Request Electronic signature Word Myself

As a startup founder of three years myself, I can relate to how legal housekeeping can be messy. Once a year, I have our own lawyers go through and do an audit of all of our legal paperwork (which costs a couple thousand dollars to be extremely thorough, but it’s worth it). Luckily, there are now many ways to easily manage and track all of your legal, financial, and HR documents via third-party sites that specialize in these management proceedings. I wrote a blog post about this awhile back titled “5 Ways to Save Time Dealing With Documents” which highlights certain sites that can be very beneficial depending on what paperwork you’d like to track or manage. They are as follows:1. GroupDocsGroupDocs is a new, comprehensive online service for document creation and management. It has multiple features, including a viewer for reading documents in your browser, an electronic signature service, an online document converter, a document assembly service, a feature for comparing different versions of a document, and an annotation feature. An individual plan is $10 per month for limited storage and 500 documents, while a group plan for up to 9 people is $19 per user per month. Based on the number of features and pricing, GroupDoc is a good-value purchase for a small business. As you’ll see below, GroupDocs can be cheaper than a service that offers only one such feature.2. signNowWhen you’re closing a deal and need to get documents signed, the last thing you need is a slow turnaround due to fax machine problems or the postal service. The solution is to use an electronic signature service such as signNow, which is one of the most popular e-signature companies in the world. This service allows you to email your documents to the person whose signature you need. Next, the recipient undergoes a simply e-signing process, and then signNow alerts you when the process is completed. Finally, signNow electronically stores the documents, which are accessible at any time. As a result, you can easily track the progress of the signature process and create an audit trail of your documents. The “Professional” plan is recommended for sole proprietors and freelancers, and costs $180 per year ($15 per month) for up to 50 requested signatures per month. The “Workgroup” plan is geared towards teams and businesses, and it costs $240 per user per year ($20 per month per user), for unlimited requested signatures.3. signNowsignNow is another e-signature service. Similar to signNow, signNow allows you to upload a PDF file, MS Word file or web application document. Next, you can edit the document, such as by adding initials boxes or tabs, and then email them out for signatures. Once recipients e-sign the document, signNow notifies you and archives the document. signNow offers low rates for these services: a 1-person annual plan with unlimited document sending costs $11 per month. An annual plan for 10 senders with unlimited document sending costs only $39 per month.4. ExariExari is a document assembly and contract management service that assists in automating high-volume business documents, such as sales agreements or NDAs. First, the document assembly service allows authors to create automated document templates. No technical knowledge is required; most authors are business analysts and lawyers. Authors have a variety of options for customizing documents, such as fill-in-the-blank fields, optional clauses, and dynamic updating of topic headings. They also can add questions that the end user must answer. Once you send out the document, the user answers the questionnaire, and Exari uses that data to customize the document. Next, the contract management feature allows you to store and track both the templates and the signed documents. Pricing is based on the size and scope of your planned implementation, so visit their website for more information.5. FillanyPDFIt’s a hassle having to print out PDF forms in order to complete them. Fortunately, FillanyPDF is a service that allows you to edit, fill out and send any PDFs, while entirely online. This “Fill & Sign” plan costs $5 per month, or $50 per year. If you subscribe to the “Professional” plan, you can also create fillable PDFs using your own documents. With this service, any PDF, JPG or GIF file becomes fillable when you upload it to the site. You can modify a form using white-out, redaction and drawing tools. Then, you can email a link to your users, who can fill out and e-sign your form on the website. FillanyPDF also allows you to track who filled out your forms, and no downloads are necessary to access these services.  The “Professional” plan costs $49 per month, or $490 per year.Switching firms can be a hassle. As a former startup attorney, I have a bit of advice about finding the right attorney for your business: it’s best to focus on the specific attorney you’ll be working with. He or she should have a solid understanding of the ins and outs of your business industry, a deep knowledge of the legal issues your startup may face, and previous work experience with startups to ensure a quality and efficient work product. This is absolutely key when matching our startup clients at UpCounsel to attorneys on our platform who can perform their legal work and hash out their legal projects in a timely manner. We also allow clients to store any and all of their legal documents directly on UpCounsel so they don’t have to go searching in alternative places for the correct paperwork. It’s proven to be a free and lightweight way to store legal documents that our clients love. Here's what it looks like:As I’ve mentioned, it’s more important to find the right attorney as opposed to the right law firm. And seeing as you’re a startup, our own startup clients typically save an average of 50-60% on their legal work, since the attorneys don't include overhead fees (a.k.a. the fees included for doing business with the firm itself) in their invoices.Hope this gives you a deeper look into what other sites and services are out there. If you have any questions or would like more information on how best to handle your legal housekeeping/ attorney matters, feel free to signNow out to me directly. As a former startup attorney at Latham & Watkins, I’d be happy to give you some guidance.

