How much do you accomplish in one day? According to recent studies, we aren't accomplishing as much as we used to. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that overall national productivity dropped to 105.57 Index Points in the first quarter of 2015. That's a decrease of over one full point from the last quarter of 2014.

Technology and science can make the workplace and the home only so productive; most of it depends on the people who do the work in the first place.

If you feel you could do more with your day, here is a collection of advice from people who make it happen. Harold Bloom, a Sterling Professor Emeritus at Yale University, has compiled a brief list of what he calls "thought productivity nuggets" from ancient history:

"Think not long, but do; do not long, but think." - Confucius

The Chinese philosopher is reputed to have taken hold of China's vast and corrupt imperial bureaucracy and turned it into a productive civil government that inspired nations like Japan and Korea to emulate his reforms.

"There is nothing wrong with complaining about work; but do the work first and then the complaints will be all the more worthy to be heeded." - Socrates

Called "The Athenian Gadfly" by his contemporaries in ancient Greece, Socrates was a notorious sluggard who refused to serve in any government capacity or work at anything steady. He asked all the wrong questions, which eventually got him sentenced to death by the exasperated citizens of Athens. But after his death, many of the practices he had questioned in government and transport were finally eliminated, and more productive policies were implemented.

"Never hitch a pig to a plow or expect an ox to provide bacon." - Virgil

The ancient Roman poet Virgil wrote extensively about agriculture. It is said that his own estates were so well-run that he eventually gathered more wealth than the Roman emperors he often wrote complimentary poems about (he was a notable brown-noser, too.)

"You may catch more flies with honey than vinegar; but you'll get them to work harder if you use a flyswatter." - Jerry Lewis

When the frenetic comic began writing and directing his own movies in the early 1960's, he hired only the best to turn his comedic vision into reality. It soon became well known all over Hollywood that Lewis consistently demanded only the very best work from his staff — a mediocre performance was automatic grounds for dismissal. Whether you love him or loathe him, there's no denying his movies are technically way ahead of their times.

"Measure twice; cut once."- Harrison Ford

Before he became Han Solo, Ford worked as a carpenter. And like any good carpenter, he always carefully planned out his performance before going in front of the camera, so he'd never have to recut.

"Measure results, not hours." - Emma Thompson

The British actress is affectionately known on the sets where she works as a thoroughbred when it comes to performance. She never lets up until she feels she's gotten the scene just right, no matter how long it takes. This attitude has made her one of the most award-winning actresses in British history.

"The longer the meeting, the less is accomplished." - Tim Cook

Cook is the CEO of Apple, Inc. He never stays in a staff meeting longer than ten minutes. If the meeting continues longer than twenty minutes after he's gone, he asks for a memo justifying the time spent around a conference table.

"I use my brain as a playground, not as a calendar." - Donald Trump

"The Donald" is famous among his business associates for his creative energy when it comes to productive solutions. He hires (and fires) secretaries to keep track of his time commitments so he can dream up unusual strategies that have kept him one step ahead of the real estate game - and may land him in the White House.

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Do travelers trust online marketing for their vacation rentals? According to one recent website, 48 percent of us trust search engine results, and 42 percent trust banner ads when looking for vacation rentals.

The proliferation of online scams, however, should give prospective vacationers great pause before committing to a vacation rental marketed online. As with any other big ticket expense, be sure to perform a little due diligence before you sign on the dotted line.

Here are some vacation rental tips to keep you from getting ripped off.

Face to face.

When you see an advertisement for a vacation rental that looks too good to be true, don't just sign on the dotted line. First, contact the owner or manager through video chatting or phone. Don't settle for email; too much can be left out of an email. And have some searching questions prepared. Joel Peters handles external relations for Laurier University. He says, "Skype video is the only way to conduct important transactions if you can't meet with someone in person - you can get a valid first impression on which to base your decision."

Check the record.

Unscrupulous marketers have been known to advertise vacation properties that don't even belong to them for bargain prices. If you detect the slightest odor of fraud when dealing with a vacation rental marketer, check the municipal tax records of the property in question to make sure it's under the name the marketer tells you. This is easily done online. Carlos Corzoa manages vacation rentals in Florida, and he advises, "The first rule of any legitimate vacation rental company is to make sure the person who claims ownership has clear title to the property. If there is any question, the property should never be advertised for rent."

Check real reviews.

Eighty-eight

percent of consumers believe in online reviews as much as personal recommendations. But marketers post reviews that can be suspect. Get impartial reviews from sites like TripAdvisor or directly from Google before you make up your mind.

Use a vacation rental service.

If you find conflicting or confusing claims about a vacation spot you're interested in, you can always bypass marketers and use a service like Airbnb or Flipkey. The benefits of doing so include built-in fraud protection services such as property verification and money-back guarantees. They also offer a secure payment site.

Don't pay cash.

