How to Make Your Laptop Last Longer

1. 1
   Know where your laptop is at all times and treat it with care. Be cautious about leaving the laptop unattended, and know that dropping, jostling, or bumping may cause damage to the hard drive.
   
   
   
   • Do not place drinks next to the computer. One accidental spill onto the keyboard will damage it, probably beyond repair.
   • Always hold the laptop by the bottom (keyboard half), never the screen. Use two hands.
   • Correctly remove the wireless card (if applicable) before transporting.
   • Do not store the laptop where very cold or very hot.
   • Do not place the laptop close to any electrical appliance, because it generates a magnetic field.
   • Purchase a luggage tag. Attach it to the carrying case and fill it out with your name. Make sure that no flap that covers your name.
   • Attach something unique to the carrying case. This will help prevent someone else from mistaking your case for theirs.
   • Label all parts of the laptop with your name. Put a sticky address label on the top of the laptop, inside, under the keyboard, both parts of the power cord, CD-ROM/DVD-ROM/Floppy drives, and a USB drive.
2. 2
   Protect the screen and body of your laptop. Your laptop will last much longer if it doesn't get damaged.
   
   
   
   • Never twist the screen on its hinges, as this could crack the screen.
   • Never close the lid when a pencil or pen is left on the keyboard. This could crack the screen.
   • Do not ever scratch or push on the screen.
   • Don't slam the lid down.
   • Always transport the laptop in a padded carry case, and never stack items on the lid of the laptop.
   • Stickers leave a residue that can cause permanent damage.
   • Clean the screen with a lint-free cloth. Do not use window cleaner, such as Windex; the ammonia will dull the screen. Use a screen cleaner from a computer supply store.
3. 3
   Make sure your electrical cord helps your laptop, and doesn't hurt it. Treat your laptop's electrical cord as an extension of the laptop itself.
   
   
   
   • Be careful when removing the power cord. Yanking it out of the laptop from a distance will cause damage.
   • Do not wrap the cord tightly around itself. Instead, loosely wrap it in a figure eight pattern.
   • Never turn the laptop over when it is plugged in. This could break the adapter plug at the back of the laptop.
4. 4
   Remove disks with care. Small pieces are easy to snap off if you are not careful.
   
   
   
   • Do not use damaged floppy disks!
   • Remove disks from CD-ROM drive or floppy drive before carrying.

Part Two: Software

1. 1
   Make sure you understand your computer's software requirements. Some software can be susceptible to viruses and can inhibit performance.
   
   
   
   • Understand your laptop's up-time. Up-time is a measure of your operating system's reliability. Unix-like operating systems such as BSD and Linux have the longest up-time. Research and compare up-time records yourself.
   • Downloaded software and screensaver often cause conflicts and use valuable memory. Remember that laptops are tools for learning, and keeping them free of unnecessary programs will help it working quicker with less freezing.
   • Always back up all files in at least two places.
   • Virus protection is very important.
   • Beware of Spyware. It is the latest computer security problem. Spyware is software designed to collect computer users' personal data without their knowledge. Spyware is secretly installed with many downloaded Internet software programs, and transmits information about computer usage and generates pop-up advertisements. Microsoft estimates that spyware is responsible for half of all PC crashes.

Part Three: Routine Laptop Maintenance

1. 1
   Your computer, like your car, needs regular tune-ups. This will improve the laptop's ability to run smoothly.
   
   
   
   • Run "Disk Cleanup" and "Defragment" tools at least monthly. You can find this under "Accessories," listed with Programs. Start > Programs > Accessories. Be sure to turn off screen saver before performing maintenance.
   • Check for disk errors at least monthly. Open "My Computer." Right click on drive C, then select Properties. Click on the Tools tab. Where you see Error Checking, click on "Check now." Select "automatically fix file system errors," and then Start. You may be prompted to restart the machine.
   • Set virus protection software to download and install updates automatically and enable virus real-time protection.
   • Perform weekly virus scans.
   • Set your computer to automatically download any newly released Windows updates. To do this: Open the Control Panel (Start > Settings > Control Panel) and double-click “System.” Click on the Automatic Updates tab and make your selections. Most people prefer the option “Download updates for me, but let me choose when to install them.”
2. 2
   Adjust your printer settings. This feature allows printers to work fast, using the least amount of ink.
   
   
   
   • On your PC, click Start > Settings > Printers.
   • All printers that have been installed are shown.
   • Click on a printer to select it.
   • Right-click, and then choose Properties.
   • Click on the Setup tab, and under print quality, select draft.
   • Click on the Advanced tab, and put a check in the box by "print in gray-scale." At school, we request you print in gray-scale for most assignments. For special projects when you need something printed in color, you can remove the check mark.
3. 3
   Adjust your power settings. This will help your laptop conserve power and run efficiently.
   
