This year's indulgent forays into the complex world of electronically assisted productivity, seeking a happy hybrid synergy with pen and paper, have been interesting but, ultimately, in vain.
The much anticipated magic carpet ride with Apple's excellent "Reminders" app has been a little bumpy, Google Calendar has made me feel like I'm painting the Forth Bridge, and some gentle perambulations with Evernote and Omnifocus have left me feeling like I'm in the garage far too often, rather than heading down the highway.
There's nothing intrinsically wrong with any of these systems, commonly used in business or group environments, and I have enjoyed experimenting with them, but I have found that it has detracted from the subtle pleasure of laying ink onto paper and see my forthcoming early retirement as an opportunity to switch to a totally analogue productivity system, much of it Filofax based.
So, my new year's resolution is to return to paper; for projects, lists, reference, and even my calendar. No more compatibility issues, no more running out of battery power on the train, no more disapproving looks in meetings, and no more awkward "just let me put you on speakerphone whilst I check my diary" moments. But I may still use my iphone as an alarm clock a few times each day.
I'm back on the waggon this coming year, and I'm hauling paper.
Yes I came to the same conclusions over time. Reminders is ok but it doesn't sort them in to the order I want. On my Mac, I display the 'Today' window that is ok. But on the iPhone it just seems to show them in a fairly random order.
ReplyDeleteStick with paper, you don't get any of the issues.
Looking forward to seeing some more of your posts... and videos.
Steve, I don't like the way "Reminders" doesn't allow you to change the listing order either, but my biggest frustration (and this isn't Apple's fault) is my need to access, and add to, my diary whilst simultaneously being on a call. Sure, this can be achieved with the use of a "hands free" lead, but using the built in mic on an iphone is preferable in noisy environments.
DeleteWill hopefully have more time for posts this year, Steve; maybe a couple each week perhaps and, since I'll be paper based, more relevant to Filofax users
I too, have made a return to paper toward the end of this year. While a beautiful Day-timer distressed leather binder is my binder of choice, I have customized it with pretty pages and decorations to make my day brighter and more cheerful as I put pen to paper. While iPhone has been great with alarms and reminders, I find it cathartic to just sit and write and see where my day is going or has gone. Pretty note cards are now my todo list and my day schedule no longer leaves me baffled as to where the day disappeared to.
ReplyDeleteDonna, I totally agree. Writing is such a cathartic experience, as you say.
DeleteI am in complete agreement. Especially in the "in the garage more than out on the road" bit. I feel like setting up and sorting out issues with some of these systems just sucks up so much time. My colleagues at work are technophiles and seem to feel that anything digital is better. I try to work with them using platforms they prefer. But for my own sanity I continue to do all my personal lifting with paper. And I am suddenly noticing my colleagues beginning to discover the utility of my rolodex and admire my ability to pull dates, facts, and documents seemingly out of thin air. Cheers!
ReplyDeleteHi Josh. Your comments about colleagues rings a bell with me. It's not just the ease of retrieval with paper based systems for me, it's also the fact that if you're working on a laptop or smart phone, you either have to store your "data" on a different device or toggle between screens, which slows things down even more.
DeleteI've always used paper at home, but I don't need to be "networked" , I'm looking forward to using paper both domestically and perhaps a few business related projects along the way.