Attention, New Yorkers! There are still a few spaces left for the free talk given by Ari Meisel this Wednesday at 8pm here at Fancy Hands.

Learn how to automate and outsource everything in your life! 

RSVP here: http://arimeiselfancyhands.eventbrite.com/

It's Groundhog Day...again! 

Here's a coupon code: 

i-got-you-babe

For 50% off the your first month!

In honor of Groundhog Day tomorrow, here's a coupon code: 

i-got-you-babe

For 50% off the your first month!

And the best line of the movie...

Phil: Do you ever have déjà vu, Mrs. Lancaster? 

Mrs. Lancaster: I don't think so, but I could check with the kitchen. 

Architectural/engineering/construction blogger & podcaster Matt Handal shared his love for Fancy Hands: 

One of the biggest challenges many marketers have is too many things to get done but not enough time to get them done in. And it’s often the “little things” that clutter our to-do list, like setting up appointments, editing word documents, researching information, etc.

But what if you could get just one more task completed per day? How much more productive would you be? How much more valuable would you be to your organization?

Sounds like you could use Fancy Hands!

Fancy Hands is a service I’ve been using for about two weeks, and I have to say, so far it’s mind-blowingly great!

Here's how it works: for $45, they gave me 15 requests. I can ask their army of US-based personal assistants to do anything that can be done remotely and isn’t illegal. Each task shouldn’t take more than 15 minutes. So you have to break larger tasks up into 15 minute increments (but in reality, they’ve spent upwards of 30 minutes on one task for me).

There is an added bonus. If you link up your Google Calendar account, they will call and schedule meetings for you for FREE. Yes, it’s true. They won’t cold call anybody for you. But they will set up appointments with your current contacts. This is only free if you link up a Google Calendar account (which is free anyway).

In addition, they can set up conference calls for you with up to 40 people. Instead of giving you a call in number, they call all the participants when its time to start. Although this is similar to scheduling a meeting, it will cost you a task.

You can email them tasks, or call them, or submit requests through the Fancy Hands website.

Here’s what they’ve done for me so far:

-Picked out and bought flowers for my wife, then arranged for them to be delivered to her office on Valentines Day.

-Identified all the architecture, engineering, and construction firms in a specific city.

-Identified every daycare center within five miles of my new house and called me when they had the list (they identified 15).

-Called all 15 daycares and interviewed them with a list of questions I provided. They provided me the results in an excel sheet.

-Arranged tour appointments on a specified day with seven of the daycares. Added these to my calendar (FREE).

-Arranged a Skype meeting with Tim Klabunde. Added this to my calendar (FREE).

-Made edits to a four-page word document.

-Called Cannon’s service repair center to find out if it was cheaper to get my SLR camera lens fixed or replaced.

-Found pricing for travel and hotel for different scenarios in which I travel to Indiana.

In all, they made 42 calls on my behalf and saved me a lot of time. They didn’t royally screw anything up. They didn’t drop any balls. They didn’t roll their eyes at me. They didn’t question me. They just did what I asked.

And guess what, I still have six requests left!

Most tasks were turned around in a couple of hours. Sometimes the appointments took a day or two to set up.

I paid for this out of my own pocket, just to check it out. And I’m glad I did. Even if I have to pay for it myself, I think it’s worth it.

You don’t need to be a Vice President or Director to use this service. It’s for anyone at any position level that could use some help. That’s what I like about it.

Rachel Eakley's a busy girl. As a trained chef, psychology grad student, blogger, dog owner, and girlfriend to David Karp, the founder & CEO of Tumblr, she's got a lot to juggle. 

She shared how she manages her days here:

Semi-solicited Observations on Time Management

A few people have asked about my time management. Since I’m getting ready to start a new semester, I’m at my most organized. I thought I’d share a few things.

Schedule. 