   
   
   • Start > Settings > Control Panel.
   • Select the Power Management folder by double-clicking on it.
   • Select Portable/Laptop from the drop-down menu.
   • Click on the Alarms tab, and set the alarm to ring at 5%, and to shutdown at 1%.
   • Click on the Alarm Action button, and put a check mark next to Sound Alarm and Display Message.
   • Underclock it for the ultimate in longevity.

How to Keep Your Digital Memories Safe

“Google is a library or an archive like a supermarket is a food museum.”

— Jason Scott, digital archivist

Do you value your digital stuff? Nearly everyone is creating things with computers, and some do it without any concern for its value. Others recognize its current value, but think little about what it could mean to them in the future, and either aren't aware or don't think that all of it could be destroyed tomorrow. But hard drives die all the time, and the online services into which people sink their time close with alarming regularity, taking the work of millions of people with it. Here's how to preserve your digital memories.

Edit Steps

1. 1
   Make a quick backup now. If nothing else, get a cheap USB stick and drag-and-drop your documents folder onto it. Worry about the other things later. You should do more than this, but it's most important to take the most valuable, irreplaceable information from your hard drive and put it on a second medium to guard against hard drive failure, theft or loss.
   
   Stop reading until you have done this and stop making excuses to not do it.
   
   

   Getting your most important stuff onto a cheap USB stick is a lot better than having no backups at all. Do it right now.
2. 2
   Decide what you value. Some questions to ask yourself are:
   • Would you care if this was deleted tomorrow? For things like business accounts and documents, the answer is of course you would. This kind of thing should be your first priority.
     
     

     This could happen to you today. Back up your important stuff right now.
   • Would you care if you had no record of this in ten years' time? Alternatively, if you're old enough to remember what happened a decade ago, What happened a decade ago that you wish you had a record of today? Your picture of your cat might not matter too much now, but you would probably think differently after your cat passed away.
     
     

     Your cat snapshots might not matter to you now, but what about in a decade's time?
   • How replaceable is this data? MP3s and movies you have downloaded are generally replaceable (even if it's a pain to do so), so it's not the end of the world if they get lost. Documents you have written or photos you have taken cannot easily be re-created.
     
     

     It's more important to back up some things than others.
   • How good are you at assessing the value of items? As human beings, our choice of things to back up will be fallible and probably short-sighted. Err on the side of backing up too much stuff; disk space is cheap and 23 cubic inches holds a fantastic amount of data.
     
     

     The shelves in the background of this photograph, taken at the offices of The New York World in 1909, are crammed with photographic negatives. These were all thrown away when the newspaper folded. Sometimes our judgement on what is worth saving and what is not is short-sighted.^[1] If these were digital photographs, they'd probably fit on a single 3.5" hard drive.
3. 3
   Beware of sinking time, and data, into online services. This isn't to say that you must never post a picture on Facebook or say anything on Twitter; these things are fun. But remember that no online service should be considered an archive or a permanent home. Sometimes these services go down. Other times, your account there might be suspended or your data lost by accident.
   
   

   A tribute to the deceased web host Geocities, made with thousands of screenshots taken a few weeks before the service closed down.
   • Never sink time into any service that doesn't give you an easy way to get your data out again. If it doesn't allow you to download all of your stuff as either a ZIP file or with some automated tools via an API, it's probably a bad idea to use it.
   • Keep a current email address for any services you use in case the service goes down. If they give you any notice, it will likely be via email.
   • Keep local copies of everything. Don't delete your local copies after you've put something online unless you are totally, 100 percent sure that you will never want to see it again.
   • Watch out for signs of impending doom, either for your data or for the service as a whole. These are some of the signs that you should consider moving your data somewhere else and be doubly vigilant of having local copies of your work:
     • Unclear or unsustainable business model. Have fun with these services, but as with any service, don't count on it being around next year.
     • Losing data or extended periods of downtime should make you consider whether you want to continue being there at all. Fotopic was a fine example of this; after suffering several periods of downtime, at least one of them extended, people continued to put their photos on the site before it was shut down, with no notice, in 2011.
     • Reports of deletion of accounts by staff of the site. One does not even need to discuss whether they might actually have a good reason for doing so to note that this happens rather a lot to people who are not expecting it on many of today's social networking sites.
     • A buy-out of the service by another company that has no clear plans for its future. In particular, beware of talent acquisitions which might leave the service orphaned; the 2012 acquisition of Posterous by Twitter is a great example of this, if you're good at reading between the lines.^[2]
4. 4
   Start making backups. Remember, something is better than nothing. Diminishing returns apply in backups as they do with everything else. The cheapest and simplest backup methods take care of an overwhelming majority of likely loss-of-stuff. Over-complicating your backup strategy is the biggest trap: the more complicated and expensive you insist on making it, the less likely you are to do it.
   
