🎙️ Tune in this weekend! My national radio show is airing coast to coast on 420+ stations, and you’re officially invited. I’m sharing smart tech tips, digital life hacks, stories too wild for the newsletter, and chatting with listeners like you. Don’t miss it! Find your local station or get the podcast.
Your side hustle is delicious
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You know that thing you do where you dissect your burger like you’re Gordon Ramsay on espresso? Good news, you can now get that burger for free.
Mystery dining is having a renaissance. You often get free food, tips and travel covered, usually via a prepaid card or voucher.
I had a guest on my show who racked up over $40,000 in free meals doing this. Not bad for someone who just wanted a decent steak.
🍔 How it works
You visit the restaurant, eat like a normal human, then unleash your inner food critic. But it’s not exactly a free lunch; you’re doing a job. Expect to answer detailed questions like:
- Was the staff friendly?
- How clean was the restaurant?
- Did your order arrive hot and on time?
You’ll usually submit photos and complete an online questionnaire after your visit. Some agencies might want you to write a short review.
🍽️ Mystery dining companies
Here are three legit agencies where you can sign up:
- Second to None: Been around for 30+ years. Offers assignments in fine dining, fast food and even retail.
- EyeSpy CC: Focuses heavily on upscale dining. Reviewers say budgets are generous and assignments are fun.
- Market Force: A big name in dining and retail. Assignments may start small, but regulars unlock better opportunities (and pay).
You may be asked to complete a practice test to show you can follow instructions.
🚨 Scam alert: Any company asking YOU to pay up front is scammier than a time-share in Jupiter (the planet). Run away like your entrée just came with a side of identity theft.
Find the subscriptions you forgot about: I use Rocket Money, an app that finds all your recurring subscriptions and lets you easily cancel anything you don’t want. The first time I logged in, it saved me $435!
🎮 Play more, pay less: The Steam Summer Sale is on now until July 10. Perfect for scoring deep discounts on the games you’ve been eyeing. You’ll need a free Steam account to save. No account? Don’t use Steam? No problem, Amazon’s got plenty of hot gaming bargains happening right now.
We may earn a commission from purchases, but our recommendations are always objective.
Freebie for teachers: Need posters, worksheets or slides that actually look good? Canva’s got loads of templates made for teachers. Go to canva.com/education and click Get Verified with your school info.
⌨️ Using a keyboard with your iPad? Press and hold the Command key (⌘) to see all the available shortcuts for the app you’re in. Some apps even show tabs at the bottom, so you can swipe through categories. Like in Mail, Command + R lets you quickly reply to a message.
This is embarrassing: Be careful when you’re talking through Bluetooth in your car. That sound can leak more than you think. Before you say something like, “Doctor, this rash is all over my…” turn the volume way down or hit mute.
🤫 Mute Instagram stories: Just because you follow someone doesn’t mean you need to see every single story they post. Tap their story, hit the three-dot menu in the top right, choose Mute, then tap Mute stories. Hooray.
⚡️ 3-second tech genius: On Windows, right-click the Start button for secret access to Task Manager, Device Manager and more. On Apple, press Command + Space, type Activity Monitor and hit Return.
Don’t miss rewards: From groceries to travel, Clark.com has a list of the best credit cards to help you maximize every dollar you spend. Subscribe to Clark.com’s free newsletter to receive more must-have money tips every day.
🎮 Set Fortnite parental controls: Worried your kid’s spending too much time (or money) on Fortnite? They are. Log in to their account at the Epic Games portal. Go to Parental Controls and set a PIN. From there, you can limit playtime, control who they chat with and require the PIN before any in-game purchases are made.
Edit your iPad Mail app menu: Want different options at the top of your emails? Tap the menu button in the top right corner and select Customize Toolbar. Drag functions down to remove them, or drag new ones up (like Mute sender). FYI: You can rearrange the icons from here, too.
💻 Clean up your new PC: A new Windows 11 computer usually comes loaded with bloatware that eats up system resources. Go to Settings > Apps > Installed apps. Scroll through the list, tap the three-dot menu next to anything you don’t want, and click Uninstall.
⚡️ 3-second tech genius: Double-click the space bar (on your phone) to instantly add a period and space.
🛑 Guess who’s reading your inbox? Big Tech. Yeah, seriously. But not StartMail. It’s private, secure and even has disposable addresses. Try it free for seven days and get 60% off your first year!
🎙️ Voice typing on Windows: Press Windows key + H to activate voice typing anywhere you’d usually type, like in MS Word. You can speak punctuation (“period” or “question mark”), or click the Settings icon and toggle on Automatic punctuation to have it added as you talk.
📸 Fix the iPhone Photos app: Yep, the redesigned iOS 18 layout kinda stinks, but you can clean it up. Open the Photos app, scroll to the bottom and tap Customize & Reorder. Untick what you don’t need, then drag the rest into whatever order you want. Nice.
💸 Buying from an overseas seller? PayPal lets you choose to pay in your own currency or theirs. Pick yours, and you’ll get slapped with a 3% to 4% conversion fee (it’s in the fine print). Go with the seller’s currency instead. Your bank or card usually gives you a better rate.
⚡️ 3-second tech genius: Press Command + T (Mac) or Ctrl + T (Windows) to open a new tab in your browser without touching your little mouse.