This new formula for chair mats will continue to carry Deflecto’s Limited Lifetime Warranty and raises the bar when it comes to “green” chair mats.  As a stocking dealer of Deflecto chair mats you can expect to see the new formulated mats from NEOS sometime in the second quarter of this year.  From what I understand the product numbers will not change so they will remain as easy to order as in the past.  This is a big step forward in the continued change towards more earth friendly office products. 

Click here to see the full Deflecto Free and Clear press release.

What other products do you wish had an environmentally friendly version? Comment below!

I don’t know about anyone else, but I personally am a BIG fan of napping. I consider myself to be pretty good at it actually… almost too good at it.  And during the winter months the urge to nap is even greater… when it’s cold and dark outside when you get home from a long day at work, nothing sounds nicer than curling up on the couch for a quick powernap. Although, I always avoid the temptation to take a nap after work for fear that it would mess up my overnight sleep… but according to this infographic, napping actually increases your ability to sleep through the night by 12% and can help increase your nighttime sleep by 20 minutes! Check out some other interesting facts about napping in the infographic below (from the Patio Productions blog).

Source: http://www.patioproductions.com/blog/news/napping/

National Napping Day is on March 14th so be sure to celebrate with a nap!

What did you think about the facts in this infographic? Did you learn something new about napping? Comment below!

The City of Hope is financed through donations and I’m proud to say the office supply industry has given great support for many years.  This year New England Office Supply and other independent office supply dealers across the country in a partnership with American Office Products Distributors (AOPD) and our manufacturer partners are once again supporting City of Hope with our Buy Local for Hope Campaign.  When customers purchase products from participating manufacturers, a donation is made to City of Hope.  Last year the group raised over $50,000 and we are hoping to better that this year.

There are some interesting videos on the City of Hope website.  I found this video below to be especially interesting.  It is under 4 minutes and worth a watch.

Here’s the video on YouTube if you’d like to view it there instead…

Shop for City of Hope qualifying products!

Made by one of our very own NEOS sales reps, Adam Oteri. He brought these in on Valentine’s day and placed them out in the lobby for all to enjoy. A great alternative to real flowers (they’ll last forever!) and very much appropriate for our industry, don’t you think?

I had to know how he made these, being a fellow craft lover myself – this was my attempt using post-it notes…i think i’ll stick to marketing for now

Here’s a great video if you want to learn how to make your own, or with your little ones next week for a fun February vacation activity!

If the photo above looks all too familiar to you and you’re tired of unplugging your television or computer when you were really trying to unplug a lamp… there’s an office supply solution for that! 

Simply use file folder labels to identify each of your cords. Just attach the file folder labels near the actual plugs for each cord… you could use color coding to identify each cord, or you could write the name of the cord on the label. Now you can quickly tell which cord is which without using the trial and error method and unplugging every cord! Sometimes I wonder why I don’t think of these things…

Would you try out this method to organize your cords at home or at work? Comment below!

Credit: realsimple.com

By using this app I was not only able to organize these rewards accounts but also track them.  I was surprised at the amount of points I had accumulated on some of these rewards programs that I had fogotten about.  The app automatically adds in any new points as you earn them.  I had an occasion last fall were a hotel I stayed at somehow did not award my account any points for my stay.  After seeing no increase in that particular account I made a quick phone call to the hotel and had it taken care of.  It was quick and easy as the app also provides the customer service number for each account.  Besides airlines and hotels this app also includes credit cards, restaurants, and many other rewards offers.

Here’s a link to AwardWallet in the Apple App Store if you’re interested in checking it out.

Hopefully some of you may find this app helpful.  What is your favorite or most helpful app you have found? Comment below!

While doing most of these activites online makes our lives a lot easier, it also unfortunately opens our accounts up to the threat of being hacked. With that said, one easy way to help strengthen the security of your online accounts is to make sure you’re using secure, strong passwords. Here are some signs that your current passwords might not be as secure as they should be (from timemanagementninja.com):

• You use the same password for multiple accounts
• You use simple words or personal information
• You never (or very rarely) change your passwords
• You store your passwords in an unsafe place, like in a Word doc. on your desktop called “Passwords”, or under your keyboard.

Mashable.com has a list of the top 25 most stolen passwords of 2011… check it out to make sure none of your passwords are on there!

If you fall into any of those categories above or you see any of your passwords on Mashable’s list, don’t worry… here are a few tips to help you create better, safer passwords: 

• Symantec.com suggests meeting a certain level of complexity in your passwords – make sure your passwords have “length, width, and depth”. Length should be more than 6 characters. Width refers to the type of characters used - you should use a combination of numerals, upper and lower case letters, and special characters. And depth means choosing a password with a challenging meaning, something that’s not easily guessable.
• Don’t use personal information in your passwords… like your street number, pet’s name, child’s name, etc. as it is easy for hackers to obtain this information.
• Don’t use the same username/password combination for more than one account.
• Change your passwords regularly. (Every 6 months is ideal)
• Use a password manager. There are many software apps out there to help you manage your passwords and store them in a safe format. (read Mashable.com’s write up of 5 of these tools)

Do you have any other tips for keeping keeping your passwords secure? Comment below!

So here’s a neat solution using office supplies… use a corkboard and some push pins to hang necklaces and bracelets. Not only does this solve the tangling dilemma, but it also makes it really easy to locate which necklace you want to wear that day! And if you wanted to make it match your room decor, you could even adhere some scrapbook paper or colored paper to the corkboard.

What else could you use a corkboard to organize? Comment below!

Although a cubicle prank may not be as funny if it actually happens to you, it is pretty funny if you’re just an innocent bystander. With that said, here my 12 favorite cubicle pranks… some of these require a lot more effort than others, but they still all have the same effect: scaring people from leaving their cubicles for an extended period of time!

12. The classic neon Post-it cubicle

11. Cubicle full of balloons

10. A cubicle for the holidays

9. Packaging peanuts cubicle

8. A string labyrinth cubicle

7. Breaking News! Cubicle

6. Tin Foil cubicle

5. It’s a jungle out there! cubicle

4. A Cardboard Cube

3. A Princess-themed cubicle

2. “A trip back in time” cubicle

1. Happy Birthday! cubicle

Which of these is your favorite? What would you do if you came back from vacation to find your cubicle looking like any of these? Comment below!

image credits: theseofficepranks.com, lolcaption.com, cubiclebot.com, carddit.com, graphicshunt.com

Check out the post and let me know what you think by commenting below!