I have to make a schedule to fit everything in. It is important for this schedule to be realistic, which took me a long time to learn, otherwise I get really discouraged around Wednesday when I start to have a lot of left over stuff pile up from earlier in the week. Living by a well set schedule does not have to be boring. On my schedule I have standing dates with my two closest every week. We usually have dinner and watch TV but we see plays, go to the movies, go bowling. But it’s on the schedule and I make sure to set that time aside each week. 

I schedule my chores. Monday I go to the grocery. Every Monday. No matter what. It’s annoying but not only do I always have groceries, I don’t spend my actual free time feeling guilty that the laundry or other errands need to be done. There is a designated time for all of that. I also keep a day, this semester it’s Friday, mostly open to catch up with anything I fell behind on. Obviously things come up, but the idea is to stick to the plan as much as possible. 

Prioritize.

I can’t always do everything I want in a day. But I know what my perfect day would look like and I try to get close to that. School work and fitness are at the top. So since I have a lot more class time, homework, and a couple grizzly commutes this semester, I’ve had to cut down on the hours I make available for my lab. I write all my homework and exams into my schedule at the beginning of the semester. If my week isn’t that busy or if I’m caught up with school and work then I might schedule more “fun” stuff that week. 

Make time.

I get up early at 6 or 7 and get a lot done before I leave for school. I go to bed around 10 or 11. I could sleep in but that time in the morning is so productive. If you’re a night owl, maybe this would be reversed for you, the point is to take advantage of the time you’re the most productive. 

Find Time.

I actually wrote this as I waited as four L trains went by that I couldn’t fit on and then as we were held at 3rd ave because someone was sick on a train ahead of us and then while waiting for another train when the first one I was on was taken out of service! Making what seems like an inconvenience into an opportunity is a good way to maximize time. I’m going to be late anyway at this point I might as well use it. And it also helps you not get as angry as some of your trainmates about a situation that is out of your control. The same works for waiting at the DMV and waiting for, lets say, your boyfriend to finally show up to dinner! 

Use all time as fully as possible.

I’m getting better at this and it’s really been helpful. Multitasking usually makes you do a mediocre job at both things (thanks, Ron Swanson and also science!) but if done right it can be really great. I catch up with my mom and dad on my walk to the subway. I listen to pre-lecture pod casts on the way up work. I watch TV while I run at the gym (this is currently my favorite thing ever!). I went grocery shopping with my friend this week so we could cook dinner together. But I also did my weekly shopping then. It was Monday. No matter what! Necessary thing + social life is a great way to make that necessary thing something to look forward to. 

All this planning adds up so that, hopefully, I have no responsibilities on the weekend. I haven’t mentioned Karp in all of this time planning. David is super busy and travels a lot so we don’t get to see each other that much on weekdays. I’m trying to pack more stuff into the weekday and leave weekends alone. He’s pretty spontaneous (nearly my polar opposite scheduling-wise) so if I’ve managed to keep my weekend free it lets us get out of the city or at the very least, enjoy it more. 

Orry not only makes things work on our website, he combines his technical knowledge with a flair for design, creativity, and a sense of humor.

Find the “USA” at the bottom of our homepage and click on it a few different times for a variety of patriotic video entertainment, thanks to Orry. 

He also created a genius Chrome extension that he named “Netflix Rottenizer”, which lays Rotten Tomatoes' ratings over your Netflix page so that you can see movie ratings as you make your selections. Get it for free here. 

WHAT ARE YOUR INTERESTS? 

Drumming, guitaring, skee-balling, building things, world domination.

WHAT ARE YOU GOOD AT? 

Everything above except for skeeball... and world domination. 

WHAT IS YOUR WORST QUALITY? 

(This field intentionally left blank.)

WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE REQUEST TO GIVE TO OUR FANCY HANDS ASSISTANTS?

My favorite requests involve asking random bits of information. For example: how far underwater is the L train buried in the East River? (47 feet, according to Jennifer D).

