No, I’m not insulting any fellow safety professionals… I wanted to share my list of favorite safety hacks and resources that make my life easier every day. I am open to learning new things, so please share your hacks and tips with me in the comments.
1. Google Google Google
Ever since ditching iPhone and nearly all things Apple about five years ago, I’ve been all about Droids and their integration with the Google suite of apps. It started with a Google Voice number – I can sound like a larger company by having my calls screened, you have to say your name prior to the call connecting with me, voicemails are transcribed and saved on my Google Drive, and I can make and take calls on my phone, iPad, and laptop.
For the past three years, I’ve enabled my Google+ settings to automatically backup all photos taken on my phone. I cannot tell you how many times this has saved me a huge headache or small crying fit.
Google Drive is the recent MVP for me. l am able to easily attach my resume to an email from anywhere with an internet connection (so, everywhere). The best use of Google Drive lately is this: I take photos with my phone while on jobsite surveys, as soon as I have a WiFi connection, I “share” my photos to my Google Drive from my phone, sit back and wait a minute or two…using the Google Drive folder on my laptop, I can now access my photos to easily add to client reports.
2. Resize those risk control pics!
There’s an extra step to the photo uploading that you can NOT forget – resizing. Even photos taken on your smart phone end up as a huge file size unless you’ve adjusted your settings. Using my MacBook, I resize photos in minutes. Highlight all photos you’d like to resize and then click “Open With” and choose Preview. In Preview, select all and click Tools and select Resize photos. Choose the size you’d like and give your computer a few minutes to work. If you remember the days of using a website to upload and resize your photos for your risk control reports (or your MySpace avatar), you will appreciate this step.
3. Gear up.
Over the years, I have accumulated multiple chargers for my many devices. I’ve purchased them out of necessity usually – when my BlackBerry went for a swim, when I checked out of a hotel in Santa Maria but my MacBook cord remained in the room never to be seen again, renting a car only to remember I forgot my car charger in my vehicle over 1,000 miles away, and so on. If you’ve got extra chargers like me, stash them where you need them – keep a wall charger for your laptop in your backpack or briefcase at all times so you don’t need to remember to bring your charger from your home office. Keep a car charger for your phone in each vehicle that you drive regularly (or even not so regularly). The beauty of using Droid phones is that they use the mini-USB connection to charge, so you can charge them nearly anywhere.
4. Tweet and Link before a class or meeting
I elaborated on this topic at the recent ASSE meeting in Las Vegas. If you have a few minutes to prep for a meeting after you’ve done the REAL prep, look up the companies and people that you are about to meet with. You’d be surprised, both good and bad, at what you find. The best case scenario is learning something new about the company or person that you can use to establish synergy prior to the business at hand.
5. Accept it.
A broad comment on technology and social media – just go with it. Instead of learning techniques that you can use as a classroom instructor to keep your students off of their smartphones and tablets, work with it. Think outside the box and come up with ways that you can incorporate the phones, tablets, laptops, social media accounts, etc of the students in your class. I could go on with this topic, but I will save it for some upcoming speaking events! Check the Events page for more details.