Good question. My guess is either:Satoshi was a truly selfless individual who wanted bitcoin to remain consensus based.Satoshi is dead and is not really committed to anonymity; orSatoshi is actually a group of people. Probably including several of the likely suspects below. Although the original code may have been written by one person the language in chat rooms, message boards and even the white paper itself suggest many unique contributors. Given this vision there were also probabaly non coders/developers who helped distribute the idea and were essentially “the political advocates” who brought the code to the internet at large. These are likely some of the people listed below that I have seen referenced as “potential Satoshi’s” (although none of these leads ever panned out).In a 2011 article in The New Yorker, Joshua Davis claimed to have narrowed down the identity of Nakamoto to a number of possible individuals, including the Finnish economist Dr. Vili Lehdonvirta and Irish student Michael Clear , then a graduate student in cryptography at Trinity College Dublin and now a post-doctoral student at Georgetown University.In October 2011, writing for Fast Company, investigative journalist Adam Penenberg cited circumstantial evidence suggesting Neal King, Vladimir Oksman and Charles Bry could be Nakamoto.They jointly filed a patent application that contained the phrase "computationally impractical to reverse" in 2008, which was also used in the bitcoin white paper.May 2013, Ted Nelson speculated that Nakamoto is really Japanese mathematician Shinichi Mochizuki.Later, an article was published in The Age newspaper that claimed that Mochizuki denied these speculations, but without attributing a source for the denial.A 2013 article in Gawker listed Gavin Andresen, Jed McCaleb, Casey Botticello, or a government agency as possible candidates to be Nakamoto. Dustin D. Trammell, a Texas-based security researcher, was suggested as Nakamoto, but he publicly denied it. Casey Botticello, the head of the Cryptocurrency Alliance has refused to comment.In 2013, two Israeli mathematicians, Dorit Ron and Adi Shamir, published a paper claiming a link between Nakamoto and Ross William Ulbricht. The two based their suspicion on an analysis of the network of bitcoin transactions, but later retracted their claim.Some considered Nakamoto might be a team of people; Dan Kaminsky, a security researcher who read the bitcoin code.

Let me inject my little humble experience with the Nationalist military—no exactly answering your question, but may provide some insight to the Nationalist government’s downfall.The Nationalist government withdrew to Taiwan in 1949, telling its own people that it was a temporary tactical maneuver and that we would soon counter-attack and retake the homeland. I was brought up in such belief. In all honesty, that was the only belief around—or rather, allowed.In 1967, 18 years after the KMT-CCP civil war, like all my contemporaries at the time, I began my military service as a platoon leader in the Marine Corps right after college (sort of ROTC-like officer in the US). When I first reported to my company with much apprehension, I felt no welcome—or rather, I was made to feel like an outsider. Without saying a word, a master sergeant handed me my uniform and placed my civilian clothing in a bag. I noticed he never bothered to solute, as I was made extremely conscious that respecting rank was an utmost important way to keep the military discipline, regardless personal feelings toward the person who happens to out-rank you. I sort tried to understand how a fifty-some-year-old master sergeant would feel when he had to salute to a young kid thirty years his junior, but, again, I did not invent the rules.I was shown to my tiny officer quarter. The place was already occupied by another officer and he grudgingly cleared out the upper bunk bed for me to crawl in. I considered myself lucky: comparing it to the open double-deck sleeping arrangement during my boot-camp days, it is a private mansion.On the same evening, I saw my platoon the first time. An unhappy—very very unhappy indeed— old sergeant named Li who had acted as the substitute platoon leader rudely summoned the thirty-some skeptically looking young conscripts and reluctantly transferred his command to me. I knew even then from the looks of the young troopers that the old fellow Li would not give up his power without a fight. I kept my posture and introduced myself briefly to the troopers and told the sergeant to dismiss the squad and let the guys rest early. Soon after I turned my back I heard the old sergeant begin barking at the conscripts and kept rambling, shouting out a long tirade about discipline, honor, and duties, which I considered completely irrelevant. I was torn between stopping him from the nonsense volley for the sake of the troopers and keeping the protocol which gave him the prerogatives as a sergeant to bark on. I backed off from the direct confrontation with Li, not a pleasant first day in the service.No sooner did I report to duty than the company was given the order to march out with full gear, with the M2 for foot soldiers, a carbine for sergeants and the .45 caliber pistol for officers. I never shot a 45 pistol but it felt good, I had to admit. We were not told where to go, or what to do or what to expect. I overheard the soldiers mumbling that since no live ammunition was dispensed so that must be good, meaning at best just an exercise of some sort, unlike two years before when live ammunition was dispensed and with all communications with outside cut off did they all break out in tears, realizing something bad was going to happen. Fortunately, I was later told, the mission was scuttled as the first ships entering Xiamen Harbor was intercepted and the entire crew was captured.We marched for hours to get on a gigantic transport ship in ZhoYin. That was quite a sight to behold: hundred and hundred of us jammed on every single square inch on deck, and the loud growling landing ships (LTV) belched heavy diesel fumes rammed into the lower deck. Soon we set sail. It was a calm but queer night; overhead, the Milky Way easily fit into your hands as the transporter was kept intentionally in the pitch darkness. Soon its swaying motions started to its tolls on the conscripts: many began to vomit, and understandably, all toilets soon turned into hell.That was a sleepless night for the most of us, and as the shimmering dawn came we could slowly make out the silhouette of the coastline. Yes, the land! No more sea