Years ago I had a job where I used the program Visio to create flowcharts. The program was in its early stages but the power of organization was wonderful. I could move the shapes anywhere I wanted and I could easily see the workflow that I was after. The nice thing was the ability to quickly move things around.
That is the power of the, “Five Minute Flowchart.” Print a half dozen business card flowchart sheets, break them apart, grab a Sharpie, and have fun. You’ll soon have a business card flowchart on your desk. Then you can start moving things around.
Don’t like this card here… then move it. Grab a different colored Sharpie and mark things up. Have fun… break the rules. Make yourself the CEO and add others below you. Send the workflow downstream. Create your own corporation.
This Microsoft Word based template allows you to add text from the computer or you can print them blank and enter text by hand. The template includes the 10 most popular shapes and arrows for basic flowcharts. You can cut and paste different shapes in your template to modify them the way you want. Add color and texture for added emphasis.
Once you have modified your template and printed it out, break all the cards apart and clip them together with a mini clip. Take this Flowchart Walleter to your next business meeting and wow your co-workers. People will be amazed at your creativity and organizational prowess. Pass out some cards and Sharpies and have a flowchart party. The creativity will soar and you just may find the answer you were looking for.
Instructions:
- Download the Five Minute Flowchart template
- Open in Microsoft Word
- Add text to the shapes or print blank
- Cut & paste shapes as needed
- Print out on Avery Business Card stock (10 card)
- Break cards apart
- Lay them out on your desk or table
- Create a great flowchart
- Modify as necessary
Options:
- Add color and texture to your shapes for added emphasis
- Add other shapes and lines from the auto shape menu in Word
- Print cards double sided for added versatility
Bottom Line: Have fun and be creative. I have found that this little tool is very helpful for many projects.
Update: Check out our new deluxe version with over 40 new symbols
Related Projects:
30 Responses to 'Five Minute Flowchart'
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Hi, I just wanted to say that using flowcharts in this way is a fantastic idea. It’s great to have a visual representation of what needs to be done. Thank you for the excellent tip!
Again, a very cool idea. However I must admit I haven’t flowcharted for a long time and a key for the shapes would be useful for me.
Thanks John!
Brilliant! I modified the template to include a database symbol, now I’m ready to go!
Thanks for the update, Neil. As a database guy myself, I’ve actually found this is a useful tool especially in a meeting situation where you need to move things around and try things out.
Happy flowcharting…
John
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Five Minute Flowchart
This Microsoft Word based template allows you to add text from the computer or you can print them blank and enter text by hand. The template includes the 10 most popular shapes and arrows for basic flowcharts. You can cut and paste different shapes in …
I just wanted to say that using flowcharts this way is useful especially in a meeting situation. Thank you for five minute flow charts!
[...] Five Minute Flowchart (tags: GTD Organization Productivity Template Flow+Charts) [...]
I’ve been doing this for some time, but here’s a tip that makes it even more fun.
Office supply stores sell pre-cut flexible sheet magnets that have adhesive on one side so that you can stick business cards on them for distribution as refrigerator magnets.
This way, the stack keeps itself together, and if you have steel/ceramic whiteboards like I have in my home, you can arrange them on the wall. That way they can take on a little more permanance than just laying on the desk, but can be re-arranged as needed over days, weeks, months, etc.
really cool ideas! I notice there are not mac platform versions, tho I think I can translate the template.
odd that Windows users need a paper backup for their systems *wink*
[...] Years ago I had a job where I used the program Visio to create flowcharts. The program was in its early stages but the power of organization was wonderful. I could move the shapes anywhere I wanted and I could easily see the workflow that I was after. The nice thing was the ability to quickly move things around. [...]
Excellent!
[...] Five Minute DIY Flowchart Forget Visio or Omnigraffle Pro. The "Five Minute Flowchart” lets you print a half dozen business card flowchart sheets, break them apart, grab a Sharpie, and have fun. You’ll soon have a business card flowchart on your desk! Keywords: freeware, productivity, tools [...]
[...] Five Minute DIY Flowchart Forget Visio or Omnigraffle Pro. The "Five Minute Flowchart” lets you print a half dozen business card flowchart sheets, break them apart, grab a Sharpie, and have fun. You’ll soon have a business card flowchart on your desk! Keywords: freeware, productivity, tools [...]
[...] Sul sito Success Begin Today trovate la serie “Five Minutes”, ovvero dei tutorial per realizzare i propri Flowchart cartacei, oppure il proprio Organizer di carta. A corredo anche dei file pdf o word da stampare e ritagliare. [...]
I cannot find the flowchart template you refer to here
[...] Flowchart [...]
How about a 3 minute flowchart? http://www.allclearonline.com
This Microsoft Word based template allows you to add text from the computer or you can print them blank and enter text by hand. The template includes the 10 most popular shapes and arrows for basic flowcharts. But there are some other flowchart software too. Some are smaller and easy to use to draw flow diagram, network diagrams such as edraw, flowcharter than visio.
i like this flowchart
i like this flowchart
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[...] in May of 2006 we published a little desktop utility called The Five minute Flowchart. This business card based printable sheet went on to become one of our most popular utilities and [...]
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[...] Mann’s, 43 Folder’s blog. This post spawned many other card based items such as the 5 minute flowchart, pocket dieteer and the goal setting toolkit. These personal productivity items along with our [...]
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[...] wife was messing around the other day with a sample of a five minute flowchart that I had printed out. She moved it around on the desktop and tried it in different formations. [...]
[...] auch gerne Zettel hin und her schieben um neue Möglichkeiten zu entdecken, dann ist vielleicht das 5-Minuten-Flowchart von “Success Begins Today” etwas für Sie. Hier können Sie sich zwei Varianten von [...]
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