Shawn Collins' Blog

Affiliate marketing and other stuff from Shawn Collins, co-founder of Affiliate Summit.

Have You Flown Since the Pandemic Days Started?

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I am probably somewhat of a unicorn these days because I have flown every month of 2020. I will finish up the year with 40 flights or so.

Shawn at the airport

When I first flew after things were locked down I was pretty nervous – in addition to the mask, I was wearing a face shield and gloves with long sleeves and long pants. I wiped down every surface anywhere close to me with Clorox wipes.

The airports were ghost towns with virtually nothing open, sections of terminals closed off, and few flights. It was tough getting an Uber, too, since so few people were requesting them that many stopped working airports.

After landing, I washed the clothes I flew in right away and showered.

Things have gotten more back to normal over time, but we’re still a long way to go.

One nice thing about the lesser crowds on the flights is that I get free upgrades to first more often, and many airlines are carrying over status through 2021.

A couple of times I’ve gotten the fancy pod seats on United that lay flat. I am in no rush for the flights to end with those seats.

I primarily fly United and most of their lounges aren’t open still, including Austin (grrrrr!).

There is a big one in Newark that is open, but the food selection has changed a lot – now it’s all packaged and pretty uninspired, unless you like Uncrustables.

The lounge bars are cleared of the tables and chairs and there are plastic guards between the travelers and bartenders.

The planes board rear to front, rather than by groups, and that’s probably a more logical method anyway. As each person boards, they receive a sanitized wipe to clean their area and people have been compliant on my flights with keeping their masks on.

I feel safe flying with all of the precautions and it makes it that much easier to avoid crowds having CLEAR and TSA Pre.

You Can Be Healthy During COVID-19

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I see lots of people on social media talking about how they’ve gained weight this year from COVID-19. When the global pandemic hit, I was freaked out and wanted to do whatever I could to avoid catching COVID-19.

In the pre-COVID-19 days, I would go to the gym a few days a week. It wasn’t making a big difference, but it was helping to preserve the status quo.

After we were locked down, I was going a little crazy being homebound and the only thing I could do outside the house for a while was exercise, so I started doing it every day.

At first, it was a half-hour or so a day to get my blood pumping. Then it morphed into 5 miles a day – either walking or intervals of walking and running.

In addition to enjoying the fresh air and change of scenery, I had read that vitamin D was helpful in staying resistant, so being out in the sun each day was a plus.

I also began taking 1,000 mg vitamin C each morning and one gallon of water per day with a motivational water bottle that had times you should drink the water by.

Since I wanted to track my progress along the way I also got a Withings watch, which tracks steps, heartbeat, sleep, etc. It has some similar functionality to an Apple watch, but it looks like a real watch.

I like the Withings brand and have used one of their WiFi-enabled scales for years to track weight loss and gain. This information syncs into their own app and others.

I didn’t stop at exercise and water consumption – I also focused on low-carb foods in the Atkins Diet.

Since I started my COVID-19 exercise plan I have lost around 20 pounds and I am feeling a lot better.

If there is any silver lining from this global pandemic, it’s that it got me to get more healthy and build my immunity to avoid becoming a statistic.

Take Steps to Make Your Home Safer

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Our neighborhoods feel like a safe bubble, but if you get alerts from a Ring doorbell you know there is property crime happening in and around any given area.

That’s inevitable in any city, so it’s a good idea to take some steps to improve your home security and minimize your risk of becoming a police statistic.

While you can’t guarantee you won’t be a victim in the future, you can take precautions to make your home less attractive to burglars.