sickness! The alarm sound could not come a better time as the navy guys come on deck to collect and shove us exhausted marines to the LTVs below. But the sea wasn’t as kind and the surfs were punishing. With propeller-powered bomber roaring above and the iron “water ducklings” humming in all directions, you don’t need to be told that one misstep and you are doomed. Yes, it was like a war game, but somehow I reminded myself that we were all in uniform and if the war did come, we are the most sought-after targets.The LTV ride was proven too short; soon the reality hit home: what happens after we land—this can’t be just a Disneyland ride?No one ever briefed me on the maneuver, nor did anyone bother to inform me of the exercise plan, and here I wore the badge of the platoon leader and I had not even got a map! Could the old sergeant Li keep away the info from me? Before I could collect all my thoughts, we were shoved out of the landing craft by the navy guys. Suddenly, I found myself sinking into the wet sand with twenty-some pairs of eyes looking straight at me for further orders. In front of me was a steep hill covered with thorny bushes, above me was the glaring sun, at the corner of my eyes were a group of mean-looking inspecting colonels and majors dripping white foams at the mouths. I couldn’t hear what they were yelling but my instinct told me that something does not bode well and it would be a foolish attempt trying to carry out a civilized dialogue with these people. So I instantly barked out and took my troopers to run away from the mean-looking convoy, yes, all the way deep into the hills—where no one could get us.Once in a while, I have nightmares over this incident. Clearly, that was an absolutely unprofessional way of handling a military maneuver. I cannot imagine what if that were a real military exercise any the junior officer was not even given a minimum instruction, map, schedule, or destination of the mission and the point of rendezvous. I hardly knew any of these young conscripts in my platoon, let alone the constant usurper Li. They could just easily skewer me on the rack, hang me out to dry, or push accidentally send me down to the hillside?This was in 1967. I can only guess the situation had to be ten times worse then during the Chinese Civil War.Anyway, we were drifting from hill to hill, avoiding the inspecting convoy; occasionally we met other groups who were just at a loss as we were. Loss of sleep and hunger began to take a grip on us and thirst became unbearable thanks to the unrelenting sun. I told the troopers to recuperate in the shade, waiting for instructions over the radio. The old US-made radio, a leftover from the WWII era. cracked and squealed out sporadic firecracker sounds and decided to die suddenly. The communication soldier tried desperately to resuscitate the machine by cranking the handle incessantly, but to no avail. So radio dead on all fronts, none from the company, the battalion or the regiment. We were alone!I figure that at the time, 18 years after the Chinese Civil War, hardly any one in Taiwan had any experience with anything mechanical or electronic in nature, driving was a luxury, and electronic communications were nonexistent. I could only imagine what was like 18 years before then.Lunchtime has elapsed, still no instructions of any sort from anywhere. It was near 1;30 pm came the vociferated fiery furies from the the loudspeakers by the regiment commander who few had ever met; “You can come out now, you useless cowardly bunch. You can now get off the mountains and have your lunch. Remember, if this were a real war, you would be all be dead by now.” Thank you, commander, for the encouraging words, and thank you for the lunch because we really need it. Note: this was in 1967 during peace time; how could the the similar scenario turned out 18 years ago when supplies in dire deficiency, morale low, and corruption was rampant? Did many have to kill one another for food, and drink one another’s blood to quench the thirst?Despondent and injured, I collected myself and took my platoon down the mountain paths where we met many other equally dispirited groups. In the fleeting exchanges of silent glimpse we secured the minimal pride we each sought for: no, we are no coward, we are simply the victims of the circumstances. My platoon was not reprimanded for getting lost in the exercise; the likely reason may be every single platoon, every single company was lost in the landing chaos. Of course, lunch was not meant to reward us cowards and us the fainted-heart, the regiment commander kept up with his bombastic delivery: “ You think you deserve the meal? No, you’re wrong, no one owes you the meal. You left a shameful mark on the regiment’s proud record by acting like a bunch of imbeciles. To make sure you remember your ineptness, you will begin your forced march right after lunch. For those who think they deserve a regular afternoon nap, well, you are wrong. You will march on, and you will retrospect on what you had done while you are marching. “Our fearless commander’s remonstrance clearly felt on deafears: most reaction to it was —well, damn, not even a nap! The forced march did not go well indeed as the already-exhausted troopers struggled to carry the heavy M2 rifle, the light machine gun and bipod, or the 60-mm motor component and marched in the searing heat and the murderous humidity. The first to drop out of march was Sergeant Li, and Li and other old sergeants were picked up by the supply trucks and piled up like corpses. Finally, I had my entire platoon back as all the old sergeants were gone. But the worse just began to unfold: a typhoon started unleashing its might with lashing thunders and pouring rain. A machines gun carriers felt and vomited in convulsion. I stopped to check on him but was stopped by the MP with a deadpan look in his face that the march could not be interrupted by one fallen man. The downpour seemed to produce a bizarre and hypnotic effect on me: in trying to block off the bewailing drench and gnawing fatigue, the mind began to retrograde to some of the most esoteric questions I had considered in life: “should Lady Chatterley’s lover be blamed for her decadence”, ‘why did I get such a thrill reading a banned like this?”, ‘was Freud serious when he spoke of women’s penis envy”, ‘how the homo sapiens species came to be so much alike”, or “are love, procreation, and testosterone the same thing?” Somehow, they kept my mind occupied, and kept the seemingly surreal world away from my desperately needed sanity. Was