I also like using FH to make phone calls for me. They've made me haircut appointments, found ticket availability at venues, found me a flight school, and even cleared up some legal issues.

MOVIES, BOOKS, TV, VIDEO GAMES - WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE?

Back to the Future, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Arrested Development, and Monkey Island, in respective order.

WHO IS YOUR SPIRIT ANIMAL?

The owl. 

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO THE 16 YEAR OLD VERSION OF YOURSELF?

Don't take the Explorer off-roading in a construction zone, trust me, it's not worth it. Also, you're not gonna impress anyone by chugging that bottle of Svedka at AK's house senior year. Not worth the cleanup, dude.

Today, strike a balance between dreaming and doing. 

Kai Davis is a Fancy Hands power user. Check out his blog post that sings our priases: 

"It was 9am and I had just climbed onto a train to San Sebastian, Spain, with the clothes on my back, with no place to stay and no clue what was waiting for me in San Sebastian.

Three hours earlier, my host family in Madrid woke up to the sound of me running out the door, saying ‘I’m headed to San Sebastian, I’ll be back on Thursday’, with nothing but my iPhone and the clothes on my back. I didn’t even know where I’d be sleeping that night, but I had a secret weapon up my sleeve: The Virtual Assistant service Fancy Hands. 

Just today, I’ve used Fancy Hands to:

-Confirm the hours of a restaurant and make a reservation for later in the week

-Find an auto detailing shop in Honolulu that offers pick-up / drop-off and book an appointment

-Call a medical provider, confirm an appointment, and reschedule it for later in the week

Fancy Hands has been the magic in my pocket for 18+ months. I use them more than any other online service because they — constantly — help me waive goodbye to stress and spend more time on the things I love.

When I had a quick question, I emailed Fancy Hands. (‘Hey, when is the production of Wicked in Honolulu until? How much are tickets?’)

When I needed to book an appointment, I emailed Fancy Hands. (‘Can you call my chiropractor (541.555.5555) and book an appointment for Thursday, Friday, or Saturday? I dropped a jar of Apple Sauce and pulled my back. I know, I’m a goofball.’)

When I was researching an upcoming trip, I emailed Fancy Hands. (‘What hostels are on the North Shore of Oahu?’)

When I ripped my favorite pair of pants, I emailed Fancy Hands, and they tracked down a similar replacement style and called the local Gap to confirm they were in stock!

On The Train to San Sebastian

At 9am, I pulled out my iPhone and fired off two quick emails to Fancy Hands:

'Hey Fancy Hands, I just jumped onto a train to San Sebastian. Can you put together a summary of tourist activities I should check out? (museumes, art galleries, aquariums, and hikes are preferred). Oh, and are there any Vegan Restaurants in town?'

'Hey Fancy Hands, I’m headed into San Sebastian. Can you send me links to the three hostels in town with the highest reviews? Thanks!'

90 minutes later, two Fancy Hands assistants sent me back an itinerary for my trip in San Sebastian. Vegan restaurants, hostels and hotels, and tourist sites to see. Everything I’d need for a wonderful trip was there.

When I headed back to Madrid, Fancy Hands put together an itinerary of the sites I should try to see during my last few days in Spain.

I love Fancy Hands because it helps me spend time on the things I want to be doing — exploring a new country, writing, spending time with friends — by taking care of the small tasks that pop up throughout the day."

__________________________________________________________________

Kai wrote a guide book on how to best use Fancy Hands that you can download for free through his website. Why would he do this? Becuase if you sign up for our services through his link, he gets a referral credit. Kai's a smart guy. 

We provide all of our customers with referral links so that they can receive credits when their friends sign up. Word of mouth is a powerful tool in the startup world, and nothing makes us happier than knowing that our customers are so satisfied with our service that they'd recommend us to others! 

Our customer Zach Silver wrote a blog post and titled it: 

"Fancy Hands – a service I couldn’t live without."

