Paper vs. Digital – Two
How do you decide between paper and digital for a hybrid system? What goes where?
In an earlier post, I wrote about the importance of having a system (paper, digital or hybrid) to manage all the lists and reminders we collect in order to get through a complex life. I’m sure that there are some people who eschew digital anything, but they’re not likely reading this post online. And there are digerati more geeky than I who shun paper of every kind. Most of us probably fall into the hybrid category.
To determine what kind of paper equipment and what kind of digital tool(s) you need, begin by listing
- the stuff you need to keep track of,
- where you collect it,
- where you need it, and
- how long you need it accessible.
Here are seven examples, followed by my own solutions. They may work for you.
Shopping list – collect it all over the house – need it when on the go – disposable.
*As hard as I try, I can’t get my husband to enter items online, in a program I can sync to my iPhone. It’s hard enough to get him to write down what we need on a paper list, so that’s what we use. That’s probably true for many households. Unless all family members are very digital, the shopping list is pretty haphazard. (Unfortunately, it’s a piece of paper that is too often somewhere else when I’m shopping.)
Bill payment receipts – collect at home desk – need at home desk – keep for a few years.
*You’ll need to keep records for budgeting and for taxes. This means you must have a file cabinet in your home office. Even if you auto-pay and/or pay electronically, you should still print out periodic payment records that show the status of your account, plus account numbers and vendor contact information. You’ll also need a “current” file folder on your desk for paper bills. When invoices arrive in the mail, open them immediately and put them in the folder, ready for your next bill-paying session.
Contemporaneous notes from business meetings – collect them on the job and at home desk – need current notes at work desk and home desk – need to keep archived for years.
*With a background in lobbying and consulting, I’ve developed a habit of keeping detailed and reliable notes from phone and in-person meetings. I use a Day-Timer ring-binder and my notes are all dated. This system has been a lifesaver many times, when I’ve needed to retrieve a detail or prove a quote or time spent on a task. I have found that typing notes while in a meeting or on the phone is rather noisy and distracting to others, so these are always hand-written. If I need to enter notes into a customer relationship management (CRM) application, however, I can do that quickly from my DT notes, rather than during the call. For all the different types of meetings and calls, this note-taking system is reliable whether at my home office, at my desk, in a conference room or at a client site. The only downside is carrying the binder when travelling.
Contacts and Calendar – collect them while travelling and while at desk(s) – need them anywhere and everywhere – need to be backed up and easily editable.
*These are clearly best managed electronically on your smart phone, synced and backed up to your personal computer or corporate server. Like me, you may wish to have a visual calendar at hand, so I use the calendars in my Day-Timer system. Monthly pages keep things on my radar, and the daily schedule is adjacent to my to-do list. Appointments with others are always entered in the electronic system (if they weren’t created there). At the beginning of the week I enter appointments on each day’s calendar and update as necessary. While it is certainly redundant, this gives me the best combination of a visual scan of my appointment landscape and features of the electronic systems, such as automatic reminders and connection to contacts, associated files and meeting details.
Passwords and account numbers – collect them primarily at desk(s) – needed both at desks and when on the go – needs to be backed up.
*This is definitely an electronic necessity for me. Paper would always be at the “other” place and would be accessible by others. My password list is secure, backed up, and synced on my computer and my iPhone. This database is available while I’m working on the computer and while I’m out on errands or travelling.
To-do list – collect it anywhere and everywhere, needs to be very editable – need it at my desk(s) and on the go – disposable.
*These are the lists that will make or break a system. Some people swear by the Tasks function in Microsoft Outlook, which integrates with your Calendar and can be synced with your smart phone via corporate server. I have not found Tasks to be flexible enough for me. After years of trying all paper and then all digital, and years of working through hybrid combinations, I’ve developed a “divide and conquer” strategy. With the exception of that darned grocery list, I use iPhone applications for all my to-get and keep-track-of lists. For the actual to-do tasks, I rely on paper. There’s an unparalleled satisfaction in checking something off, of course, and complete editing flexibility. In addition, as I move one month’s Day-Timer notes from my active binder to shelved archive binders, I review all of the to-do columns and “starred” items within notes to check that nothing has fallen through the cracks. That habit alone contributes to my reputation for being reliable and thorough, and more important, contributes to my peace of mind.
So for your own system, work forwards and backwards. That is, you’ll want to think of lists, papers, notes and errata at the places you create them, and also at the places you’ll use them (or refer to them). Also consider whether other people need to interact with any of this errata, and whether it’s easier for them that the information be digital online, or on a piece of paper. If you’ll need data while on the go, digital is best. If you’ll need to make sure data is backed up – also digital. When you’re making lists and brainstorming all hours of the day and many locations, paper may be the solution. Whatever’s on paper can be made digital, if that’s the best way to archive and retrieve your data.
When you know what pieces are best on paper and what pieces are best in digital format, you’ll then be able to take the next step – selecting and adapting your tools.
There’s nothing wrong with a hybrid system, as long as your system works for you. That is, you use the system consistently and trust it completely. The result – no brain clutter to stress you out, fewer dropped tasks or lost data, and greater self-confidence. Just like avoiding clutter in a room, there’s a place for everything and everything is in its place.
Next: good paper and digital tools for productivity.
What’s your system?
