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Facebook: How to Channel Your Inner Grumpy Cat

Facebook: Channel Your Inner Grumpy Cat

Some people naturally understand what others want to hear, and then either have no fear or no shame in saying it. There are those who can always strike a balance and share every detail of their beautiful, perfect lives. It’s great to be balanced (especially if you work from home), but today I’d rather talk about Grumpy Cat.

Everyone loves Grumpy Cat because she tells the truth, and the truth shall set us free. So here are some ways you can be set free.

Share Small Grumpy Moments

Facebook: Channel Your Inner Grumpy Cat

Don’t you hate when you haven’t had enough sleep? Your bed is lumpy and your pillow mysteriously disappeared during the night? That’s awful, right? Or your glass has a chip in it. Or maybe someone looked at you the wrong way–grrrr! So many perfectly shareable grumpy moments. How can you choose just one?

Be the Opposite of Perfect

People like to hear about those less-than-perfect moments. Moments such as the day your toddler bit you, the fantastic lemon tart you made except you used baking soda instead of flour, how after you drove away from getting your new car washed and detailed and filled with gas, you forgot to remove the hose from the tank, or how your cat fell asleep on a pile of grapefruit. And they want pictures.

Be Real

Maybe you do have the most gorgeous house in your entire city, county, and the world. But if that’s all you share, people may get tired of hearing from you, and hide you or report you as spam on social media. Not every moment is perfect, and some of the better moments come when you least expect them. Like turning away for an instant, and falling into your lovely pool and ruining your Coach handbag. (Now that’s the kind of moment we’d like to see!) Share proudly, and often.

Have a Little Fun with Tagging

Facebook: Have a Little Fun with Tagging

How about tagging some sneakers with the names of all your friends? Or something even more inexplicable, such as a sad dog looking out a window? It’s imperative that whatever object you tag has nothing to do with your friend whatsoever. Grumpy Cat would be so proud. Or, better still, jealous.

Forget About Saying Nice Things

What is it that everyone is thinking, but no one has the guts to say? Say that. If you want to learn to use good manners, that’s not the subject of this post.

USE ALL CAPS

THERE’S JUST SOMETHING, WELL, LOUD ABOUT CAPS. YOU BARELY EVEN NEED ANY EXCLAMATION MARKS WITH ALL CAPS!

THE END

6 Ways to Work from Home & Stay Sane

I’m a Social Media Strategist who works from home. While I love working in my pajamas and bathrobe, things can get a little, well, dicey if I never go outside and see that yellow orb they call the sun. Here are some things that have helped me to stay sane and still get my work done.

Keep a Strict Starting Time for Work.

For me, that means I have had my breakfast and am sitting at my desk by 8:00 a.m. Usually a little before. I can still have coffee, but the breakfast has been cooked, eaten, and the dishes are rinsed.

Don’t Be a Slave to the Phone.

This is a really tough one because people often think that if you work at home, your time is their time. Not so fast! If you don’t pick up that phone, the next time they go to call you, they might think twice. You can return those calls later when you have time.

Schedule Breaks.

Frankly, I’m not very good at following my own advice here. But every hour, you should get up and stretch. Some people say more often. On the days I take more breaks, I feel better and get more done.

Get out and See People.

Now if you’re at all introverted, you may be resistant to this piece of advice. Even so, I’ve noticed that I feel much more lighthearted if I see two people face-to-face every single day. Sophia Dembling, author of “The Introvert’s Way: Living a Quiet Life in a Noisy Word” agrees. A trip to the gym (if you actually talk to people there) counts. The other might be coffee or lunch date with another home-based friend. Maybe you’re fine with only one visit outside the office per day, but figuring out how much “face time” you need is the important take-away concept.

Know When to Fold ‘em.

That’s corny, but you do need to know when to quit. As in, before…

your fingers start bleeding from typing too much.
your eyes are crossed and your contact lenses are all dried out because you stopped blinking 3 hours ago.
you can’t finish a sentence because you’ve been working for too many hours.

You get the idea. If you work on or around social media, stopping is difficult because there’s always “one more tweet.” The Huffington Post article “Facebook Addiction” chronicles some of the telltale signs. Don’t be that person who loses sleep because you have to be social all the time. Go to sleep.

Own a Cat.

Or a dog. Or a tortoise. Or some little creature that makes you smile every once in awhile. My cat, Purrsilla, will dangle her paws onto my keyboard when I’ve done just about enough typing, thank you very much. Sometimes she’ll send me a message. It will say something like “[[[[[[[[[uuuuuuuuuu99999”. I’m pretty sure that means something in cat language. (Get up and feed me?)

What Helps You Keep Your Sanity?

Maybe you have something that helps you keep your sanity. If you do, I’d really like to know. No, really! I’m still trying to figure out how to work from home. And stay sane.