This is why I love Capitalism. (1) See a niche, (2) fill that niche, (3) sell the thing that fills the niche on the internet. It really couldn’t be simpler.

The people at Genius Pad have mastered that formula. They have a product that’s so obvious it will make you smack yourself for not thinking of it first, and having a Genius Pad around the house is worth at least the $12 they’re charging for one. Basically, a Genius Pad is a very large post-it note (12 inches/30cm square). It’s the same yellow color as a post-it, and it’s got the same adhesive back thing going on. The difference is just the size and, more importantly, what all the extra space allows for. With a Genius Pad, ‘be back at 8′ becomes ‘I’ll be back at eight. I just ran out to buy batteries and get a haircut. When I get back you’d better have your shit packed and out of my house.’ Or maybe you could just write ‘GET OUT’ in really big letters. Either way, you know it’s going to be more fun to have a bigger piece of paper. Cop your own Genius Pad at Arash and Kelly in the UK, and Megasticky in the US.

–Dan Steckenberg