Punch 2013 in the Throat!
Alright everybody, we’re 9 days into the new year…if you’re anything like me you have a NeverEndingToDoList with “Goal Planning for 2013″ waiting patiently for your attention. I have every intention on tackling that to-do TONIGHT, after I finish typing to all you lovely, lively souls all over the interweb. Lately, I’ve been very influenced by the Accidental Creative podcast along with a couple creative entrepreneur books. Anyhow, entrepreneurs are an interesting blend/breed of people. They’re typically creative (even if it not in the stereotypical “artistic” way), idea-oriented, and have this driving passion to do life their way, on their terms…which typically means a career that is off the beaten path.
Changing thoughts slightly, a couple weeks ago I was contacted by Jesse Phillips, Founder of NeuYear, who has launched his very first product: an innovative, seamless, poster sized calendar!! Excited to experience his product for personal use, I was also eager to pick his brain on the process of the calendar, but more specifically, get a little insight into what jumping off the cliff and free-falling is like, so to speak. Jesse was nice enough to answer all my questions, and then some, over Skype. He is animated, passionate, and very honest and open. I had no idea that our interview would end up being 10 pages long!! I mean, it was double spaced, but that’s a long blog post so I decided it would be best to put the interview in a separate post, in all it’s glory!
I have to say, living in the future has many perks. Talking to someone across the US for example…more or less face-to-face.
I am also excited to share a little piece (but very important piece) of my life with all of you. Welcome to my NavigationStation! At any given time you may find me here doing a wide-array of various things! Typically, you’ll see me a bit more at my more “analog” set-up which is behind the NavigationStation. That we’ll save for a later day. I only had time to organize this side of my world 
Ignore my goofy look
Most people may hang their BA…I decided I was more proud of my venture as an entrepreneur, thus the framed business license, seller’s permit, and business card 
Yes those are Lady Gaga tickets in the background, 11 days!!!
Okay, so let’s get started. First off,
Packaging:
It comes in a sleek, black/navy blue tube, with a deliciously eye-catching sticker. Eye to brain Yoda correspondence= YES, SEIZE THE YEAR I WILL!
I followed the instructions, and laid my calendar out overnight before mounting it with some 3m stickies I had left over from my dorm-days.
Design:
The calendar is printed on both sides. This version is printed in a lovely grey and blue-ish-teal color combination with this year’s saying at the top: SEIZE THE YEAR: Plan your work. Work your plan. You get to choose between a vertical OR a horizontal orientation at your home. No need to fuss/feel the mild anxiety one can feel when buying online. You can hang it up either way and decide which orientation you like better. And then, of course, there’s always the comfort of being able to flip it over if you really mess something up I decided to go with the vertical orientation, as the best/most easily accessible space in my area is my door.
The layout of the calendar is genius. All the weeks and months blend seamlessly into the next, which I have never seen in any calendar before…and I have to admit, my first thoughts were, “Of course! This makes SO much sense!” In real life, you never get to flip over something when a month passes (well, except that outdated, shabby, cave-man excuse of how a calendar used to be)…the month just changes, and half the time we’re exclaiming, “OH DEEEEEEAR!! Where did “insert month of choice” go!?” For me, being able to see my whole year, at a glance, is something the back of my checkbook was only able to offer me…and the numbers were so tiny, I rarely bothered. It also never occurred to me how absolutely beneficial being able to plan the ‘big-picture’ would and could be for me. Thanks to society, I never thought of planning any other way then using my monthly/weekly planner. This new line of thought would have helped me IMMENSELY going through college, juggling multiple deadlines, and odd schedules. But anyhow, now it’s available! So here’s to great change in how we organize!
Now, I have to admit that I was a little anxious to make my first mark. I also felt a little down that I had yet to sit down and plan out my goals, but all in good time. So far, I have important dates inked, days I’ve worked out, and a few events I get to look forward to. I soon plan to utilize another fun feature of the calendar, the key at the bottom!
Anyhow, I thought this would be a G-R-E-A-T product to kick off the product review section of Grey Theory Mill. It’s the beginning of the year, life’s exciting and feels renewed, why not get organized and set some goals for yourself? Now, I don’t typically impress my opinions on others, but lately I’ve been thinking about the importance of goal setting specifically, which Jesse confirmed in our interview. Come January, there’s always this huge hype about setting resolutions for yourself. I don’t believe in resolutions. Resolutions are usually these unrealistic, strict plans one makes for them self in a fit of momentary hyper craze: I am going to hit the gym 6 times a week! I am going to lose X amount of weight, I am going to stop eating sugar. All those are great, I guess, but how realistic are they for you? Wouldn’t it make more sense to set a goal to slowly increase your gym attendance? Slowly decrease your sugar intake, and even think about what goes into losing weight healthily. Anyhow, I don’t want to harp much on this, it is simply my interpretation and perception of the word. To me goals are much more concrete. You write them down and then plan how to meet those goals. A lot more thought has to go into goal planning/setting and it is through this process that you actually figure out if your goals are feasible.
So, with all that said. I am thrilled to be an owner of Neu Year calendar. It has me excited for this unfolding year and has also inspired me to really buckle down and get organized.
I highly recommend Jesse’s product, and would like to let you know that he was nice enough to offer Grey Theory Mill readers a 30% discount through the end of January!
All you need to do is enter greytheory once you check out
@ NeuYear.net
Also, stop by NeuYear’s facebook and Twitter pages to help spread the word on this awesome new product!!
With Warmth,
Jonnie