   Thus, while they have good intentions when they're not showing everyone else how awesome they are, people who tell you that you absolutely must go all-out with geographic redundancy probably do more harm than good to the extent that such things are necessary if you're going to have backups at all.
   • First level: Buy a cheap USB flash drive and shove your documents folder onto it. You already did this in the first step; do it right now if you have not. This saves your most important data from the medium most likely to fail or be stolen.
   • Second level: Once you have figured out what you value, buy a USB external hard drive and start copying more of your data onto that. Get into the habit of doing this at least every week. You'll have more space to play with, so you can copy the more replaceable stuff like your music collection onto it. You will also want to look into ways to download data from your online accounts (for example, backing up your blog, or using Facebook's export-to-a-big-ZIP-file feature) so you can back that up, too.
     
     

     An external hard drive like this is cheap and can hold enormous amounts of your stuff.
   • Third level: Consider some automated backup strategy. This is worth it if you care to do it, but takes more time to set up well; a poorly-designed one will result in more of your data getting lost than a simple regular manual backup if it doesn't alert you to failures of the media to which you are backing up.
   • Fourth level: Geographic redundancy, for stuff that you absolutely cannot lose. This takes care of, say, your house burning down. The diminishing returns are in action; this is a whole lot less likely than a hard drive dying, and of course if your house is destroyed, you're likely to be a lot more worried about finding somewhere to live and starting over again than you are about your cat photographs.
5. 5
   Use online backup services carefully. They have their place, particularly in the case of possible geographic redundancy, but never depend on them as your only backup source. Once again never delete your local copies of anything, and never use a service that does not provide you an easy way of getting your data out. Because of their widespread use for illegal purposes, "file locker" services are an especially bad place to house your data as they can disappear literally overnight.
   
   

   Megaupload was an online file locker closed down with no notice by the government of the United States. It is believed that it may have had millions of people using it for legitimate purposes.^[3]
6. 6
   Don't forget your mobile devices. For many people, they have supplanted or replaced conventional computers. Back up your photographs and video from your camera phone.
7. 7
   Consider licensing your work under a Creative Commons license, or otherwise providing an easily-downloadable copy for other people to archive. If your stuff is interesting enough, allowing other people to make copies will result in lots of copies of your stuff being out there.
   
   Many places will accept copies of Creative Commons-licensed content; Wikimedia Commons will accept any media you have created yourself if it's vaguely educational, for example. The Internet Archive at http://www.archive.org/ will also accept collections of digital artifacts. Consider contributing to these or another similar non-profit project.
8. 8
   Keep an eye on your storage media. If one of your backup drives fails, replace it immediately. "The universe tends towards maximum irony; don't push it."^[4] In the longer term, you'll want to move your data off various kinds of storage media as obsolescence sets in and move it onto newer ones once the newer technologies mature. Floppy disks went to the glue factory a decade ago, for example, and are quickly becoming unreadable. Writable CDs and DVDs are headed down this path; if you have data backed up on these, get them onto hard drives or solid-state media now.
   
   

   The CD-RW is quickly going the way as the floppy disk, and USB will be gone one day, too. Move your stuff onto newer media as the newer media matures.
9. 9
   Consider how much of the digital record of you is other people's data, and consider preserving some of that. An old example of this would be your bookmarks; at the very least, keep a backup of your bookmarks file. In the Facebook era, many of your digital memories will have been made by other people; for example, photos in which you have been tagged, or tweets mentioning you. In many jurisdictions it is legal to make personal copies of other peoples' stuff provided that it is strictly for personal use.
10. 10
    Remember that your backups are only useful insofar as you have software to read it. Many people who used computers in the 1980s and 1990s have already experienced the pain of finding that today's software is unable to read their documents.
    
    

    Will you still be able to read your files in the future?
    • Beware of software that forces you to keep using it. An example would be a photo manager that wants to import your photo library but doesn't document how your files are stored or how to get them out again. Another example (fortunately uncommon these days) would be music download services that allow you to purchase tracks but use copy protection with the explicit aim of stopping you from making copies. This especially applies to backup software; if no other program can read whatever format in which it stores your files it's useless as a long-term solution.
    • Beware of proprietary or weird file formats. This is the more general case of the above: Some vendors do not document their file formats precisely because they don't want you to be able to read your own stuff with anyone else's software. If your software permits it, export a copy of your work to some open file format. If your software does not allow you to do this, panic and start using an open-source alternative.
    • Stick to file formats that can be read by open-source software today. Open source software tends to stick around longer than closed-source software does, so even if you're using proprietary software you'll be able to open it in open source software long after the vendor of your software stops supporting it.

How to Be Enigmatic

1. 1
   Keep silent more often than not. Be prepared to leave some things unsaid and to hold back on sharing your thoughts all of the time. Talk when you know it's essential but don't speak every chance you get. Not everything needs to be commented on––saying things just for the sake of being seen to be "participating" or "one of the crowd" is often simply "noise". Most importantly, your existence doesn't depend on senseless chatter; forming a powerful impression is often about how you carry yourself, how you restrain yourself from idle commentary and how you interject intelligently when it really is a purposeful and meaningful thing to do.
   
   
   
2. 2
   Don't be so keen to fill in the gaps. Pauses in conversation have a power all of their own; they can allow for reflection, they can permit the speaker to regain composure and they can also leave plenty of time for the listener's imagination to conjure up whatever it will. Sometimes it's not so much what you say as what you do not say.
   
