also usually let you search for cases by the names of the people or businesses involved. If they do, make a list of local figures, including elected officials, top appointed leaders and others your newsroom follows, as well as important local businesses. Once a week or so, look up these names and see if they're involved in any new litigation.

Of course, anyone can sue over just about anything, and even in civil cases, people are innocent until found guilty by a judge or a jury. People and companies with money are targets for litigation (just ask Google). Cities often face lawsuits when, for example, citizens are arrested and roughed up by police, or when someone is harmed in a public park. Those can make good follow-ups to articles about the underlying events.

If you look at enough court filings, after a while they all begin to look the same. The courts are full of lawsuits claiming that electronics companies price-fixed computer components, or that a drug company misled patients about the risks of a particular medication, so it's tough to tease out the newsworthy ones.

Once in a while, a case title begs for further investigation, such as "United States v. Approximately 64,695 Pounds of Shark Fins," a case mentioned in Sarah Stillman's recent feature for the New Yorker, "Taken."

Other factors can also inspire you to dig, Stillman said in an email interview.

"Was a child involved? What was the magnitude of this person's alleged loss? Does the complaint seem credible? Are there random, quirky things that just pique my interest for inexplicable reasons? All of these can be factors driving my decision to explore further, to pick up the phone or show up at an address," she said. "After slogging through countless documents, you're inevitably going to find a few that give you that 'Wow, I have to pursue this' feeling."

Once in a while, a court filing - or a pattern of them - calls for a deeper look. Although "Taken" was inspired by one of Stillman's prior articles, it also hinged on a pattern of perfunctory court filings that described assets seized by law-enforcement officials, as well as the lawsuits filed by those citizens. Those lawsuits provided a timeline, narrative structure and the names of potential sources who could put a face on the case, Stillman said.

"Nothing adds more to a story than actually enriching the material I've gleaned with the in-person, flesh-and-blood insights that come from spending time with the individuals involved," she said.

Many times, judges will post their tentative rulings the day before a hearing, so the attorneys in a case will be able to prepare for the judge's thoughts or questions. These often provide basic information about the case and a quick snapshot of the judge's thinking on whether the case should go forward.

If you see something that interests you, follow up the next day with the attorneys or the court clerk to see if the judge adopted the tentative; that's the start of a news story. If you can spare the time, cover the hearing itself. (If your local court has a daily law-and-motion calendar, sit in for an hour and take notes on the arguments and rulings; something lively is likely to happen.)

New York Times Supreme Court reporter Adam Liptak uncovered the story of Shon Hopwood, the prisoner who wrote a fellow inmate's Supreme Court petition, while chatting idly with a source on another topic entirely.

"After you're done doing the story you think you're doing, hang around and talk to people. You never know what tidbits will turn into a story later," he told me by phone.

Likewise, Liptak said he's uncovered some interesting cases simply by asking questions in the Google search box. Many will turn up public links to court filings - like an obscure Alabama court ruling that helped him set up his article on the Supreme Court's recent repeal of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act.

"All you need is a little dab of color" when you search, Liptak said. "You already know what theme you want to pursue; you just need something to bring it to life."

Tags: Court reporting

The French call them "consultants", in Italy they provide the commento tecnico, while in Scandinavia they're known as "expert commentators". Ostensibly, co-commentators are employed for their inside knowledge but, more often than not, they appear to be masters in the art of stating the bleeding obvious.

There's not much chance of you becoming a co-commentator if you don't have a regional accent and haven't had a journeyman career in and around the top flight. However, if you do possess the relevant qualifications, you may be interested in a step-by-step guide to your new career. These instructions will prepare you for any scenario or eventuality that requires your verbal intervention. What to say, how to say it and what not to say - it's all here.

Firstly, you're allowed to rely on clichés. You're not the experienced, slick media professional who's sat alongside you in the gantry. You can refer to an untidy challenge as " six and two threes" (if you're feeling adventurous) or suggest a player has "if anything, hit that too well" as the ball rockets over the bar.

