Upgrade your business resources this month with some cool and sustainable stationery, a to-the-point podcast for entrepreneurs and a book for anyone wanting to escape the tyranny of email. Plus, an Australia-based businesses: a microsite tool that’s taken the world by storm.
The Handy Office Accessory: Tesla Magnetic Notes
There’s a lot to love about sticky notes. So colourful, so convenient, so free from true commitment! Polypropylene Tesla Magnetic Notes have all that plus some sustainability cred: they’re glue-free, reusable and 100 per cent recyclable. Not only can you jot down notes as you would with regular Post-its on the coloured, paper-like side of each of these bits of plastic, but the reverse, white side works like a mini-whiteboard – write, wipe off, write again. While it can be a bit tricky using these at first – as they use static charge, not adhesive, to stick to surfaces – if you follow the tips, they can be a clever and environmental way to brainstorm and memo.
The Australian Link-in-Bio Tool: Linktree
If you’re a freelancer or a small business, Linktree is ideal if you want to build a basic website for your portfolio or “about me” page. It also works really well if you want to point users to multiple web pages from a social media account that only allows one link in the bio. It’s a free service, or there’s a paid “Pro” subscription which offers customisation options for US$6 a month. Linktree is an Australia-based company but there are a few serious competitors too, including bio.fm and Carrd, which went viral after Kim Kardashian shared the microsite on her socials last year.
SEE ALSO: DIY Website Checklist: How to Create Your Own Website
A Concise Podcast for Entrepreneurs: 'Founder’s Journal'
Alex Lieberman co-founded the laugh-out-loud business newsletter 'Morning Brew', but he takes a more solemn tone in 'Founder’s Journal', the audio diary he broadcasts three times a week. Some episodes are as short as seven minutes and never longer than they need be, whether it’s 12 minutes for Lieberman’s personal rules for forging connections in a digital era, or 22 minutes dedicated to what you can learn from Salesforce’s origins. An easy listen on the commute to work (or while you make your breakfast before heading to your home office).
SEE ALSO: What Are the Best Noise-Cancelling Headphones?
The Book for Improving How You Work: 'A World Without Email'
Georgetown University computer science professor Cal Newport says our work output is malformed by a steady stream of unstructured, unscheduled digital messages (AKA email and instant chat platforms). He explored a better way of working in his 2016 book 'Deep Work', but in 'A World Without Email', Newport puts the responsibility of fixing this unplanned attention-wrenching on companies, rather than encouraging individuals to clear their inboxes. He looks at alternative workflow models, including hardcore “extreme programming”, where programmers work on a task in pairs without breaks, meetings or online chat, then go home when they’re done. A good thought-starter if you know you spend your mornings stuck in your inbox!