   
   
   • When someone says the metaphorical "jump!", don't be so ready to ask "how high?" Take your time to respond to demands and requests from other people. Ask yourself––and them––questions about their motives. Tell people you would like to think about it and that you'll get back to them.
   • If someone badgers you to respond to them quickly, ask yourself "what's the rush?" and politely but firmly tell them that you will answer in due course. Permit yourself the time to weigh up options and to make good decisions; this is such a lost art for many, that it will seem rather enigmatic and alluring.
3. 3
   Be cautious about how much information about yourself you share. In a world where we're constantly told that we have to speak up or risk never been noticed, too much talking and giving away all of your intent, dreams and desires can result in information overload and stereotyping. With nothing left to share, the mystery has gone and it can sometimes be hard to change people's perceptions of you because they've heard too much about who you think you are now. Don't box yourself in––be judicious with what you tell acquaintances and strangers about yourself; be more generous with those closer to you.
   
   
   
4. 4
   Be creative in your conversations with other people. Small talk by nature tends to be very banal and tedious. It's about the weather, work hassles, childcare, traffic snarls, more weather, the cost of living, etc. Ultimately, small talk is not the domain of an enigmatic person. Be prepared to tackle the slip into banality through creative responses:
   
   
   
   • Whenever the conversation descends into the same old worn-out topics, comment on how extraordinary you find it that people resort to such typical topics when they have a chance to come together. Then, change the topic to something far more meaty and enticing; the more complicated and fascinating, the better for your enigmatic status.
   • Change typical statements and responses into poetry, lyrics or philosophizing. Don't give the usual responses to questions like "How are you?" and don't explain your basic feelings such as "I'm thirsty" in such monotonous ways. Be creative and say things that really make people sit up and take notice. For example, explain that you're thirsty in fun ways such as "everywhere I look I see fountains of beer, willing me to come bathe in them".
5. 5
   Expand your vocabulary. Spend time every day learning a few new words and practicing them in your usual conversations. The broader your vocabulary, the more fascinating you will sound to others and the more enigmatic you will seem when they're forced to check their dictionary to truly grasp what you're on about.
   
   
   
   • Work your brain. Let out your clever side by feeding your mind with good information and mental exercise. Do obscure riddles. Put together puzzle rings. Do word and number puzzles. Read books of obscure facts. Push yourself to learn something you thought you couldn't, like physics, cooking or another language. Challenging yourself will keep you engaged in life and thereby interesting to others who will constantly wonder how you manage to be so clued in and aware.
6. 6
   Keep your plans to yourself. Apart from those closest to you, there's no need to broadcast your whereabouts all the time. Never mention where you're going. If someone asks, reply in kind, such as "same place as you eventually" or "now that's a good question, I just wish I had the answer", and so forth.
   
   
   
   • If you plan to move away, take an item and give them to someone you care about. Tell them it's something to hold. This is the sort of behavior others always find mysterious.
   • Remove the location information and updates from your social networking accounts such as Twitter and Facebook. Online, stop calling yourself a citizen of a particular nation––you belong everywhere in the cyber world.
7. 7
   Make people work hard to get close to you. While you may have an abundance of trust, an enigmatic person also exercises a great deal of discretion in whom they place that trust. Those whom you call your nearest and dearest must earn that place by demonstrating their trust in you and not doing anything to undermine your trust in them. Equally, realize that you must also earn people's respect; it's something that can't be bought or forced.
   
   
   
   • Developing closeness with trust is a two-way street––you need to learn when it's okay to let people close enough to you. Even enigmatic people have people in their lives that they can totally rely on; it's about going for quality rather than quantity.
   • Be discerning in whom you let get close to you. Every person who is close is potentially able to expose your habits, likes and dislikes, preferences, daily routine, and the like, thereby decreasing your enigmatic factor and opening you up to prying. Choose to be close only to those who respect your need for privacy, humility and the quiet approach to life.
   • Do not suffer fools. If someone turns out to be very different from the person you thought they were and behaves crassly or stupidly such as gossiping, backstabbing, being dull or belittling you, do not hesitate to distance yourself from this person. Unless (if ever) this person is able to resolve his or her issues, this is not someone to be close to.
8. 8
   Be stoic. Stoics control their emotions and passions so that the front they present to the world appears composed, calm and unruffled. This isn't to say that you lack passion or emotion; rather, you choose not to debase yourself by acting in ways that appear overly emotional, reactive or ridiculously excited. Instead, choose to take life as it comes, react calmly to all sorts of news that comes your way and have a "well, after I've looked into it, I'll make up my mind" approach to everything. Overreacting, behaving childishly, jumping with excitement or collapsing with worry are not something you do; enigmatic people do not give much away, ever.
   
