The Journaling Guide: Why Paper Still Wins (Sometimes)
I’ve been thinking about how timeless print journals are lately. They’ve served the need for humanity to write down their thoughts for thousands of years. There is an elegance in their design, even in the most rudimentary form, and a simplicity that is unmatched by even the finest digital tools. A journal is an escape, and the act of putting pen to its pages is a cathartic experience, regardless of whether you’re living in the 12th or the 21st century.
We all live amongst so much more than we did in the past. There are so many more distractions, delivered in chunks in feeds that are seemingly unlimited. Whatever you want, you can find. Our smartphones are both an incredible tool and a cursed instrument.
Print journals suffer from none of this. They won’t be pushing notifications or trying to get you to scroll. They do nothing. They have no motivation. Journals sit, collect dust, and wait.
You are the action. It comes from you.
This is why, despite being a longtime Day One User, an app that is perfect for many of my needs, I still use paper in all domains of my life. I keep a nice notebook on my desk at work so I can transfer tasks from visitors at my office door or my email inbox to where I can take action on them. I keep notebooks for creative and project work, and still journal on paper sometimes, too. I wrote all the details in a post that was published earlier this week.
I choose to live in a world where the answer to “digital or analog” is both. You should too.
My feeling about books is similar. I’m a big fan of Kindle, and I often use the app on my iPad to read and do research. Still, I find my way to books made of paper and binding occasionally. It’s far less frequently than it was a decade ago, but there are times when it's the right choice.
Fit matters more than format. Function matters more than flash. If you're going to succeed, the tool has to work for you.
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