After years working as a business journalist and asking people 'tell me about your company,' can I add a suggestion? Don't start your 30-second elevator pitch with a) the company history, b) your own life story.

I used to work with a guy who would put two or three teaspoons of instant coffee in a jug and then dilute it with coffee out of a coffee machine. How caffeinated is that? Apparently he's still alive and working in software.

I've been working from home for the last seven years. (See my post How to work from home for some tips: [www.badlanguage.net]) . I love it but this post is right, there is a risk of isolation.

I work from home - I'm a marketing copywriter - and I've found that the best way to counter home office isolation is to marry an actress/director who rehearses plays and coaches actors from home too. The house is constantly full of luvvies who brighten up my day. I'm serious. Try it.

I used Dragon NaturallySpeaking 8 for a while when I had a bit of RSI. I'm a professional writer so getting words on screen quickly is a big benefit for me.

For UK readers, there's a similar guide but with UK contact information on the Get Safe Online website: http://www.getsafeonline.org/nqcontent.cfm?… Get Safe Online is an independent source of advice from the British Government and leading businesses. Readers may also enjoy their blog: http://www.getsafeonlineblog.org.

Not sure why that link didn't come through properly. Anyhow the post is called 'How I trained myself to get up early' and the URL is: http://www.badlanguage.net/?p=199.

Whatever you use the early morning for, you might be interested in my post on BadLanguage.net:

Readers might want to check out the advice of the British Government's consumer IT security website: Get Safe Online for further tips on disposing of old computers.

HSBC - a major bank - ran tests on both browsers against newly discovered phishing sites. The results are available here: Get Safe Online Blog

Readers might also be interested in a post I wrote in August about how to ask someone to be a mentor. I've mentored several companies and I have been on the receiving end of lots of requests like this, so this may be a useful perspective 'from the other side of the table.'

Been using the latest version of SlimTimer and I really like it.

If you put information on your desktop like this, a useful shortcut to remember is start + D. This minimises all the windows you have open and shows the desktop.

I love Joe's Goals as a free, online way of tracking goals and habits. For a list of the things I track using it, see my recent blog post: Bad Language / Tools for writing: Joe's Goals. It also contains a link to a zeitgeist page on Joe's goals that lets you monitor what other people are tracking. Voyeuristic but…

I use Joe's Goals. For a list of the things I track and how I use this fabulous, free online tool, see Bad Languague / Tools for writing: Joe's Goals.

My pet hate is "at this moment in time" which, essentially, means "now." Another problem word is "solution". Used badly by businesses and websites everywhere.

I posted some tips about giving an interview to the press that may be applicable to public speaking as well.

I use Skype and Hot Recorder to record interviews. I also use a Plantronic CS60 USB handsfree headset so I have my hands free to type a transcript.