All slow-motion replays are your territory. It's your job to confirm if the shot got a nick on its way through or if the goalkeeper did, in fact, get fingertips to it. Committing to a call before you see the replay is done at your own risk; if the replay proves you wrong, you'll need to awkwardly dig your heels in and refuse to concede defeat. The most dignified way of doing this is to admit some slight wrongdoing, but not enough to warrant a penalty/free-kick. Minimal contact? A coming-together? Nothing in it. After a while, you'll be oblivious to just how annoying this is for your viewers.

Offside decisions? If it's close, but you can actually tell whether it's offside or not, just say it's " borderline" or " touch and go". Don't use the visual tools at your disposal to decide one way or the other - that's not what the viewers want at all.

What about that tackle, then? Clumsy more than anything. Don't forget the " more than anything" suffix here - no one will prompt you to expand on what that "anything" actually is, lest you slander the player by mentioning exactly what it was that his tackle wasn't. While the game flows, it is the co-commentator's responsibility to keep an eye on any injured players and provide updates on their freedom of movement, on a vague scale ranging from "gingerly" to "much better now".

"... for me." Keep that ready for really desperate moments where you've been made to look stupid, but want to at least spare your fellow commentator from ridicule. I mean, it's a game of opinions, right? Don't worry too much about research, though. Sky Sports regular Alan Smith, for example, relies on a watertight formula of size plus nationality to demonstrate his knowledge of the top players, be they big Belgians or little Spaniards.

Keep it light-hearted when appropriate. Make jokes about your own playing career, your lax attitude to training or the commentator's playing ability. Or his age - go on, joke about how he'll be able to remember that far back when he mentions something that happened a long time ago! But avoid the temptation of Lawrensonesque over-quipping - this isn't Come Dine With Me.

Right, 10 minutes in - which team has made the brighter start? It's the question on everybody's lips. If you can't work it out, just say they're " cancelling each other out" so far. Or the markedly creepier-sounding " feeling each other out". Have the bookies' favourites " got going yet"? " Not getting going" is easy to spot - they need to have failed to open the scoring.

Twenty minutes is the magic benchmark - if the underdog hasn't conceded in this all-important window, everything is going to be fine. Except you've shifted the goalposts for them - now they need to get to half-time. Speaking of which, you must become an amateur psychologist just before the break and judge which manager will be the happier of the two.

Sometimes, the most important statistic isn't in the top left-hand corner of our screens. When you're really struggling for an angle, up will pop the possession stats for the preceding five or 10 minutes. "Look at that!" you can exclaim, as we all do just that.

Tell us whether that's what we could have expected or not. Later on, we'll see the epic two-part drama of the shots/shots on target statistics. The sheer tension as we wait to see how many of those 12 shots actually troubled the goalkeeper. A player shoots over the bar - he was leaning back. They always are.

Around five times a game, you'll be called upon to offer us The Bigger Picture as the commentator nips away to the loo. Halfway through the first half, on the stroke of half-time, the start of the second period, on the hour-mark, and in the dying moments - you'll need to sum up what you've seen so far.

Has it been a classic? Has one manager asked his team for " more of the same" in this second 45? As the time ticks on, will the other manager be thinking of a change? You can slide your way in to your observation, as the play enters a lull, with a wistful sigh that informs the viewer that you're about to offer your lengthy views on the action so far.

Do not describe players as short or slow - that's rude. They're " not the tallest" or " not the quickest". Why on earth co-commentators feel the need to shield the (obviously otherwise unsuspecting) public from the physical deficiencies of footballers is beyond comprehension. Is it some sort of PFA membership-inspired solidarity? Is it in fact a well-disguised challenge to Usain Bolt or the world's tallest man, Turkish part-time farmer Sultan Kösen, to take up football? Does Kösen have a good touch for a big man?

Congratulations, you're now a fully-trained peer of the Andy Townsend s, Jim Beglin s, Gerry Armstrong s, Davie Provan s and Alan Smith s of this world. You're a combination of amateur comedian, psychoanalyst, anatomist and ex-footballer. Perhaps it's not the easiest job in the world after all.

You've secured the meeting; you've done your research; you've picked your outfit and now the day has come to nail the job interview. Feeling confident in yourself is key to convincing others to be confident in your abilities so walking into that interview knowing you look good is half the battle. Here are some top tips for making sure you look the part...

