Useful tips I’ve learned over the years.

Do the thing you don’t want to do first of all.
Cleaning and tidying a very messy room, divide it into four quarters in your mind. Clean one quarter at a time. Not so daunting this way.
Hang a thin plastic table cover over the glass shower screen. Keeps it spot free.
Feed the animals first (my grandfather)
Have a daily routine (my mother) Sorry about that Mum 😁

As my mother was wont to point out, it is possible that I may not always be entirely right. I do try to remember this.

Make new friends, but keep the old
For one is silver the other gold

Childrens shoes! I have young grandchildren and had forgotten how they seem to instantly disappear, so I now put them somewhere safe immediately so they are to hand when departure comes!
I photograph receipts from the post office, great for proof of postage
I also photograph the place we are staying when on holiday, so if we get lost we can just jump into a taxi and tell them to take us there
I. Might think of some more later!

teabagwoman

And tip 3) do your food prep first thing. Makes it much easier when you’re tired in the evening.

My midwife told me this on a home visit just after I had my first baby.
Such good advice.

The speaking slowly really made me laugh. I would be good to hear clear speech. Younger people sometimes mumble but of course my hearing needs some help.

Time really is a great healer. Don't take anything personally..

I don’t know where the new came from!

Jazhands I like your new phrase ‘just to clarify’. I’m quite deaf and often wasn’t sure if I’d heard everything so now I summarise back what I’ve heard and make sure I’ve got it all. It often results in my getting extra information they hadn’t thought to give.

I shall try to take on board the following two tips which I shall repeat here:

1. Do food preparation first thing. I have a weekly plan so I know what's for dinner. But sometimes I can't be bothered to do it and put off cooking dinner till very late. DH gets grumpy when he's hungry and I know we sleep better if we eat earlier. So if the cooking has been started maybe I'll not be so loathe to get going with it at 7 pm

2. Write things down that you learn about people in conversations. I have been trying to get myself to do this since my mother started getting forgetful and asking the same questions again and again. Writing it down fixes it in your memory. As a trained and experienced secretary my mother was used to writing notes but she got out of the habit. I hope to get myself into the habit. Love the story of the dentist and the Avebury stone circle! Maybe I should start a card index of friends and neighbours...

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Think twice before pressing send on emails etc.

'Just to clarify'.... I learned this from a health practitioner when I was struggling to take in information, especially on the phone. It slows things down and gives you time to ask more questions if necessary. I used to just go along with things people said to me and not really understand all the implications. I hope this little phrase helps others too.

Some really good tips on here. Thank you @Urmstongran for starting it.

I learned especially when the children were little not to react immediately to anything they told me but to sleep on it. There were a number of mothers at the school who were always falling out over their children's antics only to find that the children had made up and it was forgotten.

I tend to be impulsive but have learned that it is better to sleep on things before making a decision.

One thing I've learned is that if you have an opinion you don't have to share it, especially if it's negative. I grew up in an argumentative environment and it was quite toxic, looking back. It is entirely possible to disagree with someone without becoming disagreeable.

Also, unwelcome jobs can seem less overwhelming if you tackle them in small steps with possibly a reward for completion. Those rewards don't have to be edible.

Friendships require cultivation, don't be afraid to make the first move,

Take out your words and look at them first, my Grandma’s favourite saying

welbeck

somebody told me the thing about storing bed linen in the pillowcase; it would have appealed to me in my teens and twenties. sense of order.
now i don't care what anything looks like.
don't have patterned things, but even if i did, would not try to have them matching.
i often feel out of step on here. c'est la vie.

It’s not for ‘a sense of order’ that I do it - just to make it that much easier to find the things in a crammed airing cupboard!

A place for everything and everything in its place would make life easier if I could stick to it!

I didn’t realise until recently that you can put a different colour nail varnish on top of gel colour, which lasts for 3 weeks without chipping, to have ‘a change’ for a day then just take it off with nail varnish remover and back to the gel colour!

That hits the nail on the head Gsfar!
Off I go to walk the dog.....

Don't spend too much time reading GN posts while lying in bed in the morning when you should be getting up and doing things!

JackyB

My father taught me at a very early age not to tell people all about myself and then not ask them about themselves. Listen and react to what your interlocutor has said. ( Many interviewers should remember this I stead of just reading off their list of questions)

The idea of remembering and writing down names and significant events of other people is a very good one.

Don't worry about what people will think of something you have said or how you look. They probably won't remember.

I enjoyed reading your post. Your father was right in his advice. I agree about the interviewers and add that some of them interrupt so you can't follow the conversation on TV. My retired dentist used to write down topics of conversation and would always ask the same question about pets and tell me about Avebury stone circle.

Read knitting patterns and cake recipes carefully for best results. I tend to wing things and they end up second rate.

Message withdrawn at poster's request.