that a self-defense mechanism in full swing? i would never know.That was a long march alright. After the drench came the sweltering sun. many troopers resorted to replenish their empty canteen with water from the rice paddies. I thought about the parasites in the water but was helpless in providing alternatives. Finally we settled into an elementary school before midnight. The school field was flooded but our order was the same: set up the tent for the night. Surely the troopers set up their tents in the soggy field but all chose to collapse on the hallway, and slept in every dry corner of the school. Surely I needn’t mention the fouls from the school’s overflown toilets.The school was still on summer break so we spent a week to recuperate. On the second evening I sensed some disturbance by an unusual gathering of men in a shadowed corner of the school. in the dim light I made my way to the front of the muted and intense crowd, where I saw a scene has haunted me up to this date— a gasping conscript with a contorted face in a push-up position, heaving himself desperately away from an upward pointing dagger planted directly below his abdomen, his vein swollen, his body dripping with bead-size perspiration, and all these under a gleeful eye of an old sergeant. Someone murmured out an expletive…,”Just because he refused to obey the old guy’s order?” Another echoed with an F-word…” I will kill the old SOB when the right time comes.” Others remained hushed—there might be ears among us?On the second evening, I was drawn to a small crowd that gathered around a small windowless hut that was used as a makeshift toilet. Apparently, the toilet was locked from outside. An old sergeant appeared and ordered the door be unlocked. Soon a barely wiggled body was dragged out, obviously poisoned by the foul fumes. His unconscious body was quickly carried away by his comrades and again came the hateful murmurs among the crowd. I was struggling with my conscience on just what I had to do without “rocking the boat’ of strict discipline. I conjured up a plan, and I knew it was risky. I had no friends in this god-forsaken place, and as a junior officer, I had no voice. Tormented constantly by my inaction, I decided to take a reasonable rick to change the intolerable cruelty of abuse in the name of discipline. Thanks to the Sherlock Holmes stories I read as a child, I painstakingly scribbled on the back of an ordinary white wrapping paper with my left hand: “Stop turning a blind eye on the illegal physical abuse on the conscripts or else….” Carefully I wiped off any possible finger prints and slipped the note under the doors of the regiment’s political commissar. The abuse did abate for a while and I did not know whether that was due to my doing.it is a common knowledge that the old sergeants were drafted against their wills when the KMT government fought against the CCP in 1940’s. Most of them are illiterate and consequently it was unlikely they could eke out a living outside of the military compound, especially none could utter a word of the local dialect, the Taiwanese. The company commander was one of the very few who could read and hence managed to rise to the rank of major. Understandably he resented the intrusion by the first college-graduated officer assigned to HIS company, me, guardedly, if not with disdain. The uneasiness manifested itself from time to time, and I guessed that it must be killing him to have to constrain himself in dealing with my first request for leave: “ What the FXXX, you need to take a leave for taking the GRE exam?”, “What the Fxxx is GRE? And why do I have to approve it? “,”So you have the approval paper deemed by the DOD , then what the Fxxx do you want me to sign this damn leave paper?” Of course, he did not know, the GRE request was only the beginning of my many many requests to come, then the TOEFL, then the DoE’ overseas-study qualification exam…. I felt sorry for the old man as his turf was trampled over by an young officer who aspires nothing less than seeing the world, abandoning his sacred duty of counterattacking the mainland. The sorry-old commander punctually disappeared for two days after the payday. I heard through the grapevine that he was a regular of a brothel in Kaohsiung City. That did not surprise me as most old sergeants would disappear in synchrony with the payday. Once the old commander was forced to stay put due to some unscheduled inspection exercise. The entire company fell into the victim of his unsettling wrath. He ranted incoherently for hours, blaming everyone for everything under the sun. In the midst of lunch, he rose suddenly, baring his teeth—everyone froze— dramatically he held up his rice bowl and trashed it on the ground. “What the Fxxx is this, you called this food?, “Get me the hands in the kitchen and have them report to me immediately….yes, at right this moment!” And he looked at me in a strange frown, I guess that meant either “life would be so good without you being in my sight” or “go take a hike, can’t you see I am still the reining king here?” I did not finish my meal either, not because of the food. I did not know what valuable service I offered to my country…or I did so by simply being a nuisance in a changing world?Among all the capriciousness came a handful of personal triumphs and a few bitter-sweet moments. Slowly and steadily, I won the trust of my young conscripts most who could neither read nor write. I became their only means to communicate with their loved ones back home: by writing some of the most intimate letters in life: “Dear A-lien, I can not come home this weekend because it takes five hours to travel one way, and the buses are often jammed. please go to my home and make sure my parents know I am okay here.”, ‘Dear Mom, this is your son Way-Ho. We now station in Che-Chen, a small town in Pin-Dong County, a hard-to-get-to place. So I don’t think I can get home until the Chinese New Year Break. Please take good care of yourself, and wait until I return to plow the field.” “Dear A-Mi, how are you. I think of you often. Did I tell you we have a new platoon leader? He is a nice man and he offers to write this letter for me. I am thinking to invite him over to our wedding the next year. Oh, did I tell you he is a college graduate? He also doubles up as our marching song teacher at the request of the political commissar from the headquarters. Also, because he was so good at many things, he began to teach us the Chiang Kai-Shek ‘s speeches as well, and he is very good at it, and he often makes us laugh.”, “Dear