There are ways to get the biggest bone, but does it have any meat on it?
There are different ways of using whatever wits you may have been blessed with to improve your quality of life. Are you effectively using all three?
Level 1 — Maneuvering
This is the level of simple tactics. Observe the situation, and act to better your position. In traffic, you might try to get in the fastest lane. In a fast-paced conversation, you might listen for a gap so that you can speak your mind. In doing your job, you might CC your boss on a deliverable to a third-party (to make sure your boss knows you’re actually doing some work).
Effective maneuvering demands concentration and cleverness. Most of us master the basics on the school-yard, and later refine our maneuvering skills by learning to work more efficiently and effectively. Time-saving tips and optimization techniques fall into this category.
Maneuvering, on its own, won’t take us very far. The other day I got caught in Giant’s traffic — the approach to the Bay Bridge was agonizingly slow. Drivers (myself included) maneuvered to get into the best lane, to “cheat” and get into a lane at the last minute, or to drive close to the car ahead in order to prevent other drivers from cheating.