   
   
   • Steer clear of emotions and keep non-judgmental.
   • Respond through clearheaded and thoughtful actions, not through crazed emotions.
   • Take care with how you show pain. Where possible, don't show it outwardly. However, don't be a martyr either––if you have ongoing pain, physical or emotional, see your doctor. After all, what happens in private stays private and enigmatic people strive to stay healthy (because that means less pain ultimately).
   • Work out, keep fit and eat healthily. Look after your body and health so that you can stay strong in any situation.
9. 9
   Live in the present. The past has passed and you don't buy into nostalgia or weeping for the victim you once were. In fact, enigmatic people never see themselves as victims; things happen, you learn, then you move on. In particular, avoid being drawn into conversations about the past with others; whenever your colleagues, friends, teammates or whoever seem to be getting bogged down waxing about the "good old days" as if today doesn't matter, set them straight. Change the subject and return them to the here and now.
   
   
   
   • Never discuss former flames, loves, notches on your belt, conquests, whoever. If there is pain from a breakup or loss, speak to someone confidentially, such as a therapist or a trusted best friend to help you move on but never divulge such information any more widely. Your past is not fodder for today's banal bar chats.
10. 10
    Be kind and be reassuring. Enigmatic people may seem mysterious but they're not mean spirited or thoughtless. Indeed, your strong presence is often found to be reassuring because people know that you don't gossip, breach trust or hang others out to dry. You are trusted and people are likely to bring their confidences and concerns to you. When this happens:
    
    
    
    • Be kind. Compassion is both a way to support others and to maintain your enigmatic presence; in comforting others, the focus is always shifted away from you, leaving people in awe at the boundless consideration you have for fellow human beings.
    • Defend those in need. You may seem untouchable, even tough maybe, but you know that justice matters. Stand up for someone when they're bullied, harmed or treated poorly. The ability to stand up and take a principled stand is a sign of strength and a willingness to resist intimidatory attitudes around you, giving you a hero-like quality in a firmly quiet and unassuming way.
11. 11
    Be fair minded and willing to break the rules where the rules are stupid. Stupid rules are made to be broken when they don't serve their purpose; everywhere in life there are self-imposed rules, workplace rules, school and college rules and many other rules. While many rules are handy and important for the good functioning of our lives, many other rules are past their use-by date or make another's life easier at the expense of someone else. Rules breakers are independent thinkers who start movements, sway crowds and create better futures because they see outside the box and are not afraid to challenge what deserves to be changed.
    
    
    
    • Know the difference between a stupid rule and a valid rule. A stupid rule might be one that stops some people from achieving their full potential but allows more privileged people to get what they want; or, it might be one that favors conformity over innovation and creativity; or one that tells people to work harder and faster when to do so is harming them. A valid rule might be one that ensures that people don't harm themselves or others or one that ensures that everyone's opinions have been taken into account. Determining the stupidity or validity of a rule will depend on the context and your understanding of how things work in the given situation. Also, be sure to fully understand the consequences of not going along with the rules; typical responses include social ostracism, getting fired and losing out on things you wanted. Make sure that you can handle the consequences, or be so subtle nobody knows about your involvement or how the changes happened!
    • Do not confuse breaking the rules with breaking the law. Rules are all those little guidelines, preferred routines, reglets and the like, enshrined by workplaces, clubs, associations, etc.; and while many of these rules ensure the smooth running of a particular event, organization or business, they're not always clear, evident or even appropriate. Laws, on the other hand, are socially condoned, legislatively mandated realities backed by enforcement practices. Laws are things that everyone has agreed to follow together one way or another so that society functions properly as a whole. If you don't like the laws, there are many legitimate, non-violent ways to get them changed eventually and perhaps you could even make a career choice out of this. But don't break laws or you spite yourself alone and time spent in jail or shunned by society is time lost forever, let alone busting your enigmatic status.
    • Be certain that your sense of "justice" is not skewed. Those who feel victimized, angry or fearful tend to have a skewed vision of what is just. True justice is based in objective, reasoned and carefully considered reflection. It may take you years to be sure that your concerns are just but better that than to blindly create a fuss over something that really only concerns your preferences.
12. 12
    Pursue unusual interests and hobbies. Let out your inner weirdness by following an interest or hobby that is out of the ordinary and definitely something that arouses curiosity in others. Collect strange things, go on treks to places few visit, take photographs of street grates, disappear in the back shed for hours on end "doing something mysterious", attend conventions about outer space aliens, and so forth. Whatever you choose to do, don't follow the pack; even if you pursue a fairly conventional hobby or interest, find an aspect of it that others have neglected or haven't yet realized exists and make the most of becoming the foremost expert in it.
    
    
    
13. 13
    Be prepared. Always have the right tool for everything with you. Think ahead to the places you will be for the day and the types of things that might confront you and be sure to have the items on you. For darkness, have a phone with an in-built flashlight. For spills, have a stain wipe to offer the hapless victim. For cuts, pull out a Band-Aid and a little antiseptic cream. For thirst, offer your spare water. Always be prepared so that others are in awe of your effectiveness in any situation.
    