Zach integrated Fancy Hands assistants into his life, and it has made everything easy breezy in a world of creezy.

('crazy' doesn't rhyme there, just go with it, k?)

Here's what he has to report: 

"About 4 months ago I signed up for Fancy Hands, a virtual assistance service that saves me time! I can give them any task over the phone or email (so easy) and it is done soon after. The service charges per month based on the number of tasks you would like. I did a year (great discount) and have already more than paid for the subscription with the things they have done for me. Below is a list of a couple things they have done lately:

-Dealt with warranty department at Cuisinart to get me a new single-brew server after my old one stopped working.

-Called Comcast to get me money off my bill since I had problems with my service.

-Researched and found availability for last-minute dog boarding.

-Found me an iPhone 5… called all Apple stores and waited on hold to check availability.

-Dealt with warranty department to get a new LED strip for fish tank.

-Found and ordered replacement parts for a curling set.

-Dealt with warranty department at Lexmark to get me a new Printer after my old one stopped working.

-Found and ordered wireless component for Blu-ray player.

-Searched nationwide for 2 additional matching chairs to a dining room set.

-Searched for Dryer Vent cleaners (well-reviewed) in my Mom's area.

-Provided a complete list of essentials for a hike down the Grand Canyon.

-Booked reservations (scheduling something in my calendar doesn't count towards tasks).

And so many things I am forgetting.

Basically, they have saved me time and money, therefore increasing my quality of life.

Thank you, Fancy Hands!"

Thank you, Zach, for writing about your experience!

We're so glad to hear that your quality of life has improved as a customer. That's our goal. 

Have you noticed these "hand-y" icons next to your completed tasks? 

If you're happy with a task, clicking on the thumbs up is a great way to let your assistant know that you're pleased.

It's the equivalent of tipping them for their work - they're rewarded with bonus points in our internal system. 

Also, if you're unhappy with an assistant's response to one of your requests, don't be shy - let them know! 

We hope you never have a bad experience with your Fancy Hands, but if you do - boom. Let your wrath rain down with the thumbs down option! Ha - okay, just kidding about the wrath part...but do give that a click, then reply and let your assistant know what could be better.

Just as with a full-time employee, sometimes a job isn't completed to your satisfaction the first time around. Your feedback helps your assistant serve you better, and it gives them a second chance to take a crack at making you happy. 

If that doesn't work, please feel free to email a customer service manager at support at fancy hands dot com. 

We love getting emails from you. Check out these happy folks: 

"I think Mandie S. deserves some type of commendation! She was the best at helping me deal with the death of an employee. It was one of my first Fancy Hands requests, and thanks to her, I'm going to be a long time customer. Let me know if there is anything that you or I can do to put a smile on Mandie S.' face." -Patrick  

"Thank you to Audrey F., who tried to cancel a couple of things for me that I've been avoiding for a long, long time. Thank you to Michelle J. who found the perfect birthday presents for my husband. Thank you to Layne M. who has provided a soundtrack (viewtrack?) of sorts to my latest NaNoWriMo attempt. You're all awesome! Thank you so much being there to do the things that I don't have the time or patience to do myself." -Carla 

"Connie O. saved the day for me! She placed 7 different phone calls to post offices looking for a package of mine that had the wrong zip code on it and tracked it down! Without her, it would have been sent back to Singapore and I would have spent another three weeks waiting for re-delivery." -Juliet  

Yay! We love to make your life suck less!  

Do you spend 2.7 hours a day using your mobile phone?

Is that time well spent, or are you mindlessly staring into the Facebook abyss?

What would you do with that time if you weren't on the phone?

Were you more productive or less productive before the age of cell phones? 

If you're not sure how much time you devote to your cell on a regular basis, try keeping track for a week, and then ask yourself these questions.

Maybe it's time to scale back some of this phone stuff. 

