The Art of Personal Productivity

Every once in a while, I like to let everyone know where we're headed. Before I go there, though, I'd like to thank the customers who have brought us to where we are. I am in awe at how great our customers are, and am so grateful for your loyalty. Three years ago when we started, it felt a little like a revolution. The idea of visual planning was so new and different that only the early adopters and super-creatives were interested (you know who you are).

Now, it seems like everyone is talking about Bubble Mapping! What started as a personal need to get out of the rut of procrastinate, procrastinate, procrastinate...work like a CRAZY PERSON to meet a deadline has become a great platform to help others find their path to reaching their full potential. We all have so much more we can do if we will just apply the right knowledge and tools to our life. Bubble Maps are the tool that I was missing all those years. My structured approach to time management was actually holding me back from finding my purpose. My brain was speaking in pictures (converted into words), while my planner was speaking in lines of code.

It was only when I saw a deadline approaching that I switched to visualization mode. Engaging your mind's eye is truly one of the great secrets of becoming who you were created to be. Unless you create it in your mind first, your purpose will never reveal itself in your life. Bubble Maps engage your mind in an effortless conversation. I'm not sure how I got off track, but anyway, here's where we're going.

First, we are going to start connecting in a deeper way with our customers. We have found that the customers that we contact directly use more of the features of our products. So, we are researching the right vehicle to make this happen. Most likely, it will start with conference calls, then webinars, then live events.

Second, we are going to continue to develop products for specific groups. We started with students with the  Student Day Planner and the Homework Helper.

Third, we are going to the brick and mortar stores. This will most likely be through a joint venture, but will definitely happen sooner than you think.

Finally, we are going to spread our message. The response has been so overwhelmingly positive that we feel compelled to help as many people as possible unlock their potential. We know this is an aggressive vision but it's become a burning passion for us.

We truly live by our value that;

Your Success is Our Highest Priority!

By the way, how do you like the new logo? (A big THANK YOU to Shontta for designing this for us).

My silent partner and I (he's not really a silent partner, I just don't mention his name) have been running the Bubble Planner for almost three years now, and we've learned so much about e-commerce. However, it seems like the more we learn, the more we realize how much we don't know. In this particular case, I'm talking about Marketing.

It seems silly that we started an online company without Marketing expertise, but what are you going to do. We just knew how to be effective and wanted to help others learn what we have discovered (though not always the easy way). In any case, we recently hired an Internet Marketing company to take a look at our website and tell us what we're doing right (actually quite a bit), what we're doing wrong (yet again, quite a bit), and what we need to do to improve.

One of the a-ha, slap your head, "I should have had a V-8" moments came when they said that we needed a Unique Selling Proposition (USP). It is so strange, our customers actually know more about the value that we provide than we do (at least as far as you can tell from our website). So, we're digging in, making changes, and, yes, writing our USP.

So, over the next few months, you should see some subtle changes to our website as we implement the recommendations from the consultant. In the meantime, if you want some input into our USP, leave a comment or send us an e-mail. Who knows, you might see your suggestion on our website.

We really hadn't anticipated releasing our Student Planner so soon, but the demand has been growing as has the momentum. So, we took the advice (and ideas) of one our customers and created a Bubble Planner just for students. I think it's some of the best work that our Product Development Team has done, yet. The Calendar format starts at 7 in the morning and ends at 11 at night, much like the day of a busy student (with extra-curricular activities going even beyond 11). It has a place for assignments as well.

I really believe that combining the Bubble Maps for Goals, Projects, and Tasks with a more traditional appointment book provides a great mix for students who do more than just go to class. I know that when I started mind mapping the lectures, my study time was reduced dramatically. Who knows how effective I could have been if I had a calendar that made sure I showed up for class.

Right now, the planner comes in Blue and White, and Pink; however, we plan on adding many school colors over the next few weeks, so please check back often or e-mail me if want a specific school color.

I just returned from Chicago this week and had a nice trip. I absolutely love to travel, and though I've been to Chicago many times, this was the first time staying downtown. I'm looking forward to the day when my wife with be able to travel with me, which will be the ultimate.

One evening, I was able to take in a ball game and watched the White Sox beat up on the Rangers pretty good. Oh well, the stadium is great and it was a good time. There were lots of homers, which is always great to see when you're sitting in the outfield. Baseball makes you feel like you are really part of the game. This field was really open which enhances that closeness even more.

One of the highlights of the trip, for me anyway, was the Levenger store inside Macy's downtown. It is awesome seeing all of their products in person. Their store really generated some great ideas to further enhance our product offerings. Our primary focus has been (and will always be) on providing knowledge and tools that help people become even more successful. So, we have poured most of our resources into design and product development with function taking top priority. What we like about Levenger is the packaging. For example, they add leather or cloth to their Circa covers, which is such a pleasure to carry. I can definitely see us carrying more binder options including leather and colors in the future. For now, I would encourage you to upgrade to a binder from either Levenger (for the 360 Binder and Big Bubble) or FranklinCovey Binders for the Original Bubble Planner.

I bought a great 8.5 x 11 3-ring black leather binder at the Levenger store, which is nothing short of luxurious. The good news is that we are putting a Big Bubble inside and donating this binder and 360 Planner in a red leather zippered cover to a worthy cause. Oh yeah, I can definitely see us offering something similar in the future.

At the Bubble Planner, we are always looking for ways to provide the best knowledge and tools to help you succeed. We have come to discover that many of our customers also like know what's happening in the company, Bubble Up. So, we've decided to shift our blog to more of an insider's viewpoint.

Don't fret, we have not stopped writing Life Management Articles. Going forward, we are going to include them in the article menu instead of the blog.

More to come later.