father, with great respect from your son, I am serving my military duty, and I follow the orders of my superiors as you always told me. Last time you said you had a backache, I hope you feel better now. do worry about the chicken flu. Just salt them first and sell them in the market. If you charge less, people will buy it no matter what. Oh, we won the military marching song contest last week, thanks to our new platoon leader who taught us how to beat our competitors; by singing as loud as possible, showing the spirit, never mind the tones, he said….”One quiet Sunday afternoon, I had an unexpected visitor: the old sergeant Li who tried to usurp my authority as the platoon leader. It was the first time he looked so respectful and subdued. I asked him to come into my tiny quarter and offered him the only chair in the room and some water. “Can I help you?” I asked of him. He began to blush and stammered, “I was wondering, Sir, if you can do me a big big favor?” I immediately sensed it must be something extraordinary but I held back my anxiousness less he should back away from talking. “You see, Sir, I left my home in Sun-Dong for twenty-some years and I have always worried about my families back home.” He paused and took a calibration on my reaction to decide whether he should continue his delivery. I knew exactly what he was about to say; back then, anyone suspected to have communicated with the mainland Chinese can be rounded up as a communist spy or sympathizer and can be punished by death. No small matter, this man is trusting his entire life on me. He went on and begged me to write a letter on his behave, telling his families that he is alive and well. “I heard that you are going to America in a few months. When you get there, would you please mail this letter to this address in China for me. Oh, I have managed to save up some money for this date. Please convert it to the US money and sent it to them? It’s not much, but that’s all I have.” His voice turned hoarse and his face buried under his weathered hands. He insisted I took his money and before he left he hesitated for a couple of seconds before he uttered the final words between us: “I wish to tell you how sorry I am when you first came. I don’t deserve to hope to see you again.”A few days before my discharge, I was summoned to the political commissar’s office in the regiment’s headquarters. “Lieutenant Yang, come in.” he was a lanky fellow in his late fifties, with a hawkish look and a easy disparaging smile. “ I have looked over your service record and found blemishes that can easily stop you from getting a passport for studying abroad, you know what I meant? ” I stood in attention and desperately stayed calm, knowing this man alone could derail my entire aspiration to see the world, especially the big world outside of this tiny island. “No, Sir, I thought I had helped to teach political courses and our regiment scores high on the tests.”. He smiled broadly and said, “Now stop beat around the bush; I know you are smarter than that, and I am not just talking about your lukewarm attitude toward slogan chanting during the morning roll calls either.” “Sir, I can explain….” He waived to shut me up and officiated his verdict,”Indeed, your contribution to elevating our regiment’s test score by two notches makes you a net contributor to the military, and I congratulate you for earning your honorary discharge. Just sign your name here and you will be a civilian in no time.”I was a bit startled by the need for enacting such episode, but I still signed in earnest, hoping I never have to see him ever again. But I was wrong; he took his time checking my signature and glared at me dispassionately, “Lieutenant Yang, you have a smart handwriting indeed.” before I collected my self in disbelief , he pulled out his drawer and handed me a piece of white wrapping paper, “ I think this paper should go back to its rightful owner.” It was his final words. And yes, that was the paper I wrote with my left hand. Yes, the ink of my fountain pen gave it away, which Sherlock Holmes never taught me. Still, the old man is cool.Why do I write this story, and is there any relevance to the question of what would happen if the nationalists won the civil war? My answer is; never mind the question. Let the past die! KILL IT if you have to. ” (copyright disclaimer—Star War)Many Many innocent Chinese died; many many families dispersed, many many lives were wasted during the Chinese civil conflicts. Do not glorify the overly fabricated history. Learn from the past we know and look ahead, never make the same mistakes again.

I’m not big on the idea of favorites in general. I have a very hard time choosing just one to like when so many are great in their own way. However I will concede to your inquiry and give you the luxury car that I am most intrigued by.The Toyota Century.Never heard of it? Unless your into Japanese executive transport or just a car nut, that’s not surprising. It’s essentially Toyota’s take on the Rolls Royce Phantom and was designed specifically for sale to an exclusive group of Japanese hierarchy. You can’t even actually buy a new one if you wanted, you need an invitation, similar to the Lexus LFA or Ford GT.It’s also not particularly glamorous or beautiful. It’s hard and purposeful, as if sculpted from a solid block of obsidian. It’s shape and lines evoke the sense that it was penned for an early 90’s anime crime boss and then accidentally put into production. To me that’s the charm. I’m a bit obsessed with expensive cars that do a great job of looking more plain than cheap cars and pull it off without sweating.The absolute most interesting and cool part? It has cloth seats.The entire interior is practical, purposeful and ergonomic. I almost wish it had a front bench seat too, that would be icing on the cake.You really start to see its purpose as a chauffeured vehicle when you look in the back.How absurd and cool is that?The only disappointing part of the car is that a new V8 has replaced the epic V12 the previous generation had.You may be wondering why my ‘favorite’ luxury car is a Japanese knock off and de-contented Rolls Royce. I would boil it down to the fact that it fits the unicorn status (I will probably never see one in person) and the perfect way it fulfills my strange mental image of Japanese high luxury.I’m also a fan of Grand Seiko watches and I consider the Toyota Century as the automotive version of a GS watch.Given the option I would purchase a Grand Seiko over a Rolex and a Toyota Century over a Rolls Royce.