1. Don't Change Who You Are

If you usually favour the natural look, the day of interview is not the time to cake yourself in make-up and try out a vibrant home hair-kit. It's important to feel comfortable so only use make-up or hair styling tools to enhance not change your natural features.

2. Wake Up to Make-Up

According to the Daily Mail, 25 percent of employers say they're more likely to hire a woman who wears makeup to an interview than one who doesn't. Whilst I'm not suggesting you go down the false-eyelash/rouged-lip route, applying a subtle amount of make-up for an interview shows you take care of yourself whilst also hiding any dark circles, making you appear more alert.

3. Lose Your Scents

Experts recommend skipping wearing your perfume on the day of interview and instead just showering with your usual wash. Some people are very sensitive to strong smells and an overbearing or unsavoury perfume can subconsciously create negative associations for your potential employer.

Keep your hair neat and freshly washed. You may not think of it but inches of roots that need a touch-up can send the wrong message to your employer. Keep your hair off your face to avoid touching or twirling of it when you feel nervous.

5. Nail That Interview

Do not make the mistake of overlooking your nails before an interview. Get them cleaned up professionally or buy a manicure homekit, keeping the shade natural and the nails short which will give the final polish to your interview-ready look.

I get demos every day. Multiple times a day.

I don't want to see a PowerPoint deck - I want to play with something.

I don't want to hear a description of what you do - I want to see a demo.

I don't want you to tell me your background, where you went to school, or where your grew up. I want to see what you are working on.

I still remember my first meeting with Bre Pettis at MakerBot. I walked into the Botcave in Brooklyn and was confronted with a long, narrow, Brooklyn-style industrial building where I could see people working away in the back. But before I got to them, I had to walk through a 1,000 square-foot area of MakerBot Thing-O-Matics printing away. This was an early "bot farm," and it probably took 15 minutes before I walked the gantlet. They were printing all kinds of things, and there were display cases of other stuff that had been printed and a vending machine for Thing-O-Matic parts.

When I got to the back where people were working, I totally understood what MakerBot did and what was possible with 3D printing.

We are lucky to be investors in a bunch of companies creating amazing new products. One of them, Oblong, as been working on spacial computing since John Underkoffler's early research in the 1990′s at the MIT Media Lab. For a number of years they were described the Minority Report technology (John was the science/tech advisor to Spielberg and came up with all the tech in the movie.) The following video is John showing off and explaining the core G-Speak technology.

The demo is iconic and amazing, but it takes too long and is too abstract for their corporate customers buying Oblong's Mezzanine product. The short five-minute "overview video" follows.

While this gives you a feel for things, it's still showing the "features and functionality" of the tech, applying a general use case. For several months, I kept banging on them to set up a simple use case, which is the how I use the Mezzanine system in our office. I use it every day, and it's been a huge factor for me in eliminating all of my travel.

A few months ago, Oblong had a sales off-site meeting to go through the progress they've made this year and to focus on the balance of the year. They've had a great year with a strong quarter-over-quarter sales ramp for Mezzanine on both a dollar and unit basis. The customer list is incredible, their classical enterprise land and expand strategy is working great, and new high-value use cases are being defined with each customer. So I smiled when I the following slide popped up on my Mezzanine during our weekly leadership team call.

While a little abstract in writing (I don't expect you to understand the first three bullet points unless you know how Mezzanine works), when it's shown in the first five minutes of a demo it simply blows your mind. And you totally get all three of the core technologies that Oblong has incorporated in Mezzanine (spatial computing, pixel virtualization, and data pipelining.) Your next reaction is "I want one." And then you are ready for the feature/function discussion, which can easily go on for 30 minutes.

There is endless talk about product development and getting "personas developed" while you figure out how to build your product for them. This approach is equally useful for demos, but it is so often overlooked. I can't tell you the number of times people start just showing me stuff, rather than saying, "Here's the problem I'm going to solve for you that I know you have." BOOM! And then I'm totally captured for the next 30 minutes.

Try it. The first five minutes is the most important with someone like me. Don't waste it.

The post Getting Your Demos Right appeared first on Feld Thoughts.

This story originally appeared on www.feld.com.

Every Thursday, WoW Insider brings you Scattered Shots for beast mastery, marksmanship and survival hunters. This week, your host Adam Koebel, aka Bendak will be discussing the finer points of pew pewing in Vale of Eternal Sorrows and Gates of Retribution.

