In an age where everything happens digitally from interacting with friends, to paying bills, to being able to work from home, I find myself regularly coming back to pen and paper.
I use notebooks to brainstorm ideas for tweets, make lists of tasks for a project plan, sketch out wireframes for a website, and journal about my day.
There's something so simple but powerful about this "old" analog way of doing things that it needs to be celebrated.
A Notebook Doesn't Have Constraints
Think about all the constraints you have with a digital tool. You have to set up a new note, pick a font, and find a place for the note to live all before you even start writing down your ideas.
With a notebook, simply open a new page, find a pen and start writing.
There's Less Friction To Start Doing Something
The hardest part of any task is starting it. Any bit of friction, like waiting for your notes app to load or finding a place to store your idea can be enough for you to avoid doing it.
I always avoid making wireframes in Figma. I convince myself it's a waste of time because it takes too much work to set everything up. In the past, it was always something I regretted not doing. Now I sketch out wireframes in my notebook, it's easy to do and I'm always glad I did it.
You Can Plan Before You Start Building
A designer plans a sitemap before building a site's navigation. A programmer plans out pseudocode before programming something. A writer plans out a rough idea for an article before writing. A notebook is an ideal tool for all this planning.
It's important to plan before you act. Remember this famous saying: “If I had an hour to solve a problem, I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions”.
It Can Be Whatever You Want It To Be
You don't have to go any further than Pinterest to see all the creative ways people use their notebooks.
Notebooks can be blank, lined, dotted, or grid. This alone is enough to change how you can use your notebook drastically. On top of this, consider systems like bullet journaling, interstitial journaling, and morning pages. These encourage you to use your notebook in different ways.
A notebook is the ultimate tool for creativity. Change my mind! 😉