Before I answer this question, I want to start by pointing one thing out…You’re not supposed to work long hours!According to all of the best research, after 35 hours of work, your weekly productivity will begin to declineThis means that if you were working at a level 8–10 for the first 35 hours of the week, you’ll be working at a level 5 or below for hours 35+.While there are many people like Gary Vaynerchuk who seem to be able to bend reality to their will and work insane hours for extended periods of time, the simple fact of the matter is this:You only have so much mental energy to expend in a week.You cannot be operating at 100% for 60, 70, or 80 hours a week. It’s just not possible.And if you try… Then you are going to wear yourself out and lower the quality of the other hours that you work.It’s far better to work 35 or fewer hours per week where you are hyper focused and productive than it is to work 60 where you are burnt out and frustrated.But I digress…If you’re anything like I was 2–3 years ago, you’re going to read this and completely ignore it, and that’s fine. Most people have to experience things firsthand before they will really believe them.So with that disclaimer out of the way, here are a few tips and tricks for increasing your energy, focus, and productivity so that you can work long hours effectively.(Note: Some of this content is pulled from my Ultimate Guide to Limitless Productivity where I share the most scientifically validated ways to increase your productivity and get more done in less time)1. Sleep at Least 7.5 Hours Each NightIf you want to have the stamina to work long hours, then you need to make sure that your body and mind are fully rested and equipped to handle an arduous work load.According to Medical Daily, 40.6 million Americans, more than 30% of the workforce, are chronically sleep deprived.Now, at first glance, you might think, “C’mon Andrew, who gives a crap? You can sleep when you’re dead, these people just need to work more!”But when you consider that sleep deprivation has been linked to:DepressionDeliriumHallucinationsImpaired Cognition and an Increased Risk of Preventable AccidentsNot to mention, an increased risk of infections, cancer, and overall mortality.You begin to realize that sleep deprivation is a big deal.Like a really big deal.I know that most young people love the #hustle mentality and believe that there is something noble or productive in sleep deprivation.But nothing could be further from the truth.Unless you have the rare genetic mutation, DEC2, (present in less than 5% of the population) sleeping less than 6 hours a night is literally killing you.And the worst part?You aren’t even aware that it’s happening.Now, let’s consider the positive effects that studies have shown to be present when an individual gets sufficient sleep.Improved memoryLower systemic inflammationImproved immune functionElevated moodLearning and problem-solving abilities improvedI don’t know about you, but I personally believe that having a better memory, experiencing less illness, feeling happier, learning faster, and solving problems more rapidly all strongly correlate to being more productive.This isn’t just my opinion either. In fact, some of the world’s top performers report sleeping more than 8.5 hours a night.Podcast Guest, Neil Patel sleeps 9.25 hours a night while running three multi-million dollar businesses.Arianna Huffington, Co-founder of the Huffington Post and multimillionaire claims that sleeping 8 hours a night was partially responsible for her success.James Altucher, multi-millionaire investor, and hedge fund manager includes “Sleeping 8 Hours” as one of the keys to his financial successAt this point, it should be clear that getting more sleep is, indeed, one of the quickest ways to boost your productivity.But the question still remains, “How much sleep do I need, and how can I get better quality sleep?”According to the National Sleep Foundation, adults need 7-9 hours in order to prevent the effects of sleep deprivation from affecting your life and productivity. (slightly more if you’re an avid athlete)As for increasing the quality of your sleep, it’s actually pretty simple.Go to bed before 11 p.m.Wake up at the same time each daySleep in a completely dark and cold room (research shows that 65-67 F is ideal for sleep)Exercise dailyTurn off all electronics 60 minutes before bed.I know that this particular section was a little bit long-winded, but this point is so important that I couldn’t simply breeze through it.If you want to be more productive, you need to sleep. Period.Until you are getting 7.5-9 hours of sleep on a consistent basis, the other tactics included in this guide will simply fan the flames of burnout until, eventually, you collapse in a stressed out, sleep deprived panic attack.Take it from me (and thousands of scholarly studies), quit trying to join the sleepless elite and get your 7 hours. M’kay?2. Sweat for At Least 20 Minutes a DayStudy after study after study has illustrated the tremendous importance of daily exercise.From:Decreased depressionElevated mood, reduced stress, and less anxietyImproved blood flow to the brainThe production of new brain cellsImproves memoryImproved discipline, impulse control, and decision makingIn fact, there are SO many benefits to exercise, that the Harvard Business Review has stated that regular exercise should be a mandatory part of any job description.Luckily, studies have shown that you don’t have to exercise for hours every day to reap these benefits.In fact, just 150 minutes of weekly exercise (that’s 30 minutes every weekday) is more than sufficient to improve your productivity, mood, and general well being.If you are exercising exclusively for increased productivity, studies have shown that 2-3 moderately intense sessions of aerobic exercise each week will have the most dramatic impact on your ability to focus and concentrate.However, this does not mean that you should exclusively train your aerobic capacity.Further research has indicated that combining regular aerobic conditioning with an intelligent weightlifting regimen (I recommend this one) and regular yoga will have the greatest impact on your ability to be more productive and stay focused throughout the day.3. Eat Clean Burning Foods and Reduce Your Carb Load Early in the DayMost people underestimate the effect that your diet has on cognitive performance and general productivity.Think about it this way…Your brain is the center of all productivity.Although that tiny little supercomputer takes up only 2-3% of the total mass of your body, it burns more than 20% of the calories that you consume!In and of itself, this should clearly illustrate the link