D*I*Y Planner

First, I'd like to apologize to the author, Alyson B. Stanfield, for having taken a year to read and review this book. She graciously gave me a copy and in between my busy schedule, and reading the book, I got lost. In fact, I started this book three times over. Not because it was a bad book but because it was so chock full of good advice that every time I picked it up and read a bit more, my mind would churn and I'd go off to put some of her advice into practice. Time passed and I'd have to go and start it all over, just so I could make sure I gave the book a proper reading to write this review.

I'd Rather Be In the Studio is an amazing book that, while targeting artists looking to build their business and promote themselves, I'd highly recommend it to anyone looking to promote their passions. Stanfield structures the book around eight basic excuses that artists (and writers, *ahem* *cough*) conjure up when faced with marketing and self-promoting themselves and their work— excuses such as "I don't have the time," or "There aren't enough hours in the day to do it all," or "I'm an introvert." Stanfield refutes each excuse in detail before going into the action-chapters that help to combat each excuse. For example, she mentions in the "My art speaks for itself" excuse that an artist's work never really speaks for itself, that when others say things about an artist's piece of art, they are simply reacting to it (good or bad). Then she follows up this section with two chapters: one that shows you how to harness the power of an artist statement, and another on speaking or teaching as an expert in the field.

Wow, a new year, a new planning method, and a new planner. We're all set, or are we? As you recall from the introductory article, I created the Middle Way Method to help take advantage of the best aspects of top down, and bottom up planning. Soon after creating the methodology, I realized that in order to put this practice to work, I'd need to hack together a new planner, which I've called the Middle Way notebook. I showed you how to create one of your own last month.

Now I'd like to take some time and look at how the method, system, and journal all work together to create planning nirvana. In this article, I'll guide you through the process of working with the Middle Way Method System and corresponding planner. We'll use the methodology's step by step planning process to guide you through real-life examples (from my life) of how I use the forms and method. The whole weekly planning process usually takes me 15 to 30 minutes, unless I choose to journal for a longer amount of time. To help you understand this process, I'll be using examples from my personal life.

Editor's Note: Hey gang, sorry this article is late in posting, it has been done for awhile but since it features a huge nine-book signature upload, we've been having a hard time locating server space to host the files. We're putting the files on Jordan's site for now; so go easy on his web server. Thanks for your patience!

Last month, I introduced you to the The Middle Way Method, which is a productivity system I made up that works for me. Today I'm going to show you the kit that I made for use with that system. One of the reasons I created this system was because I wanted to ditch the binder. I've been wanting to create my own books for a while now, and this gave me the perfect opportunity to show off my creative skills. I'm currently using the first book I made as a journal; and my second, third, and fourth books become the basis of my planner.

As you can see from the first photograph, my kit has three parts: a 9-signature planning book, and two single signature sub-notebooks: a Weekly Diabetes Tracker (containing 6 weeks of data) and an address book. I also keep a stash of index cards inside the kit, when I need them.

Before you set about to create your own kit, I suggest you read the following articles:

• innowen's Intro to Bookbinding 101 article. It teaches you bookbinding vocabulary and gives you an idea of the tools you'll need.
• Michael Shannon's Make Your Own Moleskine-Like-Notebook post. Use the instructions and techniques in this 5-page guide to bind the main book together.
• innowen's Intro to Bookbinding 101: Your First Book article. This guides you through the process of making single signature books (handy if you want to create sub-notebooks).

The D*I*Y Planner Dynamic Template application has now hit version 2.0, ready to produce any size and shape of yearly, monthly, weekly, and daily calendars for your printing pleasure. All designs are based upon the Classic versions of the D*I*Y Planner, along with input from Doug, and so will integrate completely into your DiyP setup. (The daily design was created by Doug, but was never implemented as a static template owing to the insane amount of repetitive work required.)

Simply select your paper size, choose the calendar type, and tweak the settings to come up with your own printable set of calendars that perfectly fit your planner and your lifestyle.

The Mac version was built in Mac OS 10.4.11, using Qt 4.5.2
Here's a shot of the Mac version as it starts up:

My friend, Colin, started using the Pomodoro Technique a month ago. Today he wrote about his experiences (so far) with this timed productivity method.

It has been one month as of today that I started using the Pomodoro Technique at work in an attempt to increase my productivity. I think that after a month of use I can provide an evaluation of the technique; what I find good about it along with some of the negative sides. While I think that using pomodoros has increased my productivity overall, there are still some gaps that I have yet to discover ways of filling.

Go visit his blog to read his lengthy review of how the Pomodoro Technique fits into his life. Perhaps it might inspire you to give it a whirl and boost your productivity?

