December 2009

4392 Reasons I Still Have Faith in Humanity

by Vlad Dolezal on December 30, 2009

4392. That’s the number of people who got involved in the biggest secret santa ever, this December, on a website called reddit!

I got involved as well, and as I followed the whole event, I realized that even anonymous internet strangers can be really nice people!

How it all started

Reddit is a social news site, where people can submit links to interesting content, and other people can “upvote” or “downvote” these links based on what they think is interesting. [click to continue…]

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On Two Years of Blogging

by Vlad Dolezal on December 26, 2009

Today marks 2 years since I started this blog!

This is going to be a pretty self-indulgent post, so if you don’t care about me and what I do that much, feel free to skip this post. Check back on Wednesday for a regular all-about-you blog post :) [click to continue…]

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Meeting New People Made Complicated

by Vlad Dolezal on December 20, 2009

You’ve seen tons of posts like “XYZ Made Easy” and “5 Easy ways to XYZ”, both from me and from other bloggers.

Well, it’s holidays now, so let’s have a special post :) . Today, we’re going to do the exact opposite. Let’s look at every detail of how COMPLICATED meeting people really is! [click to continue…]

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How to Stay Cool in Any Situation

by Vlad Dolezal on December 17, 2009

Did something ever happen to you that made you so angry you felt like blowing up like an overblown balloon?

Yes? Okay, think back to that situation, and imagine what it was like.

Now stop. Pause for a second, and imagine James Bond was in your place, in that situation. After you shake off the giggles from imagining James Bond working a cubicle job and getting shouted at by his boss for completing a project late (or a similar ridiculous situation for good ole 007), notice how James Bond acts in the situation. [click to continue…]

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Guest Post Marathon

by Vlad Dolezal on December 12, 2009

Update:I have completed the guest post marathon. You can find the guest posts I’ve written here: Guest Post Marathon Aftermath.

Inspired by Josh Hanagarne and Oscar Del Ben, I’m starting a guest post marathon!

Basically, starting right now, over the next two weeks, I will write as many guest posts as possible. Anybody can ask for one (yes, including you!). Just give me a topic, and I will write a guest post just for you! [click to continue…]

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Grab the Steering Wheel of Your Life and Don’t Let Go

by Vlad Dolezal on December 9, 2009

Have you ever let go of the steering wheel while driving a car?

If you’re lucky, you’ll end up in a ditch. If you’re unlucky, you’ll storm right off a cliff, or smash into another car.

Yet many people do exactly that with their lives. They let go of the steering wheel, and let the circumstances control them. They blame the weather, and the economy, and other people. And inevitably, they end up either stuck in a ditch-like dead-end job they don’t like, or storm right off a cliff into financial and emotional crisis. [click to continue…]

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Why Calculating Your Time’s Worth Doesn’t Work

by Vlad Dolezal on December 5, 2009

I was at the train station. It was late at night, it was cold, and I was tired. I was wondering if the 25-minute walk home is worth it, or if I should call a taxi instead. It turned out a friend was walking the same way as me, so we decided to walk, but it got me thinking:

Let’s say you have a 15-minute uncomfortable walk home, or you can take a taxi for 5 pounds. If you choose to take the taxi, that would put your time’s worth at 20 pounds per hour (or more). Because you’d rather pay that money than be uncomfortable for 15 minutes.

So if you have a job where you earn only 15 pounds an hour, wouldn’t it make more sense to walk? [click to continue…]

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