between food and productivity.Studies from the Harvard Business Review have shown an inextricable link between the calories that you consume and the ability for your brain to focus and achieve long-lasting concentration.I won’t bore you with all of the science, but I will suffice it to say that what you eat matters… A lot.If you want to be as productive as possible, you will want to clean up your diet.Here are a few guidelines to get you started.Eliminate as many processed foods as possibleConsume slow burning foods such as raw vegetables and fibrous carbohydrates throughout the day to properly regulate glucose levels in the brainConsume your biggest and highest carb meal after your workout or at dinnerSkip breakfast and opt for coconut oil coffee or eat a very protein and fat rich breakfast (no carbs!)Although you can dive much much deeper into the world of productivity and focus through dieting, simply eliminating processed foods, increasing the number of vegetables you eat, and waiting until later in the day to consume carbs will dramatically improve your productivity almost overnight.If you are interested in learning more about how your dietary choices and productivity are related, check out this awesome infographic from Hubspot.4. Bring the JoyAlthough it might seem like common sense, happy and excited people are more productive.How much more productive?Well, according to a study compiled by Professor Andrew Oswald, Dr. Eugenio Proto and Dr. Daniel Sgroi from the Department of Economics at the University of Warwick, happy employees are 12% more productive than their unhappy peers!I don’t have time to dive into all of the amazing research that has been compiled in recent years that details what determines human happiness, (you should check out the Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor if you’re interested in this), I want to share a quick tactic I picked up from Brendon Burchard.The tactic, called “Bring the Joy” is simple enough, but the results you will experience are profound.All I want you to do is to set 3 alarm on your phone titled Bring the Joy.Set them to go off at different times throughout the day and, when you see the notification pop up on your screen, I want you to ask yourself three questions.What level of joy and presence am I bringing to this present moment?What am I grateful for today?How can I bring more joy and excitement into my current interactions and activities?Like I said, simple right?I challenge you to try this tactic for the next 30 days and genuinely pause and become aware of your state every time your alarm goes off.You will be amazed at how much more productive and joyful your life will become.5. Meditate for at Least 10 Minutes a DayAlthough the scientific community needs to further evaluated the direct link between meditation and productivity, several studies like this one, conducted at a Fortune 100 company, show a very clear link between a regular meditation practice and increased productivity at work.The reason for this is simple.Meditation is proven to help: (source)Lower blood pressureAlleviate symptoms of insomniaReduce depression and anxietyReduce painReduce symptoms of IBSAid in smoking cessationOh, did I mention that it has also been shown to rebuild grey matter?As I’ve already discussed, happiness and productivity are inextricably linked and it should be pretty clear that any practice which decreases depression, anxiety, and sleeplessness will, by default, improve your productive output.I challenge you to take up a meditation practice for the next 30 days and record how you feel.Arnold Schwarzenegger, the infamous bodybuilder, real estate tycoon, and “Governator” of California stated that his one year of intense TM (Transcendental Meditation) practice has created results that6. Take Strategic Breaks Throughout the Day to Maintain Your Energy and EnthusiasmOne of the most surprising ways to increase your energy and boost productivity is actually to work less and take breaks more frequently.Study after study has shown that the human brain cannot focus (effectively) for more than 90 minutes.Eventually, your brain needs a break from any given task to consolidate and process information, renew our focus, and ensure that our tasks are ultimately congruent with our goals.Later in this article, I’ll discuss the Pomodoro method which helps cement these findings into your daily workflow.But for now, I simply want to encourage you to start taking a 45-60 minute break in the middle of every workday.During these breaks, I recommend that you:Practice meditationWalk outsideEat a light snackDo some calisthenicsReadTalk with friendsTest out different methods of recharging yourself and renewing your focus throughout the day and it will pay dividends in the long run.7. Eliminate Email as Much as PossibleNothing will drain your focus and stamina more than wasting nearly 30% of your work week responding to emails!In the United States alone, the average employee spends more than 28% of their time or 13 hours a week responding to emails.That’s more than 650 hours a year wasted on largely unproductive, reactive, and unnecessary correspondence!Over the average employee’s lifespan (45 working years) that equates to more than 29250 hours wasted on email.For those of you who are quick with a calculator, this means that the average employee will spend 3 years of their life responding to and clearing out emails!That’s a jaw-dropping amount of time to spend on such an insignNow and largely unimportant task as email.So what in the hell are we going to do about it?Although entire books have been written on the topic of reducing email overload and reclaiming your inbox (and your life) I will keep things simple.I recommend that you:Check email only twice a day (I do it at 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.)“Touch it once”. Either respond to, archive or delete an email. Never leave it in your inboxStop using email folders and simply search for emails when you need themKeep your emails to 5 sentences or less and inform people of this policy in your signature (shoutout to Chris Bailey for this one)Go on an email vacation and let co-workers know you won’t be responding to email until you are done with your biggest project (they will survive I promise)If you do nothing other than implementing these five tips your productivity will skyrocket.Imagine if you could reduce the amount of time you spend on email to only one hour a week.How much more could you accomplish with 12 extra hours in your work week?How much income could you create? How many promotions could you secure?The more you think about it, the more you will realize that email is the scourge of productivity and, although it is a necessary evil, it is an evil nonetheless.8. Embrace the Power of “No”The most powerful word in the entire English language is composed of only two letters.