At least, that's what I wondered to myself as a girl ran into me on the street last night while walk-texting...

Fancy Hands is proud to host the New York Python Meetup Group's weekly "open office hours" event. We had a great turnout last night, complete with free pizza and beer. Programmers from all skill levels and industries got together to talk code, ask questions, and help each other out. Here's what the meetup organzier, Gloria, had to say:

This event was really great! Thanks to everyone who came out. It was impressive to have some people just hang out and eavesdrop, ask questions, and learn, while others paired off and helped each other. The free-form way that it worked is exactly what I hoped for, and I want to thank all of you for that.

We'll be meeting here at the Fancy Hands office every Tuesday at 6:30PM. Come join us. We're excited to be hosting this event. The NYC Python Meetup Group has always been a great gathering of people, and it gets better and better. For details, check out the official Meetup page here.

We hope to see you here next time.

Fancy Hands client Marley is a busy lady. She’s a nanny for big family in Los Angeles. The father in that big family just so happens to be a very successful actor and producer. Famous; that’s what I’m getting at, ya'all. He’s super freaking famous. 

So on top of the high stress that comes with the responsibility of caring for children, Marley also has to dodge paparazzi and fans like Frogger danced between eighteen-wheelers. 

Fancy Hands works really well for someone like Marley, who has research needs on a regular basis, but doesn’t have the time to sit down at the computer for hours a day poking around. 

Here are some requests that she logged with Fancy Hands recently. 

"I’m looking for a variety of activities in or near Maui, HI. Looking for outdoor activities, indoor activities, kid-friendly restaurants and things that shouldn't be missed. We’re traveling with kids from ages 3-9."

"Can you help me find the best-reviewed companies that allow you to make your own holiday cards online? We’d like a folded card with room for at least 4 photos (preferably more)."

"Can you send me upcoming concerts, plays, shows, and special events for children in the Los Angeles area? I’d love to have a handy list of what’s coming up in the next month or two to use for planning purposes."

"I’m planning a birthday party for a 3-year old with a “Yo Gabba Gabba” theme. I’m having a hard time finding places to buy party supplies that are still current and not out of stock. Can you help? Also, I’m looking for a company that can provide a dressed up character of “Muno” in the Los Angeles area. Can you locate that?"

 "Can you help me find some updated medium-to-long hairstyles for women? I just don’t ever have time to look into stuff like this and I need a change that’s in style right now."

Our Fancy Hands love to help Marley’s hands, because hers are full of children! 

Gregory Ciotti created this great video based on his scientific research about productivity. 

Here are the bullet points:  

1. Get Started. Studies indicate that getting started is the biggest barrier to productivity. However, once we've begun a project, we're compelled to finish it. This is called The Zeigarnic Effect - when we don't finish a task, we experience discomfort and intrusive thoughts about it. 

2. Focus deliberately. Work in "packets of energy" (recommended: 90 minutes) and then take a break (recommended: 20 minutes). Don't rely on willpower to work, rely on habit and disciplined scheduling. 

3. Create an accountability schedule. Write down what you intend to complete in your 90 minute work session before you start, so that you clearly understand what your goals are. For example: "9:00am - 10:30am: answer and file all necessary emails, then shut down email program until late afternoon to complete other work." Which leads us to...

4. Stop multi-tasking. Studies show that multi-taskers are much less productive than those who focus on one job at a time and work until that one job is completed. 

Don't be this guy! ---->

Give yourself a break this weekend! Studies show that taking time to relax and recharge rather than constantly pushing yourself to work will result in up to 16% higher awareness & focus when you do work.

Fast Company's Erin Schulte asked some highly successful people for their secrets to being productive, and here's what they had to share:

Keep Email From Crushing You With "OHIO"

That stands for "only handle it once"--a technique that's espoused by productivity expert Bob Pozen and practiced by Huge CEO and Fast Company contributor Aaron Shapiro.

