Although I spend most of my time working and writing online, I still stick to a fairly simple method to organize my thoughts and ideas: pen and paper. It’s probably no surprise that I haven’t made the switch to eBooks from paperback.
After trying tools in conjunction with the pen and paper method, such as mobile apps or online project management tools, I’ve found that pen and paper is the best option for my creativity and productivity. That’s not to say everyone’s the same way, or that technology is restrictive, but if you’ve been looking for a way to improve your creativity—or even to simplify your life—going back to the trusty pen and paper is a start.
The act of turning to pen and paper is a small break from workplace hyperactivity. It’s a way to slow down, gather your thoughts, and just write—even if it’s a simple checklist.
Here are a few reasons why pen and paper is the best tool for creativity, organization, and productivity:
Paper Gives You More Room to Be Creative
Think of your pen as a paintbrush and the paper as a canvas. When you start writing things down on paper, you’ll be more inclined to keep your thoughts flowing: breaking down ideas, writing down comments that pop in your mind, not worrying about restrictions or potential barriers. You’ll be tempted to fill up as much blank space as possible.
Paper isn’t as intimidating as a blank word document, and it feels much more personal. You’ll be crossing things out, circling, underlining, and more, and when you’re done, you’ll be able to look back and flip through the pages that have documented your process.
Paper also leads to doodling, which is a surprising way to unlock your ideas and creativity—much like stepping away from your desk for a brisk 10-minute walk outside.
“From Steve Jobs to Albert Einstein, John F. Kennedy to Nikola Tesla, several of history’s greatest thinkers relied on a secret weapon: doodling. Yes, doodling—the thing you find yourself mindlessly doing every time you’re in a meeting,” says Nolan Feeney, author of How to Turn Your Mindless Doodles Into Productivity Enhancers.
“Most people connote it with short attention spans or dismiss it as pointless child’s play, but misconceptions like these are holding them back from becoming more productive, more creative, and more collaborative employees.”
Paper Slows You Down and Gives You a Break from the Screen
Constantly multitasking and overworking yourself leads to burnout. The act of turning to pen and paper is a small, but welcome break from workplace hyperactivity. It’s a way to slow down, gather your thoughts, and just write—even if it’s a simple checklist.
Pen and paper is also a break from staring at the phone, laptop, desktop, and television screens that surround you. The simple break from screen-to-paper is a small change of pace that helps spark your creativity—getting you unstuck from problems and allowing you to brainstorm more freely.
Screens are filled with distractions. Twitter alerts, browser tabs, emails, games, and more. The paper you write on has none of that. It’s blank and inviting. You have only one thing to do, and that’s to write to your heart’s content and get all your ideas and action items down on the pad.
Take Your Ideas on the Road
One of the best benefits of pen and paper is that your ideas can come with you. That’s not to say you can’t write things down in your smartphone when an idea hits you in the middle of a grocery store aisle, but with a pen and paper, you can draw details and sketches (possible with smartphones, but much harder, and often much more time consuming), know where all your ideas are and access them quicker (they’re in the pad with the bookmark, not saved with a title you’ve forgotten in the app you use), and you can write your ideas down even in situations that normally wouldn’t allow it (e.g. jotting an idea down in a notepad in the middle of a movie vs. pulling out your bright cell phone in the middle of a movie).
The Tools You Need
I keep two notepads around at all times: one in my workbag, another on my bedside table. The notepad you use is completely up to your preference, but I recommend you have at least one that’s small enough to fit inside your jacket pocket, as this way you can take it with you wherever you go.
Some notepads differ in paper thickness—if you’re an artist, you might want a notebook with thicker sketching paper, as opposed to normal lined paper. Depending on what you do for a living, or how you plan on using your notebook, you should also consider whether you want a hardcover, or a softcover notebook.
There’s also the pen. Try to buy a handful, as they’re easy to lose if you’re constantly on the go. Soft-tipped pens, fountain pens, or even classic H2 pencils, are all tools you can use—the important thing is that you have a tool on you at all times that lets you write down your ideas in your notebook with no restrictions.