I want to introduce you to The Middle Way Method, an organizational system I created and have been using to keep me and my projects on task. In 2006, I decided to learn how to be more effective with planning. I had tried a few planning systems, and while they all had something I found useful, not fit my lifestyle or personality perfectly. An Internet search about making planner pages brought me to D*I*Y Planner. Here I found I was not alone in needing and creating custom planning systems. D*I*Y Planner also introduced me to a whole slew of planning methodologies.

From studying all these planning systems, I noticed that they fell into two categories: Top Down or Bottom Up. The first is Top Down Planning, and the Franklin Covey methodology provides a great example of this type, which says "Know who you are, and work from there to become who you want to be." The second type is Bottom Up Planning, and Getting Things Done (GTD) system, follows this methodology. GTD is designed to clear all of the "Stuff" in your life, and process it effectively. However, I found that neither of these systems really work best for me. Over time, I kept track of what worked for me from each system, and I used that to create my own system, called The Middle Way Method.

I choose the name, The Middle Way Method, because I was inspired by the story of how the Buddha reached enlightenment. I see this system bridging the gap between Top Down and Bottom Up systems. The Middle Way Method encourages me to uncover who I am, who I want to be, and how to become who I want to be, while being able to handle everything that is thrown my way. In the past, I've had issues where the planning systems break down on me. A crisis or a change, and I need a complete new system. The Middle Way Method helps me to create a new system utilizing this same methodology. This enables me to quickly create a new system for my changed circumstances, because I do not have to work out the method all over again, and I am no longer bouncing between top down or bottom up. I feel that this approach gives a balance between the important things of life and the daily grind.

Happy Halloween everyone. Welcome to the dark time of the year, when spirits roam, and pumpkins light our way. A time where we remember our ancestors in Day of the Dead celebrations and Remembrance meals. At this special time of the year, Jordan McGilvray tells us a tale of Jack and offers us a treat. So sit back, eat a slice of pumpkin pie, and enjoy this holiday.

Jack limped along the dirt track, grumbling to himself about the cost of every needful thing. He muttered about how cold his house was, that the peat was to hard to dig, and wood was to expensive. He grumbled about the children who stared in awe and fear as they looked at him. They made his life miserable when he went to the village, teasing him, mocking him, and calling him names. Jack stopped and thought for a minute. He did not really care for one other person in the whole planet. Sometimes this worried Jack. The town priest, who read scriptures, always said that you should love your neighbors, implying that everyone was a neighbor. "Bah," thought Jack, "I know I care nothing for anyone or anything, but that does not make me bad."

This week Jordan gives us some history and tips on logo design. Download and use his Logo Development Sheets to create your own logos.

With the advent of television and the Internet, and online communities, we have all become a unique brand. In this article I’m going to show you how you can create your own personal, or familial, logo. A logo is important in branding. It is a visual communication that helps people associate you and your services with a picture.

Communicating visually has been an important part of human history. Dynastic Egypt used a symbol known as a Serekh. A Serekh was created for Royalty. These rectangular hieroglyphs were used to distinguish each ruling family apart. Egyptians placed the god Horus on the top, the name of the reining King in the middle, and the palace of the rule on the bottom. Serekhs were used to relay the necessary message of royal power. Later versions added an epithet within each glyph.

It’s October and that means only one thing. The NaNoWriMo site relaunched and the forum boards opened to a flood of new ideas and discussions. It’s time to sign-up and explore the depths of your inner writer. Those familiar with this site and my column know that I am a 100% rabid devotee of NaNoWriMo. I’ve been participating in this madcap writing adventure for eight years now. As of this post, I have no idea what I’ll be writing about. But I’m confident that when the clock strikes midnight, signaling the beginning of November 2009, that I will be off and running, and writing until I reach 50,000 words.

Usually, I’d spend this post sharing some tidbit of wisdom or knowledge to help those who have joined in the fun learn how to be triumphant in this challenge. However, I’ve become insanely busy this year; so instead this post sounds more like a NaNoWri-cap or "best of" listing, rather than me sharing something new. Let the list of links below refresh your memory and spark new ideas for this year’s crop of noveling insanity.

• NaNoWriMo 2008 Last year’s post talked about how I went analog and gave you all some ideas on how to join in on the fun with me.
• NaNoWriMo 2007 Advice from a first time participant on what helped them achieve greatness.
• NaNoWriMo 2006 The power of brainstorming and how it can help you uncover plot ideas and generate outlines.
• NaNoWriMo 2005 Using D*I*Y Compact Planner Story forms to plot your way to victory.
• Review: No Plot? No Problem! A review of the NaNoWriMo companion book written Chris Baty, the founder of NaNoWriMo.
• Cheer Me On: Writing Buddies How you and your friends can cheer each other on as you write, write, write all through November.

If you’re gunning for novelizing glory come join us! Add me and the other members from D*I*Y Planner who take on this challenge to your buddy list. To all the official (and un-official) NaNoWriMo 2009 participants, good luck and I hope your muses bless you with many, many words.