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Slack Hacks You Should Know

If you work in an office, chances are you use the instant messaging program, Slack. Slack is an excellent work tool, as it allows you to make necessary communications without having to hear your colleagues actual human voices. Have a question about a meeting but don't want to take your earbuds out to ask the person sitting 3 feet away? Slack it! Can't believe that asshole Jerry drank the last of the coffee again and want to complain to the only coworker you can tolerate? Slack it! Want to give your boss a quick heads up that you'll be late because "your train was delayed" (you stared out the window and contemplated moving to the mountains of Peru for a full 25 minutes before getting dressed)? Slack it!

Whatever you use it for, Slack can streamline office communications and help a workplace run more smoothly. But are you sure you're using it to the full extent of its abilities? We've compiled a list of our top Slack hacks to help you get the most out of your closest friend at work: Slack.

Command: /remind

Slack can be a great place to keep a to do list. Just enter /remind into any text box, and you'll be able to build a list of reminders only you'll be able to see.

Command: /gif

While this isn't exactly a tool geared towards productivity, it is an extremely important feature. If you type /gif into the textbox, and then any series of words, Slack will generate a related gif. Warning: it might be an unexpected result, so probably think twice before using this command with your boss.

Text Format Commands:

Surround a word or phrase with *asterisks.* to create bold text.

Place _underscores_ around a word or phrase to italicize.

To strike out certain words, use ~tilde~ around the text you wish to cross out.

Use select "Shift" + "Enter" to add a new line to your message to create lists. To add bullet points, select Opt+8 (Mac) or Alt+0149 (PC).

Blockquotes: To add angle brackets at the start of your message for indents and quotes, type ">" to indent a single lines or ">>>" to indent multiple paragraphs.

Code blocks: To display a section as inline fixed-width text, use single `backticks` around the selected area. To create a block of pre-formatted, fixed-width text, use triple ```backticks.```


Command: /msg @user [your message].

A lot of slack communications happen in channels that contain multiple people, but sometimes you need to ask something that doesn't pertain to the whole group, or you want to gossip about the other people in the Slack group. When these occasions arise, simply type /msg and then the name of the person you want to message with an @ sign in front of it, and then place your message in brackets.


Automatic Commands:

Click on your name in the top left corner of the window and select "Customize Slack." Select "Slackbot" and then insert one or multiple input phrases with commas, and then add a Slackbot response or responses by adding each one to its own line ("Shift" + "Enter").


Command: /collapse and /expand

Use the /collapse command to collapse videos and other files you've enlarged in the Slack window. To expand again, enter /expand to view the images up close again.

Command: /dnd

By typing /dnd in any Slack channel, you can snooze your notifications for as long as you want. Just enter the amount of time you want to be notification free by typing something like: /dnd for two hours.

With these slack hacks, you'll make the most out of one of the best office tools!

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The Industries Most Affected by the Coronavirus Outbreak

China's economy is the second largest in the world, and with America's economy so beholden to it for supply and stability, the affects of COVID 19 reach far beyond the Chinese borders. As the virus spreads internationally, sectors across the world brace for dips in profit. Things will remain uncertain for weeks to come as we wait to see the full impact of the spread of the virus, but for now, these eight industries have been affected the most by the pandemic.

Luxury Goods

Chinese consumers account for "more than a third of the value of so-called personal luxury goods purchases, which includes apparel, beauty and jewelry," according to Financial Times. Joëlle de Montgolfier, director of Bain's luxury practice, said the coronavirus could have a "double whammy effect" on the luxury sector. "Not only will Chinese people buy less domestically during the key New Year shopping season, they will also have to cancel trips abroad, during which they often buy luxury goods," she said.

Poultry

The wholesale price of chicken has dropped as much as 70% in India specifically due to rumors that the virus can be transmitted through eating poultry. Similar drops in the value of poultry have been reported all over the globe, particularly in countries with many cases of COVID-19.

