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| I’m not Declaring an Emergency May Day (Not Mayday) is an annual public holiday celebrated on May 1st in many countries around the world. It has ancient origins, but in modern times it has become a day of political and social significance, often marked by protests, rallies, and demonstrations. May Day commemorates the day that the American labor movement was dealt a severe setback — when the 1886 eight-hour day movement fell apart due to violence in a series of events known asthe Haymarket Affair. On May 1, 1886, hundreds of thousands of U.S. workers went on strike. The incident eventually became the reason why people around the world observe May Day on May 1 — to honor the people who were killed and to rebuild the movement that died in 1886. Overall, May Day is a day of celebration, activism, and renewal, and it is observed by millions of people around the world in many different ways. On the other side of the pond, the King’s coronation is taking place this Saturday. I’m not sure if you received your invitation, but it seems like mine got lost in the mail. I guess I’ll have to wait for the next coronation to get my chance to mingle and sip champagne with the royals! Sit back, relax, and let’s dive into the latest edition of The Propeller AI Did Not Write This Email This past week I had lunch with my good friend, Bob. We used to work together and have been on a few epic flying adventures – including being part of a Marine airshow at Burke Lakefront airport before catching a Cleveland Indians game and another epic trip to see a B-2 Bomber (Better known as the Stealth Bomber) do a flyover at a Notre Dame vs Air Force game on the iconic campus of Notre Dame. While we were discussing the next flying adventure (flying to Notre Dame again for the Ohio State-Notre Dame game this fall) He asked me how I come up with everything I write in these emails. I like to joke and say that all the words are out there, I just put them together in didactic ways. With all the Artificial intelligence tools out there utilizing large language models, it would seem smart to use them to write the content I provide. However, I prefer to actually research and write the content you read here. (I recently found out through family tree research that I am distantly related to William Shakespeare, so perhaps his writing skills have passed their way down to me!) I enjoy learning new things, and compiling this weekly email pushes me to learn more and share it with all of you – my friends! I’d love it if you shared this with your friends/network. It might seem silly, but the more people reading definitely helps keep me motivated to keep writing! How to Build Wealth – 5 Things to Consider 1. Be careful who you listen to: The fact is, if you REALLY want to build your wealth, you NEED to go against the grain and do what most people are NOT doing, and that includes listening to people who are where you want to be. (Don’t take that stock tip from your buddy who asked to borrow $5 to get some gas!) 2. Get in the habit of investing immediately: If you want to build your wealth, the reality is that the longer you wait to start investing, the more difficult it’s going to be because the more time you allow for your money to grow, the more money you’ll eventually have. 3. Create multiple streams of income: The average millionaire has more than 3 income sources – and, generally, the more income sources you have, the more money you’re likely to make. This could include dividend income, capital gains, interest income, rental income, royalty income, earned income, or money generated from a side hustle. 4. Minimize your spending: It’s said that the average American spends $18,000 per year on non-essential item and this is something nearly EVERYONE can start cutting back on, immediately. Don’t live beyond your means. Spend only on those things that bring you the most value to your life. 5 Avoid lifestyle inflation: The only way to overcome this is if you make more money, keep your expenses the same – don’t change a SINGLE thing – and invest the difference immediately. If you’re earning $60,000 and get a raise to $70,000 – Great, now you save another $10,000. By doing all of this, growing your wealth exponentially is entirely possible, even without a crazy high starting income – but – it will require a lot of work and discipline to stay consistent. But you’ll have the financial security that most people only dream about and those habits are likely to continue forward to build an even greater future. History of Tater Tots Tater Tots were invented to reduce waste. If Tater Tots are your favorite fast-food side, you have the ingenuity of two brothers — Golden and Francis Nephi Grigg — to thank. However, when the pair invented the crispy potato composites in the 1950s, they didn’t set out to change snack food history. Instead, their potato creation came from a quest to reduce the amount of food waste produced at their frozen foods plant. Before becoming successful spud salesmen, Golden and Francis sold frozen corn. Around 1949, they decided to diversify into other fruits and vegetables, and converted a factory in Ontario, Oregon (on the border with Idaho), into a potato-processing plant they were later able to purchase. In 1952, the Griggs launched the Ore-Ida brand, which became popular for its frozen french fries. The crispy potato spears were a hit among home cooks at a time when prepared meals and frozen foods were becoming more widely available thanks to postwar technology. The downside to booming french fry sales, however, was the waste left behind. Initially, the Griggs sold vegetable byproducts to farmers as livestock feed, but they soon looked for a way to nourish humans instead. They began experimenting with chopping up the potato scraps, mixing them with flour and spices, then shaping the result into a rectangle with the help of a simple, homemade plywood mold. The first Tater Tots — named, by one account, after an employee won a contest by suggesting “tater” for potato and “tot” for small — debuted in 1956. At first, shoppers seemed skeptical of the inexpensive scrap-based snack, but after prices were raised slightly to suggest an air of sophistication, Tater Tots quickly found a permanent home in frozen food aisles, where they continue to reign today.