The Tools of Excellence: 13: The Back of an Envelope

Man is a generalist. No harm in that: he/she is remarkably adept at adapting and to enhance this process has created a batch of tools which allows him/her to perform to the highest levels.

When push comes to shove, what are the essential Tools of Excellence?

13: The Back of an Envelope

Sometimes an idea is bubbling. A plan, a product, a solution, a breakthrough. You need somewhere to articulate and develop that seed of an idea. That's when you grab the back of an envelope from the small stack on the corner of your desk. This idea is not yet ready for your notebook, this may well be screwed up and binned within minutes and another envelope grabbed. Or the train of thought discarded. 

The envelope is perfect. It's non-intimidating: it is after all just 'waste'. It has a perfect landscape expanse which allows the pen to race across the page. If worthy of further consideration it can be folded into your notebook without distortion for later consideration. 

The Excellence Kit-Bag so far:

1: Notebook & pen   2: The Play-list   3: The Single-gear bike   4: The Compass   5: The Wall Planner

6: The Skipping Rope   7: The Stop-Watch.   8: The Coffee Grinder & French Press   9: An Empty Room

10: The Swiss Army Knife   11: The Personal Mantra  12. The Personal Calculator

13: The Back of an Envelope