Airlines

According to the Guardian, "more than 85,000 flights touching China have been canceled in the three weeks since the outbreak closed Wuhan airport on 23 January." While these cancellations have the largest impact on airlines, there has also been a notable decrease in flying globally—not just to China—because of customers fears of contracting the disease. "If people take a view they shouldn't be traveling or shouldn't go to a place or be on planes with people who might have been to certain places, they're less likely to travel," said Andrew Charlton, a Geneva-based aviation analyst. "It's going to have an impact on passenger numbers."

Automobile

Wuhan (the center of the COVID 19 outbreak) itself is a major hub for the automobile industry, particularly for European carmakers. Renault, Peugeot, Volkswagen, BMW, and Jaguar Land Rover, Honda, have still not reopened factories run with Chinese partners. These delays could be catastrophic to the car industry because "carmakers hold very little stock at their assembly operations, instead relying on just-in-time supply chains that see parts delivered to the assembly plant hours or even minutes before required in the factory."

Oil

The Chinese were responsible for the majority of the growth in global demand for oil last year, but the International Energy Agency expects demand to fall in coming months for the first time in more than ten years thanks to the far reaching affects of COVID 19.

Cruise Vacations

Cases of COVID 19 have been confirmed or suspected on upwards of 5 cruise ships so far, and thanks to the close quarters of these ships, confirmation of the disease results in infected ships being quarantined at sea. Obviously, that makes it an unappealing time to book a cruise, and to make matters worse for the cruise industry the US State Department just put out a statement saying: "U.S. citizens, particularly travelers with underlying health conditions, should not travel by cruise ship." To try to bolster flagging bookings, many cruise lines are now offering major discounts and lenient cancellation policies.

Leisure

Coronavirus fears have already canceled SXSW, a major American music festival, and it's likely that more festivals will be called off in coming months. The music industry isn't the only leisure activity being affected. Macau, a popular destination for gambling off the coast of China, reported an 80% dip in visitors from China compared to the same day last year. As COVID 19 continues to spread, it's likely that casinos, concert venues, sporting events, theme parks, movie theaters, and other destinations for leisure activities will close their doors across the world.

Banks

Analysts expect the virus to have a major impact on world banks thanks to rapid slowdown in loan growth and a reduction in fee income. Many banks are also operating below normal standards because of the shuttering of many offices across China and other infected cities. For example, Swiss bank UBS told its workers in Hong Kong to stay home for at least two weeks if they have travelled to China recently.

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The 4 Most Overlooked Tax Deductions

It's a pretty good feeling to get that tax return check in the mail, but a pretty bad one to realize you forgot to include a tax deduction that would have lowered your tax bill or increased your returns. With the ever increasing complexity of the tax laws, filing taxes just gets more and more complicated. To help simplify things, we assembled a list of some of the most commonly overlooked tax breaks you should take advantage of.

State Sales Tax

Few people know that an option exists that allows you to deduct sales taxes or state income taxes off your federal income tax. In a state that doesn't have its own income tax, this can mean major savings. When filing taxes, itemizers have the choice between deducting the state income taxes or state and local sales taxes they paid. If your state doesn't have an income tax, the sales tax write-off will decidedly safe you the most money.

Charitable Donations

While most taxpayers probably know that you can write off major charitable donations, many don't know that you can also write off smaller ones. Additionally, it's possible to write off expenses paid out of pocket that allowed you to spend time working for charity, such as hiring a babysitter for your children so you can volunteer at a soup kitchen. Or, if you drove your car to charitable activities, you can deduct 14 cents per mile, plus parking and tolls paid.

Unusual Business Expenses

It may seem obvious that you can write off the cost of business expenses, but you may not know how many different kinds of business expenses that includes. As Turbotax points out, "A junkyard owner, for example, might be able to deduct the cost of cat food that encourages stray cats to hang around and keep the mice and rats away. A bodybuilder got approved to deduct the body oil he used in competition."

Health Insurance Premiums

Health care is expensive, and only getting more expensive. Luckily, the IRS takes this into account. Deductible medical expenses have to exceed 10 percent of your adjusted gross income (AGI) to be claimed as an itemized deduction in 2019, but if this is true of you, you're looking at some major savings.

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