    
    
    • Enigmatic people are not likely to want to lug around a large bag of equipment. Also know how to make the most of objects around you for safety, emergency and survival purposes. Take a course in first aid; know how to use things in nature for eating, drinking and sheltering; be aware of how to use everyday objects to fix stains, mend rips and put hair back into place. Knowing how to make the most of everything is definitely the sign of an enigmatic person because it draws together self-assurance, deep knowledge, capability, ability to stay calm and composed under pressure and a willingness to give new things a try.
14. 14
    Stay relaxed. Above all, enigmatic people are not fussed about what others think of them. Nor do they try to hard to cultivate charm––charm is a by-product of being calm, thoughtful, considerate and ready to challenge the status quo. Charm is not something that can be plucked off a shelf and worn (although enigmatic people should always take care to present themselves well through good grooming and neat clothes). By staying relaxed and at ease about yourself and the situations you find yourself in, you will always manage to exude both enigma and charm.
    
    
    
15. 15
    Study the works of Carlos Castaneda, especially his later books. He developed an entire system of enigmatic behavior.
    
    
    

How to Reduce Stress

1. 1
   Identify the causes of your stress. Before you can move forward, you need to be able to identify the causes of your stress. Take some time to be alone, get out a notepad, and list all of the things that are making you stressed. Once you have a better sense of what is causing your pain, you can begin to make changes that will improve your life.
   
   
   
   • First, look for root causes of your stress. You may think you're stressed because of your low salary, but the real root cause may be that you don't like your job and don't know what career path to pursue in your life.
   • Take a look at your relationships. Are the relationships in your life helping you be a better person and to cope with problems, or causing more harm than good?
   • See if you're stressed because of situation or if you're in a permanent state of stress. If you're stressed because you can't stand your roommates, then it's different from always being in a vague stressed state from morning until night.
   • If it helps, write down your thoughts in a journal. See if this helps you identify any of the causes of your stress.
2. 2
   Make a game plan to reduce the stress in your life. You won't be able to reduce stress if you're not methodical about it. If you're really determined to eliminate the stress in your life, then you have to make a list of all the things you can actually control and make more pleasant, and take action to have a more relaxed mental and physical state on a regular basis. Here's what to do:
   
   
   
   • Plug relaxation into your schedule. Make time to relax for at least an hour each day, especially in the morning and in the evening before bed. Write it into your planner.
   • Vow to eliminate as many sources of stress as you can. Write down the people and situations in your life that bring you the most stress and find a way to spend less time with them.
   • Declutter your schedule. One reason that many people are stressed is because they feel overcommitted and like they don't have enough time to pursue their interests or spend time with their loved ones. See if you can find a way to free up just a few hours each week.
   • Recognize that you can't control everything. There will always be stressful elements in your life, but you can minimize the stress in your life by eliminating what you can and learning to deal with the rest.
3. 3
   Reflect with the help of others. You don't have to deal with your stress alone. You'll feel much better if you open up to a friend, family member, or even a professional about how stressed you're feeling. If you share your feelings, you'll also be able to get some helpful feedback as well as a fresh perspective on your problems.
   
   
   
   • Talk to a close friend about your attempts to reduce stress. It's likely that your friend has also had to cope with stress, so you'll not only be able to open up, but you'll gain some insight as well.
   • Open up to a family member. Your family should be there no matter what -- even if you feel like a big ball of stress.
   • Know when to get help. If you constantly feel completely overwhelmed by every aspect of your life and unprepared to deal with it, then you may benefit from seeing a health professional. If you're so stressed that you can barely sleep, eat, or think straight, it's time to seek help.

Minimize the Stress in Your Life

1. 1
   Address stressful situations. Part of the reason that you're stressed out may be because you're having problems on the professional or personal front, and you're avoiding dealing with them. Avoiding your problems will only make things worse, and you'll feel better if you address stressful situations instead of sitting around and waiting for things that get worse.
   
   
   
   • Address any stressful situations in the workplace. If you feel overworked or undervalued, talk to your boss about it in a calm and reasonable matter. If you feel that you're over committed at work, find a way to do half an hour less of work a day.
   • Address any romantic relationships that are causing you stress. If you're stressed out because you're not sure where things are going with your significant other, it's better to start a conversation than waiting around to see what happens.
   • If you're having trouble with a friend, have an honest talk about it. If a situation with your friend is causing you great stress, say something and see if you can find a resolution instead of stewing.
     
   • If you're stressed at the thought of an upcoming trip, try to hammer out the details as early as you can so there are no x-factors.
   • If you're stressed out because you have a health problem but don't know how serious it is, it's time to see a doctor.
   • If you're stressed out because you're having car trouble or your roof keeps leaking, get help from a professional instead of worrying about it.
   • Make a to-do list of the little things that are nagging you, from needing to change your oil to making a dentist's appointment, and see how many you can get done in a month.
2. 2
   Minimize your interactions with people who stress you out. If someone in your life is stressing you out constantly, then you're probably better off without that person. Of course, you may not be able to cut off a stress-inducing coworker, but you can certainly try to minimize your interactions with people who stress you out on a daily basis.
   