Ever. Marketers may press you for a money order or Western Union wire transfer and in return promise significant discounts. Instead, always use your credit card; that way if the rental is scam you can dispute the charge and have a good chance of getting your money back. Brand manager Maria Psallida advises, "Use your bank credit card for vacation rental charges; I find they work faster on disputed charges than the regular credit card people."

P.T. Barnum said "Without promotion, something terrible happens ... nothing!" Marketing is a vital component of every business, including the vacation rental trade. Most marketers and marketing agencies subscribe to a code of ethics that controls their actions. But, like every other moneymaking venture, there are a few rogues out there who will promise you the moon and deliver nothing but dust. Don't let a scammer turn your vacation dream into a nightmare.

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One of the biggest worries that EVERYONE has is about money. And that includes me.

I'm not going to pretend that money, and all that it means and can purchase, is no longer a concern to me. I am neither a billionaire nor a Trappist monk. I like the green stuff. But over the past six decades, I've learned a thing or two about having it, and not having it.

Please let me share some anecdotal advice with you:

Even a pauper can save something

My first job as an adult was with Ringling Brothers Circus as a First-of-May, a new clown. I made exactly $90 per week. (So I wasn't exactly raking it in.) But it was an interesting job, and I got to travel to every state in the Union.

I made up my mind at the beginning of the season that I would save 10 percent of my weekly salary, no matter what. (That's $9.) Each week, I sent it to my account at the Farmer's and Mechanic's Savings Bank.

At the end of two years, with a little help from "cherry pie" (my second job selling coloring books during intermission), I had enough funds to enroll in a prestigious pantomime school in Mexico during the winter lay off. It was both a vacation and an investment. When I got back to the show, they promoted me to traveling in advance of the circus for promotional appearances.

I have never been without a savings account since then - an ACTIVE savings account. It's a great comfort in good times and bad.

Don't teach your kids that money is a god

My parents were both the products of the Great Depression, and they knew how to squeeze a coin until it screamed for mercy. But they also knew that money wasn't everything.

When I was old enough to drive a car, they left it up to me to decide if I wanted to work a part-time job in order to buy one myself, or if I wanted to spend my free time doing something else (in my case a lot of reading) and go on foot.

They wouldn't buy me a car, nor would they nag me to get a job. They left it up to me to decide whether or not I wanted to turn my free time into money for a car or continue to revel in hours of reading.

I learned from them that I was in control of the money. The money was NOT in control of me.

A helping hand never grows poor

A few years ago I moved to Thailand in order to teach English. It was a fun job, and I enjoyed making an above-average wage in a land where living was inexpensive.

While teaching in Bangkok, I was asked by a church to volunteer some time to teach English to children in Klong Tooey, one of the bleakest slums in all of Southeast Asia. It meant cutting down on my private tutoring, which was very lucrative. But I figured I'd give it a shot, and if it was costing me too much I could always quit.

Seeing what those Klong Tooey kids were up against made me realize how good my own life was, and I never seemed to miss that lost tutoring money.

There are more ways to be rich than just grubbing for money.

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We do NOT do stupid things. We do things that women just don't understand, but you can still love us anyways. Men are naturally lovable and huggable - once we brush our teeth and shave, and we do that quite often (although not as often as some genders, which shall remain nameless, may think necessary).

Here is a partial list of some of the things we men do that other genders (nameless still) may label as "stupid", with a rational explanation about why we do them. I write this article not to criticize any particular gender, but only to promote peace, love, understanding, and second helpings of mashed potatoes:

Socks

...and other soiled items thrown on the floor. At first glance this would SEEM to be a disgusting and rude habit. Please understand, we are only marking our territory. Without those familiar markers, and scents, we might wander away, lost, and never return.

Belching

We men prefer to call it "clearing the throat after a heavy meal". In the bad old days men would congregate in the library after a good meal to drink brandy and smoke cigars, which helped keep the gas in the stomach from erupting. But aren't you glad that today's man simply eructates instead of seeking inebriation and filling up the house with stinky second-hand smoke? What are a few bellows compared to cancer and cirrhosis of the liver?

Never admitting we are lost

A man is never lost. Period. Even if he can't name the place he is at, he is still not lost. It's the rest of the world that is lost. Where a man is, is the right spot. We have a natural GPS in our heads, which will get us where we're going eventually. Stopping to ask directions dissipates a man's inborn sense of direction. Trust us. We'll get you there. Does an extra day or two really matter?

Old clothes

Brand new clothes, pressed and starched, have their place in society - mainly for job interviews and funerals. But otherwise a comfortable cotton t-shirt and faded jeans are all anyone should need. If you expect a man to enjoy getting dressed up to go out, you have mistaken him for a Ken doll. He will always resent it, no matter what he may say out loud, and he will come down with mange if you keep him in clean, new clothes too long.

When is he gonna pop the question?