"No 'I'll respond later' is allowed," Shapiro says. "Responding later means you take three times longer to get through your email than taking care of it the first time, because responding later means you have to waste time finding and rereading that email... or even worse, the time wasted reminding yourself over and over to get to that message."

Chuck Your To-Do Lists
"I'm following the advice I give my own clients. I'm no longer creating to-do-lists, which seem to go on forever," says Roberta Matuson, president of Matuson Consulting. "Anything worth doing goes on my calendar."

Restrict Your Social Media Diet
Ekaterina Walter is a global social innovation strategist at Intel, so if anyone has an excuse to glut on social media, it's her. But even social media pros have to set parameters to avoid being sucked in.

"I am very active socially, which means daily interactions on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and other social networks," Walter says. "Couple that with keeping up with all the news around social business and the activity can take up a chunk of your daily routine. So I set a timer for those activities to ensure I am on track with everything else and don’t spend too much time on a specific task."

Never Enter The Kitchen Empty-Handed
Kaihan Krippendorff, author of Outthink the Competition, uses a lesson from his days in food service to keep his days flowing smoothly.

"I waited tables for four years in college and may have captured more useful lessons there than I did in my thermo-dynamics or option-pricing classes," Krippendorff says. "For example, my manager drilled into my head to never enter the kitchen empty-handed. If you see your hands empty, ask 'Is there a dish I can clear or food I can bring out?'"

This way, he says, every motion counts....twice. This year, he put that habit to work in his daily routines.

"When I look at my priorities, decide which I should prioritize and which I should just not do, I look specifically for opportunities to kill two (or better yet a flock) birds with one stone."

Get Tough With Self-Imposed Deadlines
David Brier, chief executive at DBD International, looks for bottlenecks in his work--incessantly bothersome tasks like email (there it is again!).

"Determine the amount of traffic you get (could be emails, or whatever) in an area that bottlenecks, then decide on a 'cut-off' period for that traffic," he advises.

For example, if you have non-urgent emails that you've left for later, determine a time period after which you toss them--be it days or weeks.

"If it didn't warrant an immediate response and now has zero impact, recognize it's not vital to your existence or input, toss it and move on," he says. "Or as Shark Kevin O'Leary says, 'You're dead to me.'"

Make Sharing Easier
Dayna Steele has one word for a more productive year: Dropbox.

"No matter where I am, I can send a client, potential client, speaker agent, meeting planner--anyone--a file they need to keep my business moving forward," says Steele.

Tilt At Windmills
"There's no app, productivity technique, or idea that can be more effective than a crazy huge challenge and a short time to deliver against," says John Boiler, CEO of 72andSunny. "High pressure. High stakes. High expectations. That's what motivates and focuses productivity."

Get A Dog
"Adopting a dog from the Buffalo City Animal Shelter was actually the most productive thing I did in 2012," says Kevin Purdy, Fast Company contributor and former contributing editor at Lifehacker.

"He takes up time, sure, but forcing me to take short-leash training walks--the kind that don't lend themselves to phone staring--also forces me to think about what I'm doing that day, what I did yesterday, and visualize how things will work when I act on them."

Here's to a productive 2013! 

Thanks to you, we just hit 50,000 Tumblr followers.

To celebrate, we’re offering 50% off! 

Go to Fancy Hands and enter code tumblr-50k

50% off your first month. 

Expires 1/14/13.

Valid on monthly plans.

Not for gift certificates.

Do what you love. We’ll do the rest. 

Patricia Marx gave Fancy Hands a little shout-out in the latest issue of The New Yorker.

What happens now? Should we buy tickets to the opera or the ballet? Should Ted start wearing those professor-type elbow patches on his blazers? I mean, his hoodies? 

Hmm. Well, whatever it means, we're excited! 

I've been absolutely terrified every moment of my life, and I've never let it keep me from doing a single thing I wanted to do.

-Georgia O’Keeffe