With the September 23 hotfixes, all three hunter specs have been brought up to relevance. In simulations, they are all within a couple percent of each other, but the real question is how do they perform for you in a real world setting? After an expansion of beast mastery and survival (which play very similarly), the jump to marksmanship will be tough for some hunters.

This week, for my very first hunter column, we're going to look at how you can maximize your damage and survivability in the first two wings of Siege of Orgrimmar. Keep in mind that a lot of these are simply suggestions and that your mileage may vary. What works for me may not work for you, but this will give you an idea of how our abilities can be utilized on the first eight bosses. Stock up on some Tomes of the Clear Mind and let's get started.

Vale of Eternal Sorrows

Immerseus Deterrence can be used to avoid almost everything on Immerseus. You can use it to avoid the damage and knockback of Swirl and all of the damage from the Sha Puddles and Contaminated Puddles which survive the split phase (each one pulses damage to the whole raid).

The Fallen Protectors

Sha of Pride

Gates of Retribution

Galakras

Iron Juggernaut

Kor'kron Dark Shaman

General Nazgrim

Stay tuned for part two in the coming weeks where I'll discuss hunter tips and tricks for the third and fourth wing of Siege of Orgrimmar.

[Thanks to the posters over at the MMO-Champion forums for being hunter guinea pigs and sharing their results.]Scattered Shots is dedicated to helping you learn everything it takes to be a hunter. From leveling your hunter and taming rare pets to learning the DPS value of skill, we've got you covered. If you're stuck in one of the nine support classes, why not move up to the big league and play a hunter?

Tags: beast-mastery, beast-mastery-hunter-scattered-shots, gates-of-retribution, hunter, hunter-guide, hunter-info, hunter-talents, hunters, marksmanship, marksmanship-hunter-scattered-shots, siege, siege-of-orgrimmar, survival, survival-hunter-scattered-shots, tips, tips-tricks, vale-of-eternal-sorrows

Filed under: Hunter, (Hunter) Scattered Shots

By Kristina Jaramillo

A recent study from the 50,000 member strong B2B Technology Marketing community on LinkedIn showed that 85% of B2B Marketers say LinkedIn is the most effective social network in delivering content. That study also showed that 71% of B2B Marketers say audience relevance is the most important element of content marketing and 88% of B2B Marketers cite case studies as the most effective form content marketing.

Yet, most business owners and most marketing, sales and business development professionals have a LinkedIn profile that reads like a resume. Their profiles do not show why a decision maker or influencer should connect with them. Right there, they are not demonstrating their relevance. And, they're not effectively showing their relevance in the content they are sharing.

Let me show you how four women are effectively using content and LinkedIn to generate more leads and profits.

If you look at the profile of Jimena Cortes, you'll notice we've included case studies. For example, you'll find a case study on how Jimena built a Neiman Marcus jewelry designer's Facebook community to 45,000 members in nine months (something retailers would find very interesting). Within that case study, Jimenashe shows why her strategies took the client from 600 fans to 45,000 fans, zero engagement to capturing 37% of her fans information and from zero sales to $12,000 in 3 days.

Because her profile has content that resonates with her targeted audiences-her targeted audiences are accepting her LinkedIn connection. They're joining her LinkedIn groups where she offers more content. The profile attracted a prospect that was ready, willing and able to spend $36,000 per year on her services.

Plus, when Jimena completes an email lead generation campaign through LinkedIn (using LinkedIn groups) about an upcoming webinar-prospects are signing up because they see that she has value to offer just by looking at her profile. By mixing LinkedIn marketing with webinar marketing (a form of content marketing Jimena gained an additional $60,000 for her business last year.

Conversion Copywriting President Susan Tatum creates thought leadership content for her clients so they can attract more prospects. But she was creating the same old, boring topics on her own blog. She was writing about topics like "how to write an awesome white paper", "why tech marketers must have a blog" and "5 signs you're talking to the wrong content writer." She was writing for the search engines - but she wasn't writing content that would position her as an influencer within the different social media circles she belonged to including LinkedIn.

