Dear BNET reader,

It's New Year's resolution time. Maybe this year, you'll finally get a handle on that work-life balance thing. Or maybe you'll make the technology leap and start using a few of those hip Web 2.0 tools at the office. Perhaps, at last, you'll actually make good on those half-hearted invitations and have your boss over for dinner. You're in luck. We have tips for all of the above.

Upgrade Your Work Life

How to Survive Dinner with a Wine-Snob Boss
Your manager is a total oenophile, a cork dork, a wine geek. And everything you happen to know about wine could fit inside a thimble. Relax. In this new BNET Crash Course, we quickly cover a few basics to help you avoid the rookie mistakes that can spoil everything.

The Four-Hour Workweek
Timothy Ferriss, author of the popular book "The Four-Hour Workweek," says he knows the secrets to escaping the 9-to-5 grind and working just a handful of hours a week. How do you do it? Start by cultivating selective ignorance and creating a NOT-to-do list.

The Best of Business Hacks

Top Web Services of 2007
Some truly stellar services appeared or evolved this year, but who has time to keep up with the constant flow of Web 2.0 creations? Business Hacks' Rick Broida boils them down to one essential list.

A Web Nanny for the Internet-Obsessed
Ever wonder if you're really making the most of your time? RescueTime can help answer that question. The Web service tracks how long you linger on Web apps and sites, then presents the results in handy charts and graphs.

How to Choose an Online Desktop
Anyone who regularly uses multiple computers knows the value of Web-based apps like Gmail, Google Docs, and Zoho Projects: Wherever you go, your documents and data go with you. Wouldn't it be great, then, if you could have an entire desktop environment that lives on the Web? Here are three to test-drive.

Should You Schedule an Appointment with Yourself?
In this reader-recommended post, Rick Broida points out an obvious but overlooked time-management issue: You meet with clients to talk business. You meet with your boss to discuss performance. You meet with coworkers to manage projects. But do you ever meet with yourself to see how you could do all your tasks more effectively?

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Sincerely,

BNET Staff

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