productivity

Studying a foreign language could make you smarter. According to a study from the University of Chicago, people make more rational decisions when thinking in a foreign language, because it forces us to use the more analytical side of our brains.

If you're looking to learn a language, you could certainly do worse than Spanish. It's the third most-spoken language in the world, and Hispanics make up more than 16 percent of the US population. So, in honor of Cinco de Mayo, here are five tools I've found super helpful in my quest to learn Spanish as an adult.

• App: Larousse Spanish-English Dictionary ($4.99) The free Spanish-English dictionary apps I tried left a lot to be desired, and this $5 app is well worth the price. It quickly translates almost any word from my phone, and it also has tons of verb conjugations — a must have for beginners! Plus I can do my homework on the go.
• Podcast: Discover Spanish (free) This series of 10-minute Spanish lessons is great for travelers, because it teaches commonly used phrases while also explaining a bit of the grammar, so you're more likely to remember. It's also a great supplement to in-person Spanish lessons. After a while, I found the hilarious music and overly enthusiastic host "Johnny Spanish" quite endearing.

Three more Spanish tools after the break.

When you finally decide to take a vacation, you might be overwhelmed by options. After all, there are so many places to visit and so little time! Here's how to get started:

Set a budget: Figure out how much you can afford to spend on this vacation, and do your best to stick within that budget. Factor in money for flights, lodging, transportation, food, entertainment, and spending money. Remember to also budget for emergencies.

Brainstorm ideas for vacation destinations: Start thinking of places you would like to go to. Figure out how many days you can take off for it, and do some research to see if there are any good deals available. Prioritize based on length of your trip and whether it will fit your travel budget.

Start a Google doc: Create a Google doc and share it with the people you are going on the trip with. List your schedule in a spreadsheet, and color-code it to make important items stand out. You can draft a working itinerary, and start by adding in flight and hotel information as it becomes available.

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Can your yearly waste fit in a quart-size jar? Check out this amazing story from LearnVest about how a woman transformed her home into a zero-waste household.

Five years ago Bea Johnson and her husband and two sons were looking for a home closer to the restaurants, shops and school in their coastal California town.

Related: 6 Ways to Save Money–by Going Green

During the year they spent house hunting, the family of four moved into a small apartment, took only the possessions that were absolutely necessary and left the rest in storage.

“After living with just the necessities, we realized that we had much more time to spend with our family when we weren’t spending it caring for a large house and lots of belongings,” says Johnson.

Then, when they did decide on a house, they chose one half the size of their previous home and simplified by selling most of their old stuff.

Around that time, Johnson and her husband began investigating environmental issues. “We read books, watched documentaries, and what we learned worried us and made us sad for our kids’ futures,” she says. “So we decided to do something about it. My husband quit his job to start a sustainability consulting company, and I tackled greening our house.”

Read on for more.

Make better use of your time by accomplishing one of the tasks mentioned by Wise Bread below. You'll feel productive in just 15 minutes!

Do you have 15 minutes to spare?

You can't tackle a long-term project or a complicated problem that requires deep concentration and uninterrupted thinking in the busyness of a typical day. But there are many things you can accomplish in 15 minutes or less. These can help boost your career, manage your finances, strengthen relationships, reduce clutter, save money, improve your health, and lots, lots more.

So the next time you have 15 minutes to fill, fill it with something productive.

RELATED: 25 Ways to Take Five Minutes for Yourself

Career

1. Document recent career-related accomplishments for use in your LinkedIn profile, private resume, upcoming interview, or performance review.
    
2. Ask your boss if the company will pay fees for your professional development, such as the cost to attend an industry conference or a certification exam that will allow you to earn a professional designation.
    
3. Practice a speech or short presentation.
    
4. Get ready for a meeting instead of showing up unprepared. Define what you want to get accomplished, such as approval for a decision.
    
5. Offer yourself as a resource to a valued colleague or customer via a short email, LinkedIn message, or handwritten note, particularly if you are looking to expand your professional presence and build your portfolio.
    
6. Follow up with a colleague, vendor, employee, whoever to make sure a task has been completed. If yes, express gratitude; if no, make a note to troubleshoot obstacles soon.
    
7. Reserve a book from the library that will help you in your career. Ask your boss, mentor, coworkers, customers, and friends for recommendations if you don't have a list of must-read titles.
    
8. Design an online survey to assess satisfaction among customers, employees, or groups your team serves. Use free versions of Survey Monkey or a similar tool.
    
9. Ask a trusted and discriminating friend for input on ways that you can improve communications.
    
10. Sign up for and/or try a new automated tool to see if you can recruit and organize people more efficiently.
     
11. Join your college or university alumni network via LinkedIn or consider another one of these 25 career changes you can make today.
     
12. For job hunters, start or revitalize your search by naming 10 companies you admire.
     
13. Conduct research on a desirable employer by reading about their products, getting familiar with its history, identifying those in your network with ties to the company, or reading latest news so that you will be prepared when you conduct an informational interview or participate in a phone interview.
     
14. Visit the careers section of targeted employers, locate opportunities that match your qualifications, and apply for a position or identify new skills you can acquire to increase your market value.
     
15. Send a congratulatory note or acknowledge someone else's accomplishment as a kind gesture and way to show respect for a colleague.

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