Bamboo's Smart Folio Helps You Stay Creatively Mindful

Bamboo runs on creative energy. From head to toe, they’re a company fueled by creative thinking and idea-making. One look at their smart pads shows they value the link between ingenuity and innovation. For Rick Peterson, Senior Director of Global Market Strategy for Bamboo, it’s not enough for creativity to be a backseat trait, it should be one of the top tools in your workplace cache. So, he’s heading up Bamboo’s new Mindful Meetings campaign to give people tips, tools, and resources to give their creative side a turn and relieve the distraction of devices. As Peterson puts it, the campaign is all about “driv[ing] harmony between computers and the creatives of the world.”

You don’t need to be a painter or designer to benefit from more artistic freedom in your life. No matter who you are, it’s likely your life is piled high with devices like smartphones, tablets, and computers. It’s also likely you’ve spent your fair share of time staring at those devices and tuning out everyone around you. “It’s hard to escape our devices,” Peterson says.

That’s why Bamboo’s Folio strives to create a balance between the convenience of technology and the inherent value of handwriting, sketching, and free-form brainstorming. The Folio is a smart pad that lets you write freely and naturally by hand, then transfer your drawings or notes to a digital format. Use the pen to write or sketch on any paper – with or without your smartphone or tablet nearby – and the Folio will store your ideas until you’re ready to download them via the Inkspace app. You can then convert handwriting to text, store your notes in the cloud, or download them directly to your smartphone or tablet. It’s perfect for jotting down and preserving notes when you get that first spark of a great idea, taking notes during meetings and easily sending out digital copies, laying down a sketch for your next painting, convenient travel journaling – the list is practically endless.

In meetings, Bamboo’s smart pads foster what Peterson calls a “distraction-free open dialogue” that increases productivity, encourages more personal interactions, and offers a freedom of thinking that is lost when we constantly compete with our technology. There’s something about writing by hand that makes you think differently, and even doodling can be beneficial for focusing and retaining information – and when we focus on our ideas and our peers instead of our devices, our meetings – and our lives – become more mindful.

You can get in on the Mindful Meetings campaign by visiting Bamboo’s website for articles, stats, and information about the way we do meetings and the best ways to do them better. Sign up for their 30 day Mindful Meetings pledge to receive tips, techniques, and resources for staying mindful. You can even enter to win a free Bamboo smart pad – they’re giving away one per week through the first week of August to spread the mindful love.