LinkedIn members are savvy, educated professionals who are constantly looking for new and original ideas and ways of conducting business. As there are thousands of LinkedIn groups with hundreds of discussions happening every single day, your content will get ignored if you are providing the same old, regurgitated content that's already all over the web.

By creating thought provoking blog posts, special reports and discussions that literally open the eyes of technology marketers inside her own LinkedIn group and inside the 50 targeted groups she belongs to, Susan increased her website traffic by 300%. She went from 0 LinkedIn shares to 90+ LinkedIn shares. And, she was able to recently gain 4 new clients including a company that serves 86% of the Fortune 100.

While working with ZeeWorstell, President of AccelerateHer, I discovered that she and her clients had amazing stories to tell. Zee's expertise is in showing women business owners how to price themselves appropriately. She knows first-hand how hard this is because she came across this issue when she was growing her recruiting business. When she was starting out she would lower her prices in order to secure a client and wound up earning less than she was worth. This backfired because prospects would doubt her work because she was priced significantly lower than her competition. She was turning off prospects just by lowering her fees-and the clients she did get failed to show her respect.

So, we had Zee create blog posts that discussed the "good girl beliefs" that held her back as a women business owner. She discussed her own confidence issues within the articles and the mistakes she made. She also writes articles where she discusses the challenges her clients faced-and she tells their complete story and how they've become successful.

As on average women business owners make 45% less than male business owners, her target audience resonated with the discussions that were being created based on the blog posts. In fact, when she spoke to many of her LinkedIn connections on the phone (as she took the LinkedIn conversation offline) they felt like she was writing and speaking directly to them. As a result they signed up for her coaching program.

You are reading this article right now, because I invited the editor to connect-and to join my Get Help with Linked Strategies LinkedIn group so she can see the value I have to offer her readers. After reviewing my LinkedIn discussions and blog posts, she asked me to write the article that you're reading right now.

How many leads do you think I'll generate by being on one of the top business websites?

Now, offer real value, challenge your prospects, start thought provoking conversations, showcase your expertise by sharing case studies, demonstrate your relevance and connect with your audience with stories-and you will generate more leads with LinkedIn.

New York Times recognized social media expert Kristina Jaramillo helps women business owners and executives find, influence and convert prospects into clients using LinkedIn marketing and content marketing. To help readers further, she has interviewed a senior content marketing manager at LinkedIn and a top executive at Slideshare. You can get access to these recordings at http://www.freelinkedinmarketingtraining.com

There are tidbits of beauty and self-care wisdom that seem to float in and out of my days on a regular basis. I read them on the pages of a magazine, I pin them on Pinterest, hear about them from a friend and see them on TV or (as you are about to do) on a YouTube video.

Some flit right past and I never think about them again. I think, 'ohhhhh I should really TRY THAT....'. It could be a new cream, a technique for eliminating wrinkles, the best way to combat frizzy hair, tearing cuticles or under eye circles, but unless that is your most pressing problem, or someone has convinced you it will definitely work, it probably doesn't resonate, right? There is just so much advice. Who has time for it all?

Well, don't you worry. I've been collecting and trying out information for years. (and years) And I'm an expert at trial and error. I have a bathroom full of discards as proof. (my husband would be happy to testify) What these means for you is a massive time savings. In the video below, I've shared six of my very favorite beauty tips and tricks. And even better.... there will soon be yet another video with SIX MORE of my extra favorites. These are the bits of wisdom that have saved me time, made a massive difference in my routine or changed my beauty life in some way. Enjoy,

Now tell me, what would you add? What trick do you use daily or weekly? What beauty tip was your big 'a-ha' moment...and even better.....who shared it with you? I'd love to know.

Read more from Danielle on Babble and her personal sites ExtraordinaryMommy and DanielleSmithMedia . You can also follow her on More from Danielle on Babble:Create A Spa Day With Items From Your Pantry3 Ways to Create a Fast and Fabulous Ponytail Ways to Start Your Day Right My 8 Year Old Daughter Asked if She Should Go On A DietA Home Beauty Routine: Start to Finish in 20 Minutes

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Is your roof in need of a makeover?

There is a wide selection of roofing shingles available today, but all those choices can be confusing.

Have no fear, because Angie's List has some advice about what factors to consider before installation begins.