   
   
   • Dump the toxic friend. If you have a friend who provides you with nothing but pain and drama, it may be time to cut that friend out of your life. This is guaranteed to make your social interactions less stressful.
   • Try to spend less time with stress-inducing co-workers. Though you obviously can't duck under your desk every time that coworker who always makes you worried comes by, you can try to adjust your schedule and routine slightly so you don't run into that person as often.
   • Spend less time with negative people overall. Negativity breeds stress, so try to minimize your contact with all of the negative people in your life.
   • Seek out more positive people. Counteract those stress-inducing friends with passionate people who are excited about life and can make you feel better about your circumstances.
3. 3
   Minimize the stressful situations in your life. Though you can't eliminate every situation that causes you stress, there are a few simple things you can do to minimize the situations that cause you stress on a regular basis. Here are a few tips:
   
   
   
   • Make your commute more pleasant. Traffic is a leading cause of stress for many people. Try leaving for work a bit earlier or leaving a bit later to beat or miss the rush. Play relaxing music or calming tapes in your car so the driving experience is less painful.
   • Don't say yes to invitations if they'll only stress you out. If your friend is always throwing parties that are crowded and cause you anxiety, skip out on the next one.
   • Don't rush. If you give yourself plenty of time to get ready for an event, whether it's a wedding or just a weekend brunch, you'll feel less stressed when you get there.
   • If you know that you'll be hanging out with friends or family members who just don't get along, try to avoid the situation all together if you can. If you're obligated to attend the event, try to steer clear of the sources of conflict, and you'll feel less stressed.
   • Try not to host a party or a dinner party for a while. Anything you have to prepare for to that extent will only give you more stress.
4. 4
   Minimize the stress in your life by learning to deal with it. Eliminating stress where you can is a very helpful tool, but being able to deal with imperfect situations is even better. Here are a few practical ways of dealing with stressful situations:
   
   
   
   • Think before you speak. If you find yourself in the middle of a conflict, take a deep breath and plan out what you're going to say before you blurt out something you'll regret later.
   • Remember that it's better to be happy than to be right. Instead of telling your friends or coworkers exactly what they did wrong, hold your tongue and you'll feel better and more mature.
   • Remember that other people are stressed, too. Taking the time to see that you're not the only person dealing with a large amount of stress will make you feel more kind toward others and less likely to get into a conflict.
   • Don't be passive-aggressive. If something is stressing you out, like unresolved plans, talk about it instead of holding your anger and uncertainty inside.

Relax Your Body

1. 1
   Exercise. Just 30 to 45 minutes of exercise every other day can make you feel much healthier and in control of your own life. If your body feels energized and powerful, then you'll be less stressed and will have more control over your own life. Here are some great ways to exercise:
   
   
   
   • Join a pool and swim a mile every other day. Immersing yourself in water will make you feel stronger and will wash away any of your stressful thoughts.
   • Take up running. If you really love it and have a goal of running a 5K or 10K, you will feel more capable of tackling challenges.
   • Take a yoga class. Yoga is not only great for you physically, but it will help you meditate and be in control of your mind and breathing.
   • Join a team sport, like bowling, volleyball, or softball. You'll be able to laugh while making friends and getting a great workout.
   • Take up hiking. You'll feel less stressed if you spend more time in nature.
2. 2
   Meditate. Meditating for just 20 minutes a day can reduce your stress greatly. All you have to do is find a comfortable seat in a quiet place, put your hands in a comfortable position, close your eyes, and focus on your breathing. Mediate right after you wake up, to cool down before bed, or even both times.
   
   
   
   • Be aware. Focus on being present in your body, and notice every breath and small ache you feel.
   • Relax every part of your body when you meditate.
   • Work on clearing your mind of any negative or stressful thoughts.
3. 3
   Get a massage. A massage is a great way to relax and to minimize the pain you may feel after a long day of work or school. You can give yourself a massage by massaging your neck, forearms, and palms, ask a friend to give you a massage, or even go to a professional masseuse.
   
   
   
   • A professional masseuse can be pricey, but well worth it. A masseuse will literally be able to knead some of the stress out of your body.
   • Massaging is also great foreplay. If you have a willing significant other, ask him to massage your feet or back, and see where it takes you.
4. 4
   Eat well. Maintaining the right diet is the key to reducing stress. You may be stressed because you're overdosing on caffeine or eating way too many sweets or salty foods without even noticing it. If you want to reduce the stress in your life, then you should pay particular attention to your diet. Here's how to do it:
   
   
   