(I bet you didn’t think you’d be learning about tater tots today!) Tech Tips Why do things “the hard way” when you could be doing it the easy way? I mean, everybody loves a cool trick. No matter how well we know an app or program, there’s almost always some shortcut we never learned. The same goes for hardware: We may use gadgets every day without knowing their helpful quirks. So here are some of my favorite popular tech tips, tricks, and shortcuts for a range of popular programs and tools: On your Computer #1: Put your USB drive in the right way the first time Plugging in a USB cable the right way feels like a no-brainer. Then why do we get it wrong on the first try so often? Here’s the secret: Grab any USB cable sitting around your house. See that symbol on one side? It’s not just branding or decoration. That symbol will point up if you’re plugging in horizontally and if you’re plugging a cable vertically, the USB symbol will face you. Now you know. #2: Use your Scroll Wheel to open a new tab When you want to quickly open a link in a new tab, look to your mouse. After placing your cursor on the link, click down on your scroll wheel. It’ll automatically open the link in a new tab and save you from opening a new tab, copying the link location, and pasting it in your browser. #3: Reopen a closed browser tab It happens all the time. You have a dozen tabs open in your browser and accidentally close the wrong one. You could open up your browser’s history and reopen the tab from there, or you can do it with a couple of keystrokes. Simply Press the following keys together – Control-Shift-T #4: Share a YouTube video at a precise point If you see something in a YouTube video that you want to share at a particular point, you can get a link that takes people directly to that moment, you can get a link that takes people directly to that moment. Click the Share button below the video. Look for a checkbox below the link. It will automatically display the time at which you currently have the video stopped. You can stick with this time or choose a different time. Copy the link and share it on your preferred social media or email it to a friend. When someone views the link, the YouTube video will automatically skip right to the point you chose. #5: Use Quotation Marks to Narrow Your Search If you’re searching for something in Google but getting bogged down with irrelevant results, consider wrapping your query in quotes. By doing so, Google will only show results that exactly match whatever you might have in quotes. It often makes it easier to find what you’re looking for. #6: Search using “Site:” to find content like a ninja A Google search can return millions of results. Cut that down significantly by searching just a single site with Google’s Site: feature. Open Google in your browser and type “site:” and then the website you wish to search. Like this: “site:komando.com” but leave off the quotation marks. Tip in a tip: You can enter “site:komando.com search term” in your browser’s address bar and no need to go to Google. Again, no quotation marks needed. #7: Use your voice in Google Docs Or Microsoft Word I bet you already use your phone’s speech-to-text to dictate text messages or even emails, but did you know you can do the same in Google Docs and Microsoft Word? It’s free and it works surprisingly well. Open a new document in Google Docs, then enable Voice Typing from the Tools menu. Then start dictating. Voice Typing recognizes commands like “comma,” “period,” and “new paragraph” as well. In Microsoft Word, make sure you’re in the “Home” tab at the top of the screen, and then click “Dictate.” Click “Dictate” to start Word’s speech-to-text feature. #8: Crop a screenshot Screenshots are common practice, but you often capture more than you need. Revealing too much of your screen in a single image can actually threaten your security. Instead, you can take a screenshot with precise cropping, so that you include only what you want. On a Mac, press Command + Shift + 5, and a rectangle will emerge, which you can manipulate as much as you want. On Windows 10/11, go to Start, enter the Search Bar, and type Snip for the Snip and Sketch tool. This will give you a similar box that you can drag to any shape over your screen. #9: Search Google with Right Click Are you ever reading something online, see a term or person you’re interested in, and want to learn more? To do it quickly in most browsers, right-click on the term in your browser and choose the “Search Google” option in the menu. Your browser will open a new tab and show you search results on the topic. The feature works in Chrome, Firefox, and Safari. But you won’t yet find it in Microsoft Edge. #10: Quickly Access the Emoji Menu in macOS If you just can’t find the words to say what you feel and need a little emoji help on the Mac, it won’t take long to find the right option. Just hold down the CTRL, Command, and Spacebar at the same time and an emoji list will be displayed. Click your emoji of choice and you’ll be good. #11: Unsend an email Did you just send out an email to everyone that was meant for one person? Well, Gmail has the ability to unsend an email by adjusting one setting prior to writing your email. Tap or click here for the exact steps. This recall of a message will also allow you to modify spelling errors, incorrect recipients, subject line and even append forgotten attachments. Be sure to adjust the setting to a higher number than the default setting of five seconds. Let’s face it; five seconds isn’t even enough to realize you made an error, let alone hit the unsend button. Thankfully, Gmail