Lon and Janet Vonkonhn were in the market for a new roof after they noticed their shingles had come loose and were scattered throughout the yard.

Before making a choice, they consulted with a roofing contractor, who discussed the pros and cons of materials available.

"Before we chose the roof he brought samples and he suggested types of roofing and he also suggested color and we did that and we've been very happy," Janet said.

Asphalt is the most common type of shingle used today and is relatively inexpensive, but other materials can also be used like wood, slate or tile.

"When determining what kind of product you want to use for your roof, first you want to think about what is there now? A lot of roofing manufacturers also have a computer program that can show you exactly what it's going to look like when it's on your house. The last thing you want to do is pick a roof that doesn't compliment your home or the neighborhood because you don't want to be an eyesore," Angie Hicks from Angie's List said.

If the shingle is installed incorrectly, it will fail - that's why it's important to hire a reputable roofing contractor who has experience with the type of product you want.

"Reroofing your house is one of the biggest projects you'll do as a homeowner. Your roof typically last 20 to 30 years, so you want to find a reputable contractor who is licensed and has insurance because you are going to have people on your roof. So. you want to make sure they have worker's comp insurance. And that they have a good reputation and good warranty for standing behind their work," Hicks said.

Choosing a color for your roof project is not always easy. Be sure to look at the samples in both the sun and the shade.

Todd Henry is the author of The Accidental Creative, founder of Accidental Creative and the author of the new book, Die Empty: Unleash Your Best Work Every Day. He regularly speaks and consults with companies, both large and small, about how to develop practices and systems that lead to everyday brilliance. Todd's work has been featured by Fast Company, Fortune, Forbes, HBR.org, US News & World Report, and many other major media outlets. His company helps creative people and teams generate brilliant ideas.

In this interview, Todd talks about why people delay their work, why you shouldn't be comfortable in what you currently do and always challenge yourself, how to prevent boredom and more.

Die Empty is the message that's been burning in my bones for about a decade. I get to work with a lot of great companies and speak at a lot of conferences, and the one-on-one questions that I get from people more than any other are about how they have a deep, nagging sense that they aren't getting around to the really valuable work they know they're capable of. Their current body of work doesn't represent what they truly care about, and they want to take steps toward correcting it. (I define work, by the way, as any place we add value, so it includes things like relationships, family, and self-development.)

We live with the stubborn illusion that we will always have tomorrow to act on today's priorities, but it's untrue. Every day we choose to push our deeper intuitions and ambitions into the future is a missed opportunity to contribute as only we are capable. Unfortunately, for many people this means taking their best work to the grave with them, and in my opinion that's a tragedy.

In Die Empty, I share the key places where I've seen brilliant, capable people get stuck in a holding pattern, and some strategies for countering those forces through decisive action. The goal is to unleash that brilliant work today so that you die empty of regret about the body of work you've built.

We often push action into the future because we can't see the next steps. We'd rather act on something concrete and with an immediate payoff than risk a lot of energy and effort on something that might not work out as planned. As a result, we "settle in" over time and go for the quick win at the expense of the long-term value we're capable of generating. There's nothing wrong with strategically mitigating risk, but brilliant bodies of work are built by those who are willing to take the small, calculated risks necessary to take new ground. Safety is an illusion, because if you're not moving into new territory, learning new skills, and progressing in asking better questions, you will eventually be replaced by someone who is.

I believe that the love of comfort is frequently the enemy of greatness in life and work. Comfort and brilliant work are mutually exclusive objectives. Those who want to build a brilliant body of work will eventually have to choose between doing the comfortable thing, and doing the best thing. That doesn't mean that you can't experience comfort as a by-product of your work, of course. It means only that you can't make comfort your chief objective, or you will eventually compromise your best work. However, comfort is seductive.

If you compromise enough times, it adds up to a less-than-optimal life. Mediocrity isn't chosen once, it's the result of a series of small, everyday decisions over time. Thus, we have to stay on-guard against the siren song of comfort, delusion, ego, and other forces that cause us to compromise our contribution.

I believe that boredom is a good thing! It's a sign from your mind that you're ready for something new. However, the problem is that many people succumb to the numbness of boredom, and instead of taking it as a cue to stoke the fires of their curiosity, they fill the lull with entertainment or something that gives them a ping and stays the boredom. These are people I call the "busily bored". They are very active, but they aren't asking good questions or pursuing their natural curiosity.

