Archive for ‘Gear’

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September 6, 2011

We Try Harder…Not!!!

by Jason Echols

Recently, my wife and I did the annual backpack purchase for our kids in preparation for school. It was quite simple this year. Good deals at the Nike Store in Sevierville, TN. Two Nike backpacks…one red and black…the other pink and black…complete with the Nike “swoosh”.

Now, which one was my daughter’s…I can’t rememeber.

Melody had the bright idea to have their initials monogrammed on them. This really made sense considering the my son discovered after school started that another boy in his class had an identical pack.

So she took them to a local store that specializes in airbrush and monogramming work. The lady behind the counter was really nice, and we were told it would be a matter of a few days on those packs.

You can already see this one coming. Can’t you?

Days turned into weeks. No backpacks. After about three weeks, my wife walks in for about the 5th time. As you can imagine, she was starting to get just a little exasperated at the situation. She is good at hiding frustration. However, by this point…the fact that she had been waiting some 3 weeks had started to seep out just a bit.

And then it happened…

A complete violation of every unwritten code of business…

The owner of the shop, who had come out to see what was happening, looks at my wife and says…

“Are you quipping an attitude with me?”

First off…no one…and I mean NO ONE…including me, breaks off that question with my wife, and ever is the same again. Bad move, brother. Hope you can recover from that one…but you asked for it.

But the point is this…

Why is it that customer service has deteriorated to the point that any store owner would talk to a customer in that manner? Has our culture as a whole simply fallen to that point?

There are still a number of great businesses out there that do customer service right…and it shows.

But all too often these days we see businesses that show distain for their customers. Did I miss something? Is the customer, and their satisfaction with their experience with you, not what keeps you alive as a business?

If companies do not perceive their customers in that manner…they should.

BTW, we were eventually able to get our money back, and the packs…still no monogramming.

Perhaps we should have gone to that family friend that does this out of her home…the first time.

Posted in Gear, Leadership, September 2011 | Leave a Comment »

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September 2, 2011

Paperhack writer

by Michael Ramm

My friend, Iain Broome, has created a new site dubbed as “a digital ode to undigital writing.” He created the site over his lunch break and it is called Paperhack writer. Check it out as well as his fantastic writing site Write for Your Life.

Posted in Gear, September 2011, Writing Craft | Leave a Comment »

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September 2, 2011

Lost Crates | A notebook and a pen can be a highly effective personal productivity system

by Michael Ramm

I found this as a link from my friend Iain Broome’s brand new Paperhack Writer site. He has introduced me to yet another new site to follow:

Pen and paper have unique characteristics that are suitable for just “getting things done”.

via Lost Crates.

Posted in Gear, Productivity, September 2011 | Leave a Comment »

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March 16, 2011

Put It In the Books!!!

by Jason Echols

Most productive people will tell you that one of their most cherished and important tools is the notebook(s) they use.

This can take many different forms. Some prefer to have one notebook with everything in it. They then can work out of that one notebook to make sure that nothing that they capture falls through the cracks. Others would rather have different notebooks for different settings. This requires more discipline, but can help the user better distinguish contexts.

I personally prefer separate notebooks for work notes and personal notes. I also have a planner in a separate book.

My planner is kept in a Levenger Circa Bomber Jacket Notebook. I print my own calendar pages and punch the holes with the specialized hole punch. I personally prefer a two-page view of my week. It allows me to see the whole week at at glance. The Circa is a quality book that allows ease of moving pages from place to place within the book. It is wonderfully designed and very easy to use. I highly recommend checking out the whole Circa series. They are customizable and versatile. Steve and all of the fine people at Levenger stand behind all of their products and I can guarantee that you will be satisfied with any purchase you make from them.

Recently, I was fortunate to be gifted a Daily Arsenal Kit from Doane Paper by co-author, Michael Ramm. Thanks to Michael, I had previously had some exposure to Chad Doane’s wonderful products. I have not yet found a specific use for every piece of the arsenal, but I am putting several pieces to good use.

I love the Doane notebooks for a couple of reasons.

  1. The Paper…Chad has developed a unique paper that is a wonderful mash up of lined paper and grid paper. This is huge for me since I have sort of gravitated toward Bill Westerman’s GSD approach to personal productivity. If you read up on GSD, you can see where this type of paper would be priceless.
  2. The Cover… The Idea Journals are well bound with the best covers I have ever seen for a notebook in its price range. Most notebooks are floppy and can be difficult to write in. Not so with the Doane Idea Journal. The cover is sturdy enough that it holds a flat shape even when used in the lap during a meeting.

I use the large Idea Journal for my work notes. I use the smaller Idea Journal for my personal and spiritual stuff. I also carry one of the Utility Notebooks in my pocket for use as a ubiquitous capture tool.

I recommend that you check out these two vendors and see if any of their offerings might fit your needs.

What kind of notebooks do you use to keep yourself productive?

Posted in Gear, March 2011, Productivity | Leave a Comment »

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March 7, 2011

It’s in the Bag

by Jason Echols

One of the first things I notice when I see someone in a business setting is the bag they carry. Some think that it is an extension of themselves…it makes a statement about who they are.

Over the years, I have tried many bags. Many I bought because it looked cool. Some because they looked sophisticated. I probably have enough experience with bags that I would probably be a good person to hire to review bags for some consumer website, but I digress.

As I have grown older, functionality has become most important to me. When I worked in a big city years ago, the company I worked for got us these really classy ballistic Tumi bags. I loved that bag in so many ways…and really hated to turn it in when I left the company. But carrying that bag full of gear on one shoulder while walking 12-15 blocks to work 5 days a week contributed to back problems that I suffer from to this day.

Since then, I have gone through many bags and have always gravitated back to using a backpack. One of the great things about a backpack is that it allows you to carry gear with a distribution of weight that is better for your back. A backpack also allows both hands to be free when being carried.

With these things being said, here the criteria I have developed over the years for any bag that I carry…

  1. It must be easy on the back
  2. Allows me to use my hands
  3. It carries all I need to without me jamming stuff into it too tightly
  4. it MUST, MUST, MUST stand up on its own

A couple of years ago, I saw a SwissGear Carbon in the nearby Apple Store. I read reviews and was satisfied to try it out. From that point forward, no matter what I experiment with, I always end up coming back this bag. It is well constructed. It is very easy on the back. The placement and size of the pockets make sense. It can hold up to a 17″ laptop, which demonstrates its versatility. The laptop compartment is padded well and easy to access. And as the photo above indicates…it holds a load of stuff.

I am not sure if this specific bag is still being made. I do know you can still find them online. That being said, I know that Wenger still makes similar bags that are just as solid.

Have you used this bag or one similar?

If not…What is your “go-to” bag?

Why is it an indispensable part of your arsenal?

Posted in Gear, March 2011 | Leave a Comment »

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