settings provide the option of pausing an email delivery up to 30 seconds. #12: Try Out Remote Desktop to Do Two Things at Once Did you forget to send an important file sitting on your computer at home? Rather than running home to get it, load up a remote desktop app on both a computer and your smartphone. You can remotely access your computer as if you’re sitting in front of it, get the files you need, and transfer them to your other machine. There are a slew of remote desktop apps you can try, such as Join.me, Real VNC and Splashtop. #13: Use the Spacebar to Scroll Up and Down A Page Using a scroll bar — or worse, arrow keys — to move up and down a web page is tedious. So why not move up and down a page more quickly using the spacebar? Tapping on the spacebar on a web page will allow you to quickly scroll down. If you want to go back up, hold Shift while you tap the spacebar. #14: Use the Tab Key to Scroll Through Forms If you’re filling out a form and want to quickly work your way through it, your Tab key is your friend. Each time you’re done with a field and want to move on to the next one, just tap the Tab key and you’ll be brought to your desired destination. If you need to go back for any reason, hold the Shift key down and hit Tab and you’ll be brought back. #15: Use Alt-Tab to Rotate Through Open Applications Quickly jumping between applications on your Windows PC or Mac is simple. To quickly go to another app, hold down the Alt and Tab keys at the same time. Each time you press the keys, you can open another app. On the Mac, press the Command and Tab keys to get the same effect. On your Mobile Phone #16: Report junk texts and stick it to the scammers Junk texts are downright annoying. You can block them, but it feels good to take action, too. Report texts to the GSMA’s Reporting Service with just a few clicks. Forward the message to 7726 (guess what that spells?) or just hit “Report junk” in your messaging app. #17: Quickly Close Your Mobile Apps Did you know you can close up to three iPhone apps at once? To do it, double-click your Home button to bring up a list of apps. Hold three fingers over the apps on your screen and swipe up. That’s it. If you want to quickly close all the apps on your Android device, once again double-click the home button and choose the option to close all your recent apps. Be aware, though, that only newer Android versions support the feature. #18: Tap the Call Button On Your Smartphone to Redial Last Call Mobile operating systems like iOS come with a handy quick call-back feature. Open your Phone app and go to the Keypad option. Instead of dialing, tap the green call button. In iOS, the move will automatically prompt the iPhone to call the last person in your list of recent calls. Android phones offer the same feature. More tips coming in the future! What I’m Reading/Listening To This Week What I read Last week:  The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin is a remarkable book that provides a fascinating glimpse into the life of one of America’s founding fathers. Written by Franklin himself, the book takes the reader on a journey through his life, from his humble beginnings as a printer’s apprentice to his eventual rise to fame and fortune as a statesman, inventor, and writer. Franklin’s writing is clear, concise, and engaging, and he provides a wealth of insight into his personal and professional life, as well as the historical events of his time. What makes this book truly remarkable, however, is Franklin’s wisdom and wit. He shares many of his personal philosophies, such as his belief in self-improvement and his emphasis on hard work and thrift. Two of the foremost things I took from the book were his thirteen character virtues and his daily routine. These two lists make the whole book worth reading – but I’ll share them here. (You should still read the book, though!)In 1726, when he was only twenty years old, Franklin created a system that he believed would help him develop his character. Here are Benjamin Franklin’s thirteen virtues as he described them: Temperance: Eat not to dullness. Drink not to elevation. Silence: Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself. Avoid trifling conversation. Order: Let all your things have their places. Let each part of your business have its time. Resolution: Resolve to perform what you ought. Perform without fail what you resolve. Frugality: Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself: i.e., Waste nothing. Industry: Lose no time. Be always employed in something useful. Cut off all unnecessary actions. Sincerity: Use no hurtful deceit. Think innocently and justly; and if you speak, speak accordingly. Justice: Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty. Moderation: Avoid extremes. Forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve. Cleanliness: Tolerate no uncleanness in body, clothes, or habitation. Tranquility: Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable. Chastity: Rarely use venery but for health or offspring; never to dullness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another’s peace or reputation. Humility: Imitate Jesus and Socrates. Here is his daily routine (Scanned from the book):  Overall, this book is a must-read for anyone interested in history, philosophy, or the life of one of America’s most fascinating and influential figures. Get your copy here: https://amzn.to/41O5qBu What I am reading this week:  From the Books Description on Amazon: “New York Times best-selling author David Bach’s three secrets to financial freedom in an engaging story that will show you that you are richer than you think. Drawing on the author’s experiences teaching millions of people around the world to live a rich life, this fast, easy listen reveals how anyone – from millennials to Baby Boomers – can still make his or her dreams come true.”Read along by getting your copy here: https://amzn.to/3njZBgI Have a wonderful and successful week!  |