   • Eat three balanced meals a day. Taking the time to enjoy your breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and not skipping meals no matter how busy or stressed you are will help stabilize your routine and give you more energy.
   • Eat a healthy breakfast. Breakfast really is the most important meal of the day, so take the time to eat healthy carbs like oatmeal, proteins like lean turkey or ham, and a healthy portion of fruits and vegetables.
   • Make time for healthy snacks throughout the day. Carry an apple, banana, or bag of almonds with you so you snack on these instead of something that makes you feel unhealthy and tired in a pinch.
   • Minimize your caffeine intake. Caffeine may give you a temporary boost of energy, but it will also make you agitated and anxious. Try to cut down from a few cups of coffee a day to just one, or to eliminate the caffeine in your life all together. Remember that it's easier to wean yourself off caffeine than to stop cold turkey, or you will feel a painful hangover effect.
5. 5
   Improve your sleep schedule. Improving your sleep schedule will go a long way in helping you reduce stress. Most people should get 7-9 hours of sleep a day to get a healthy night's sleep and to be able to deal with their daily lives as adequately as possible. Sleeping too much or not enough can make you feel groggy and unable to deal with your responsibilities. Here's how to make sure you sleep well:
   
   
   
   • Try to get the same amount of sleep every night. Don't sleep five hours a day during the week and then sleep ten hours a day on weekends, or you will feel even more unbalanced and tired.
   • Go to bed and wake up around the same time every day. This will make your routine even more regular, and will make it easier for you to go to bed and wake up.
   • Spend an hour decompressing in bed before you actually go to sleep. Read or listen to calming music, or write in your journal. Don't watch TV or get in an intense conversation, or it will be harder to shut your mind off when the time comes.

Relax Your Mind

1. 1
   Read. Reading is a great way to calm your mind and to gain knowledge. It's also a wonderful way to wake up your mind in the morning and to help yourself fall asleep at night. Whether you're reading historical fiction or a steamy romance, being absorbed in another world will help you relax your mind and stop stressing about your own life.
   
   
   
   • If it helps, you can read with calming classical music in the background before you go to bed.
   • Keep a good light source nearby, but dim the lights around you as you read to make yourself more calm and ease yourself to sleep.
   • Don't read books with an overly gruesome or stressful content, or you'll only feel worse.
   • Join a book club. This is a great way to encourage yourself to read and to make friends in the process.
2. 2
   Laugh more. Laughing has been proven to reduce stress, and the more you laugh, the more likely you'll be to become a positive thinker and to take more pleasure in your everyday interactions. Here are some great ways to laugh more:
   
   
   
   • Spend more time around people who crack you up. Maybe you don't know a girl in your social circle who is always making you laugh -- try to get to know her better.
   • Watch a comedy or even a stand-up comic.
   • Play charades or silly board games with your friends.
   • Play dress up with your friends. This is a guaranteed way to giggle.
3. 3
   Spend more time with friends. Spending more time with your friends will make you feel more loved and appreciated, and will make you feel less alone in your battle to fight stress. Though your schedule may be packed, you could always make time to grab a coffee or a drink with a close friend or even an acquaintance. Here are some things you can do:
   
   
   
   • Schedule a weekly guys' or girls' night. You'll have a great time hanging out with your pals and can even explore a new restaurant or bar together every week.
   • Take a dance class with a friend. This is a great way to get some exercise while hanging out.
   • Find a walking buddy. Going on walks is not only great for dealing with stress, but you can strike up a thoughtful conversation with a friend while walking.
   • Make time for one-on-one conversations. Hanging out in groups is great fun, but checking in with a close friend on a solo basis can help build a deeper bond.
4. 4
   Take a vacation. Though a vacation is not a permanent situation for dealing with stress, taking a vacation can give you a change of environment that you so desperately need. Going on vacation will also help you have a fresh perspective on your situation and can make you appreciate what you have instead of worry about all of the things you can't change.
   
   
   
   • Be bold and travel by yourself. This is truly adventurous, and you may meet some unforgettable people and learn a lot about yourself.
   • Go to a place you've never been with a group of friends, like Lake Tahoe or the Everglades. You'll have fun exploring a new environment together.
   • You can also just take a mini-vacation by taking a three-day weekend and driving to a location just a few hours away. This is still a great way to clear your head.
   • Try to pick a place that will let you be close to nature. Being in a lush forest or on a sandy beach will make you feel more connected with the world and relaxed.
5. 5
   Organize and clean your space. If you declutter your space, then your life will feel more organized and manageable. Organizing and cleaning your space may take some effort, but the benefits will outweigh the time you spend on getting everything right.
   
   
   
   • First, get rid of all garbage, loose papers, and expired food in your fridge.
   • Next, go through your clothes, dishes, and furniture, and either sell or donate anything that's crowding your space and giving you no use.
   • Organize your desk, closet, dresser, and any other space that is cluttered and messy. Put everything in its place.
   • Clean your floors, wipe your counters, and dust any objects that are looking worn.
   • Have fun while you do this. Invite some friends over for help and plan fun music.
   • Organizing and cleaning is half the battle. Once your home looks organized and sparkling clean, you have to work to maintain it. Spend 10-15 minutes each night throwing out anything you don't need, cleaning, and putting everything back in its place, and your mind will feel more clear.