Every man knows that haste makes waste, which is why he prudently takes his time with something as important as a marriage proposal. Fools rush in where wise men prefer to ring the doorbell and wait cautiously outside. We are not to be stampeded into "sweeping her off her feet". "Slow and steady wins the race" is our motto. Unless, of course, it concerns buying a dirt bike or a bet to see how many black olives we can stuff into our left ear...then immediate action is always called for!

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Looking back, I recall the initial euphoria my wife Amy and I experienced when the tests came back positive for our first child. We lived in a student apartment off-campus, and before I left for classes each day I would walk out into the back parking lot to pick a rose blossom from a straggling tea rose bush that came over the fence, to leave on her pillow. One morning I was in a hurry and didn't bother with the blossom. That night Amy asked plaintively "Where was my rose today?" That's when I learned never to leave out the little things in a marriage, especially when your wife is experiencing her first pregnancy.

This is how to survive that first precious pregnancy that you and your wife share. For, make no mistake about it, although she has all the pain, pressure and discomfort, you as the father are expected to dive right in, get your feet wet (maybe literally when the water breaks!) and remember the little things. As A.B. Johnson said back in 1841: "Large streams from little fountains flow, tall oaks from little acorns grow."

There is going to be drama, perhaps lots of it. Most of it is hormonal, and it can get very personal. To rise above it, no matter how petty, is one of your main jobs. Always remember this great advice from James 3:4, "Behold also the ships, which though they be so great, and are driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned about with a very small helm, whithersoever the governor listeth." You are that small helm, that insignificant-seeming rudder that guides the Good Ship Pregnancy to a safe harbor, despite storms and becalmings, misunderstandings and perhaps even a dose of mutiny! No one is calling on you to be Mr. Perfect; but between the two of you, you now have more control over your emotions, and even your body, than your spouse. Don't let it go to your head and become a Captain Bligh. Instead, remain as calm, helpful and reassuring as you can.

A foot massage is a small thing. Give your wife many of them. Who worries about the dishes now that everyone has a dishwasher? You worry about them; make sure they're stacked properly and get the machine started. A few cherries in a small ceramic bowl cannot make much of a difference in the cosmic scheme of things, but to your spouse they can bring a smile and the knowledge that you care. And let her eat them all, no matter how often she offers you one.

When it's winter and roses are no longer in bloom, put a dinner mint on her pillow. Because small actions, when consistent, are better friends to us than large actions that come but once in a while.

And when the baby comes and takes its rightful place as Emperor of the Universe in your lives, just keep on remembering the small things for your wife. I can promise you they pay HUGE dividends down the road.

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After 60 years of taking walks, both long and short, on this planet, I think I have a vague idea of how not to be annoying to others. I have learned this mostly by finding out that I HAVE been annoying, and then modifying my behavior to eliminate, or at least minimize, the things I say and do that others find annoying. If someone is annoyed by my thoughts, however, that is entirely their problem and I don't have to try to change my opinions - I've learned THAT after 60 years, as well.

One thing that I know is VERY annoying is giving advice. Annoying sentences often begin with "If I were you ..." or "I may be wrong, but ...", and that old standby "I have always found that ..."

Of course, when you're truly stymied and don't know what to do, and go to the trouble of asking someone what they would do under such-and-such circumstances, it is also equally annoying to have them reply "Well, what do you think you ought to do?"ť If I KNEW that, buddy, I would not be wasting my time and yours by asking!

One thing that does not annoy people, at least not anymore, are Zen sayings - the kind of mottos and ambiguous advice that people hang as plaques behind their bonsai tree. Zen philosophy used to be extremely annoying to many people, because, by its very nature, it was meant to be contradictory and incomprehensible. Those raised by rational parents to behave and think rationally tended to consider Zen as nothing more than annoying gobbledy-gook. But today's generation is immersed in contradictions and irrationality. So Zen sayings, while still mostly meaningless to the masses, are appreciated and not viewed as annoying. That being the case, I feel confident I can offer the following Zen pointers about avoiding annoying others without the least fear of being annoying myself.

• No flake of dandruff ever falls in the wrong place.

• Water which is too pure will discourage fish.

• The smaller you become, the larger you will live.

• A jar which holds nothing is already full.

• If you fear what people think, you will think what people fear.

• A black candle gives off as much light as a white candle.

• The snare exists because of its prey and the word exists because of its meaning.

• Clocks and watches are useless, because it is always now.

• Never talk, unless it improves the silence.

• Water and words are easy to pour but impossible to recover.

• Can a closed mind go through an open door?

• What is dust to one is a world to another.

• Accept nothing, love everything.

• The moon borrows light from the sun but never returns it.

• Your mind is an ocean and you make the waves.

• A donkey carrying sacks of gold is still a donkey.

And finally, from the French author Francois de la Rouchefoucauld: "We often pardon those that annoy us, but we cannot pardon those we annoy."ť

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