To unleash your best work, you must be aware of your deeper questions, and dedicate time and resources in your life to pursuing them. This is a key way that great contributors become even more skilled, more valuable in the workplace, and more satisfied with their own work.

When we first launched Ministry of Supply, we sold our Apollo shirt for a whopping $128. Our price for the shirt then moved down to $88, back up to $108 and finally landed on $98.

During all of these changes, we talked to our customers a lot about pricing. We watched conversion rate, listened to what our customers said, asked our customers what else was in their closet, and, thought about the value our shirts give our customers: no more dry cleaning, lots of durability and a shirt for every occasion. Mostly, we debated about how all these factors should influence how we priced our clothing.

We get a lot of questions on pricing from fellow entrepreneurs. How'd we pick to sell our Apollo shirt for $98? What'd we do to test what prices are right? And, how should costs play into pricing analysis?

Given that my co-founder Aman and I were students at MIT Sloan when we launched Ministry of Supply, pricing was a topic that we talked to our professors a lot about. In the end, there were three main things we kept in mind when figuring out pricing:

In short, pricing takes a lot of understanding - and a lot of testing. At MoS, we tested prices constantly before settling on the price that was best for us.

Remember: if people are complaining that prices are too high, that tells you something. Conversely, if nobody is complaining about your price, then it's likely too low.

As for why all of of our prices end with an 8? Because it's a lucky number and looks nice. Hey, not everything is a science - even if you are a business school student.

Posted on Thursday, September 26th, 2013 at 10:00 AM

We don't always have time for a full face of makeup during that morning rush.

You know, those special days when you wake up and have to rush out the door and don't have time to moisturize, prime, layer on concealer & foundation and get that face ready for the office.

However, there are some key things you can do or have with you that could help make your daily morning makeup routine effortless.

There are a lot of beauty tips you can carry around in your bag but here are a few that will keep you beautiful from the bedroom to the boardroom.

Yes, I know this sounds counter productive but it is actually better to use stronger face washes, scrubs, or in my case, my trusty clarisonic before going to sleep because while you sleep, your skin regenerates, reestablishes its pH, and increases collagen production.

Why would you want to strip away all this goodness? The only exception to this rule if you didn't get all your makeup off the night before - we have all been here - when the 3 meter trek from your bed to the bathroom starts looking like a marathon.

My dresser is where products go to die. Sad, desolate jars of product literally piled on top of one another, yet I can never bring myself to throw them away (you never know when tea tree oil will become the most sought after ingredient!).

Even with all these products, I almost exclusively use natural shea butter; that smelly, sticky, chunk of earthly goodness works absolute wonders on my skin. It may not be for everyone, but the point I am making is - find something that adds moisture to your skin and stick to it.

There are a lucky few of you who are biologically blessed with perfect skin, but for the rest of us, foundation is absolutely key.

I like using a light to medium coverage foundation so I don't feel like I am wearing theatrical makeup all day. Plus the Nigerian sun doesn't play games. I default to my House of Tara Flawless Foundation. It is build-able and leaves a natural dewy finish.

You know, the one you would take with you on a stranded island if you only had one choice.

For me it is eye-liner; without it, people come up to me and ask if I'm 'tired' (it's usually 9AM when they ask this). Whatever it is for you, use it! Even if you don't have time/want to wear a full face of makeup, you will find that with it, you feel more confident to tackle the day's challenges.

You never know when you are going to need to give an interview, be photographed or go straight to an event from work etc., that is why you should always have a few makeup essentials in your handbag.

Sometimes the walk from your car to a building on an especially hot day can result in a sweaty, shiny face so always have the tools you need for a touch up.

I cannot stress how important it is to drink water through out the day.

Our bodies lose large amounts of water each day but more so when we live in a tropical country such as this one. Our skin especially, needs the moisture to stay healthy and supple. I don't know if what they say about water making your skin glow is true, but I do know that more water I drink, the better my skin (and makeup) looks.

If you have any beauty tips for the woman on the go, don't forget to share. Have a great day.

Tags: Beauty, Beauty on the go, BN Beauty, House of TARA, Temi Akingbe