For the past month or so I've been practicing a productivity technique called pomodoros. I came across The Pomodoro Technique through a video, which featured this beautiful, classy, thoughtfully created planner and I was hooked. The planner was going to cost me less than $30, with shipping, to get my hands on it, so I directly went to order it on the site. Incredible marketing does that to a list-freak and organization-loving person like me. Sigh. Anyway, so I'm on www.productivityplanner.com ordering this thing when a message pops up to inform me it's on back-order. What? At first I was so disappointed and cranky about it. . .but what a small thing to let ruin your morning! To this very day, what I really want, after all, is a decent trick to help me get more done in life. The way I want to accomplish that is by paper, pen and planner. However, no planner can force you into productivity! So, after some consideration I made a list (of course!) of what I'd need to turn this disappointment around, and it looked like this:
With a fairly minimal amount of effort I recreated a layout that mimicked the brilliant Productivity Planner I was going to order. The only annoying part about the whole endeavor was getting it to print the way I wanted, you know, like a book. Once that was sorted the rest was a total breeze. It's really neat! It's really productive. If you're curious about pomodoros this is where I discovered them (pomodoro talk starts at minute 1:00), and this is the official, go all out, Pomodoro Technique. To keep assembly simple you could punch in holes for a binder or tie with string. Heck! Trevor suggested I staple it. What a nut! To bind, I folded the pages in half, I tapped 5 holes into the crease with a regular old nail and hammer and then used this tutorial for a five hole pamphlet stitch. Trust me it's EASY. I used what I had on hand, which was some embroidery floss and a needle. I also made a pretty cover. I used the "lazy man's" watercolor, better known as wet/dry colored pencils, on some heavier weight paper. This is how it turned out! Not sure what the cover design is all about...sometimes I just wing it. I might make some changes on the next one. . .
The important takeaway is that I turned a frown upside down, you guys! There are several key factors in making the choice to be positive and a bit creative. It's a lot easier said than done, for me at least, however I've been spending time on that area of my life lately. Next time I'll elaborate with the story of James Cash Penney for reference. Until then!
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