You Can Do This!

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If you’re just starting out in your studies of medical billing and coding or medical office assistant with the Allen School Online, you may be feeling like it is a challenge you cannot overcome.  Perhaps you decided to make a career change in mid-life and this new career path seems daunting.  Well, the following story ought to serve to inspire you and make you feel that with enough determination, anything is possible.  Take it from a 6-year-old who raised more than $10,000 to help his cancer-stricken father.  You can do this!

Doing Away With Spam

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So you spend alot of time online and tethered to your online responsibilities like studying medical billing and coding at the Allen School Online.  This means you most definitely understand the time-sucking, productivity-draining effects of spam.  From scores of unwanted emails and text messages every day to unsolicited advertisements on Facebook to the always annoying telemarketing phone calls, many of us spend a not insignificant portion of every day (while we should be working/studying) opening and then deleting unwanted messages or “Spam” as this exquisite little inconvenience has come to be referred to.  Heck, I even get too much junk mail in the old snail mail box.  So how does one effectively do away with all this unwanted canned meat-product?  The nerds over at Lifehacker.com have compiled the definitive list of strategies for eliminating the spam from all inboxes, virtual or dirt-world.  Click here for the secrets of a Spam-free existence!

SOPA and PIPA – What it All Means

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Well online students of medical billing and coding, did you notice that yesterday, Wikipedia and many other favorite websites were intentionally darkened to protest something called SOPA and PIPA?  Made it rather tough to do any research for your Allen School Online course work I imagine.  It did succeed in raising the awareness about these two pieces of legislation being considered in the US House of Representatives and Senate respectively.  Both bills are nominally intended to combat the very real problem of online piracy of intellectual property.  Through illegal downloads of music, movies, artwork and other copyrighted materials, producers of these items lose billions annually.  The opponents of these bills are not pro-piracy, but they point out that the legislation as written, would provide an unchecked power to industry and government to shut down any website that is even accused of hosting pirated materials.  Your mashup of Justin Bieber and Spongebob Squarepants on Youtube?  That’d be plenty enough for a complainant to get Youtube shut down.  Supporters of these bills, the Recording Industry of America and bigtime TV and movie studios suggest that this is not the case.   Here is a quick primer on the bills and the controversy courtesy of CBS News.  Have a look at it and then share with us in the comments your opinion on the matter.  As online denizens, this legislation has an absolute impact on your life.  Learn, form an opinion and be heard!

Boost Concentration and Memory

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Being an Online Student at Allen School Online (or really being a student of medical billing and coding anywhere) requires great levels of concentration and memory.  There are many specifics to learn, commit to memory and recall, as needed once you enter the fast paced work world.  For this reason, I think nearly all our readers could benefit from some tips on how to keep your brain fresh and operating at optimal levels.  | Some of these things are intuitive like, “Don’t deprive yourself of sleep if it can be helped” and “Eat more foods with Omega 3 fatty acids which help boost brain activity”.  But there are alot of other techniques too like “Making sure to find laughter and laugh often” and “Enjoy a glass of wine several times each week” which don’t seem like the standard, run of the mill suggestions. Here and here are some links to several sites offering more orthodox and unorthodox ideas for keeping your mind sharp.

Productivity Boosting Sites for Students

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Being an online student at Allen School means you’re already someone inclined to multi-task and to find innovative ways of getting work done more quickly and efficiently.  So you’ll probably be stoked with this list of nearly 30 websites designed to help students optimize their activities in such student-centric areas as online research, homework composition, buying/selling of textbooks, handy tools and academic social networking.  Find easy PDF converters, textbook exchanges, professor reviews and many other tools, services and products to help optimize your productivity as a student.  Visit this Student Productivity Guide for the details.  You can thank me later!

Where to Score Black Friday Deals on Tech

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Online students have an excuse for going out and spending money on electronic gadgetry.  After all, a new all-in-one printer is useful for printing out coursework.  A new laptop will increase productivity during study times and also, allows online classes to load and play more quickly with less browser crashes.  And of course, a new flatscreen TV or media player is just the thing with which to reward your favorite Allen School Online student for studying hard and joining the workforce as a medical billing and coding specialist. Lifehacker has this pretty solid list of the best Black Friday deals available beginning Thanksgiving in the evening.   Share any sale info you may have come across with your classmates in the comments section.

Why You’re Studying

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OK, so this is a bit of comic relief but it is a true story and it underscores the need for QUALIFIED medical office help.   Keeping track of medical records is a tough job.  So many people with so many different ailments and specific requirements.  It seems like an overwhelming task to keep it all straight.  This is why Allen School Online students study hard.  Consider the case of Les Kennington who was told that his severe abdominal pains were likely the result of his past hysterectomy! Yes, you read that right.  This New Zealander’s doctor’s office insisted Les’s pain was a result of his having had his uterus removed because his medical records said he’d had one! Click here to read the story that would be hilarious if it weren’t true.  Then get back to your studies because this is important stuff you’re working on!

Remember, They Fought for Our Freedoms

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On this Veteran’s Day, the Allen School Online Blog would like to offer sincere thanks and profound gratitude to all those who put themselves in grave harm’s way to protect and defend our Constitution, Bill of Rights and the freedoms they enumerate.  Their sacrifice and dedication should never be forgotten.  Please honor the memory of those who have fallen and those who have returned to us by being an engaged citizen.  Vote, participate, celebrate your right to self governance and thank a veteran for the gift of being able to have a voice in your country. “As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them. “ — John F. Kennedy

Thanks is Not Enough – The Purposeful Interview Follow-up

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Everyone knows that the proper protocol is to send a thank you letter to the interviewer after having been interviewed.  It’s as well-known a part of the job hunt process as “dressing for success” and writing a custom CV for each application.  But with the job market as tight as it is, you need every edge you can come by to stand apart from the other applicants.  The Allen School Online certification is a good start.  But consider this wisdom regarding how you can leverage the obligatory “thank you” letter into a memorable vehicle to reinforce your interview. Www.interview-secrets.net has a great article on this topic.  According to the piece, most people either skip the thank you letter thinking it is a pointless formality.  Others simply send in a letter that expresses thanks, but does nothing more to help you stand out and seal the deal.  Read the article here for some secrets on how you can create a potent, meaningful and strategic follow up letter to your job interviewer.

Friday Bit O’ Geek

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OK.  Follow my logic here.  Allen School Online students, hence, lots of people with some degree of interest/proficiency with computers.  Right?  I think it’s safe to assume that as a readership, Allen School Online students probably appreciate technology.  Maybe a bit of tech-geekery?  ‘Specially on a Friday afternoon?  Well, I am going to share this nerd-tastic look at “the phones of tomorrow” with you.  If you think these amazing (and in some cases beautiful) device prototypes are as cool as I do (OMG! I am such a nerd), let me know in the comments.  If Online students are indeed interested, I can share some of this kind of info with you when I come across it.