Normally, I’d serve up some snarky political fare on today’s events in California or opine on the latest shenanigans to come from our esteemed politicians.

But not today.

Today, I’m all about business.  If you’re like me, it probably seems that you’ve spent more time lately racing to airports, hopping on (or off) the latest Southwest Airlines flight, hailing cabs to meetings, and figuring out how to “sell more/be more/do more” with what seem to be incredibly shrinking daylight hours this political season.  As a business owner, it can be especially difficult to accomplish the everyday administrative work that keeps your business running – especially when you’re on the go.

Recently, I discovered some killer tips you will not be able to live without, because they provide everything a busy businessperson needs –right at your fingertips.  I would be a bad colleague if I failed to pass them along.

Thought you knew everything about Google? A few things I bet you didn't know you can do directly from Google’s search box:

• Track your Flight.  Find out if your Flight is on time by going to the Google  search field and simply entering your Airline and Flight number in the search field (example: “JetBlue 3104”).  Hit enter.  Voila.  Instantly see if you’re on time, delayed, or can grab a few extra minutes of shuteye.

• Track your Packages.  No need to call FedEx, spend your time on hold, or even fire up your laptop on the road.  Track your shipping needs by simply entering the word “Track” plus your Tracking number and Google will send you directly to the status page for your package.  (FedEx, UPS, and USPS packages all have unique shipping codes, so simply plugging the code into the Google search box will automatically produce the status of your package.)

• Be Calculating.  Need to know how much the tax is on that Print job you just requested?  Need to calculate your Agency’s fee on a Statewide Media buy?  Simply enter the “Percentage x the Amount” to get the total.  For example, if you need to calculate what 15% of $100,000 is, simply enter “.15 x 100,000” and hit enter.  The answer will appear at the top of the results.  You don’t even need to click another link.  A-mazing.

• Going Global?  Get currency conversions by entering what you’d like to covert, i.e., “100 dollars in Euros” and it will serve up the answer without so much as a s’il vous plait from you.

• Find an Address quickly.  We’ve all heard of this one, but it bears repeating.  Type in the phone number of an individual, organization, or business, and it will serve up their Address in a reverse lookup format.

• Become a Lady of Leisure.  For those who can actually carve out a bit of time for themselves on the weekend, you can find Movie times by simply entering the word “Movies” plus your City name or Zip code.  The nearest Theatres and Showtimes for the next week will appear.  Hmm. Save me a seat?

*Source: Tips paraphrased from RealSimple.com