“No”The word “No” has started wars, ended wars, overthrown oppressive governments, and, as it pertains to our conversation, revolutionized personal productivity and fulfillment for people all over the world.Just think about it for a moment.How much pain, discomfort, and genuine wasted time have you experienced in your life because you said “Yes” when you should have said “No”?How many times have you spent an afternoon with people that you didn’t like, in a setting that made you uncomfortable, for a purpose you couldn’t ascertain simply because you didn’t have the courage to say “No”?If you are anything like me, the answer is probably “A lot”.I know from first-hand experience that implementing the power of “No” into your life can be very challenging.For years, I was a chronic people pleaser.I would go to parties I didn’t want to attend, stay late at work, go on dates with people I didn’t care for, and generally lived my life for the approval of others instead of my own personal satisfaction.Until one day, I had enough.I was burnt out, stressed out, wallowing in unfinished projects, unmet personal expectations, and general angst about my existence.So I decided to say “No” more often.I said no:When family members wanted to hang out during my workdaysWhen audience members asked to take me to lunch (I love you guys but I literally cannot meet with 30,000+ men 1-on-1)When friends wanted to go out and I didn’tWhen people made unfair requests of me and my timeWhen people asked for unwarranted favors because they were “My friend”I said “No” to the bad and even the good so that I could say “Yes” to the great.And if you want to be as productive as possible and create a truly prolific life, then you must learn to do the same.9. Use the Pomodoro TechniqueRemember how we talked about the importance of taking breaks way back in Path #1 (yeah, I know this is a long ass article)?Well, it turns out that taking breaks every 50-90 minutes can be just as effective at increasing your productivity and focus throughout the day as the 45-minute renewal exercise we already discussed.The reason for this lies in something called the Ultradian Rhythm.Effectively our brain waves are cyclical and go through peaks and troughs roughly every 90 minutes.In the same way that your brain cycles through different wavelengths during a 90-minute sleep cycle, so too does your brain cycle through wavelengths in a “basic rest-activity cycle”.If you are interested in learning more about the science, you can check out this article from Tony Schwartz.Knowing that cognitive output is cyclical, meaning that you physically cannot sustain high levels of concentration without intermittent periods of rest, changes the entire approach to productivity and focus.This is where the Pomodoro technique comes in handy.Instead of fighting against your Ultradian Rhythm, the Pomodoro technique works with it.Here’s what you do.Instead of simply sitting down at your desk to work, you are going to pick one of your most important tasks of the day (which I will talk about in the next point) and focus on it for a definite length of time between 25 and 90 minutes.Then, you are going to set a timer, eliminate all distractions, and get to work on that project with single-focus until the timer goes off.When the timer buzzes, you are going to take a break anywhere from 5-22 minutes (depending on the length of your work session) before sitting back down to begin the process all over again.All you need to complete the Pomodoro Technique is:A physical or online timerSomething to work onYour brainIt really is that simple.I’ve tested this tactic out for myself and have noticed that I am consistently more productive, more efficient, and more happy with my output when I use the Pomodoro technique on a regular basis.10. Create Locational Anchors to Build Productive StatesAn underground tactic that I’ve found to be immensely effective in recent months is the use of locational anchors.This concept was first introduced to me when I listened to an excellent podcast with Jairek Robbins.Jairek discussed the concept of locational anchors by explaining that the brain works through the power of association and that, the more associations we can build for a specific task, the easier it will be to accomplish it.This is why doctors tell you to only use your bed for sleep and sex.You want to make sure that when it’s time to unwind or *ahem* perform, that your body and brain associate your bed with those activities.This is also why it’s so much easier to have an awesome workout at your local gym than it is with an Iron Gym in your living room.However, Jairek took things a step further and recommended that you actually develop locational anchors for ALL major tasks that you must complete throughout the day.For example:Check email at the kitchen tableTake conference calls at your local cafeWrite at your desk while looking out the windowDesign sales funnels at your desk with your back to the windowComplete all administrative work at a specific nook in your houseThe list goes on and on.Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any direct research to back up this particular hack, however, after experiencing its effectiveness first hand, I couldn’t leave it off this list.Give it a go for 90 days and I promise you will get more done than you ever believed possible.Final Thoughts: Take it Easy on Yourself!Before I leave you to take on the big bad world of getting sh*t done and becoming a productivity machine, I wanted to leave you with one final tip.Take it easy on yourself.The most unproductive thing you can do is to berate and belittle yourself because you haven’t been as successful or productive as you want.Yes, it’s important that you are honest with yourself and your clients and don’t sugarcoat the reality of your current capacity.However, you must remember that you were never taught this in school. You weren’t born with the knowledge of how to be massively productive.You’ve simply been operating on whatever systems you picked up from the people around you and, hopefully, you now have better systems to test and implement.Productivity and focus are both acquired skillsets.You aren’t born productive and it’s not something that is determined by your genetics. It’s a matter of principles and systems, testing, failing, and figuring out what works for you.So take it easy on yourself as you strive to get more done.The journey will take time, but it will be worth it.Good luck!Closeout this article and go get some shit done!