Here are some steps I’ve taken at my house…

  • Shine a light: I have a couple of motion-activated lights, as well as keeping my front porch light on at night, so there are less dark places for people to creep around.
  • Sound the alarm: I got wired up with a security company and planted the signs and stickers around to let prospective burglars know breaking into my place will be met with an ear-piercing siren and automatic call to the police.
  • Reinforce your doors: a security bar can help fortify the doors to the outside and garage. If somebody is trying to get in, make it as difficult as you can by getting an adjustable door security bar.
  • Locking the gate door: I put a simple padlock on my gate door so entry into the yard is more of a hassle than it’s worth.
  • Big Brother is watching: I have a Ring doorbell, as well as a handful of Google Nest cameras to cover outside areas and let any passersby know they are on camera. I have them inside, too, and there is an option to tie to your phone so the internal cameras can be shut off automatically when your phone is home.
  • Locks your doors: My parents were from a big city, and even with growing up in the suburbs I learned from a young age that you lock the door whenever you come and go. Some people think that’s paranoid. I think it’s a good way to keep uninvited guests from entering my home.
  • Take away their view: I have a camera in my garage and I get notifications when movement is detected. One time I got that notification because a stranger was peeking in my garage door windows to see what I had. Right away I went online and ordered some frosted window film to keep prying eyes off my things.
  • Wag the dog: a barking dog can be a nuisance, but that furry face and noisy snout can also get criminals to think twice about trying to get into your home. My dog ate through some blinds in my front room to show her face more – I was not pleased about the destruction, but happy she likes to show her pretty face to anybody casing the house.

Think about taking these steps to keep your home and family safe and make the burglars know you’re not an easy target.

6 Rules for Evolved Adults

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Business and personal relationships can turn sour over the smallest actions or cues, so it’s important to follow some simple rules.

Angry dog

These might seem basic to you. If so, congratulations, because your parents taught you how to do things. For everybody else, get your act together.

Never Arrive Empty Handed

You’ve been invited over somebody’s home, and there is no clear indication that you should bring something, right? Wrong, you always bring something… a bottle of wine, dessert, a small gift that shows you put thought into it.

Something! You are thanking your host for their hospitality. Oh, and if the plate of brownies or case of beer you brought are not all gone, you still don’t touch them, you savage. You don’t take some of your thank you back.

Be on Time

Are you one of those people that is perpetually late, and you like to play it off as being a thing you can’t help? That’s not charming or cute – it is jackass behavior. You don’t have to miss flights, hold up meetings, keep lunch companions waiting, or show up late to work.

The secret solution here is to leave earlier. Wasn’t that easy?

Respond to People

An email or a text comes in, or maybe an invite. Don’t ignore it. That’s obnoxious and careless. Acknowledge when somebody reaches out to you. Feeling overwhelmed? Work some efficiencies into your day, so you are on top of things.

You are not too busy to do it. You’re too selfish.

Honor Your Word

You made a commitment to do something, be somewhere, handle a task, or whatever. Do it. That’s the end of the story. Don’t forget to put things in your calendar. Don’t procrastinate. Don’t look for scapegoats to get you off the hook.

Say what you mean and do what you say.

Be Reciprocal

I knew a person once who joked that they were a much better guest than a host, so they didn’t bother hosting. The punchline was that they were also a lousy guest – the late, empty handed kind who may or may not show up when they say they will.

After a while, I noticed that they were not being invited to social functions anymore. And just for the record, it does not take any special skill to host. It takes effort, care, and consideration.

Meet Deadlines

If you agree to have something done by February 1, there are two times that are acceptable to finish, and they are by the deadline or before it. Don’t turn your lack of planning into somebody else’s emergency. Instead, plan out how long something will take, and prioritize it.

Deadlines make the world go around. Failure to meet them is a personal failure.

The good news is that it’s the start of the new year. You can pretend these are resolutions or whatever nonsense you want to call them. The important thing is that you cut out your bad habits and get yourself right.

This article appeared in issue 33 of FeedFront magazine.

I Couldn’t Get a Job on Capitol Hill

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Adults start asking kids what they want to be when they grow up from a young age. I was never quite sure as a kid, and even towards the end of college I didn’t have a clue. Somehow, I got it in my head that I wanted to work in an office for a Senator or member of the House of Representatives.

Washington DC Capitol, USA

There were a few problems with my plan, though. I didn’t have any relevant experience, any idea of what I wanted to do, or real connections.

But there were a bunch of politicians who had been in my fraternity, so towards the end of my final (super senior) year of college, I tried hitting up some “brothers” on the Hill.

None of them were interested, but most did send back a courtesy reply.

thad-cochran

strom-thurmond

herbert-bateman

tom-bevill

jon-kyl

alan-mollohan

Wow, that was 22 years ago!

I didn’t end up getting into marketing until I was 27, and I never took a business or marketing class in college (Communications major). So, if you’re not quite sure what you want to do when you grow up, it’s never too late… to not grow up.