When Does Pen and Paper Slow a Freelancer’s Productivity?
Posted August 6, 2010 in Productivity
Pen and paper. Quite arguably the greatest productivity tool ever created to date. Right? Right. Well, while some people like to stick to the old school method of organization, I myself am somewhat of an online productivity junkie (now) and self-proclaimed to-do list recoveree. Is that a word? Hope so… it is now.
Since you’re reading this, and probably a freelancer, I’m sure you know that sometimes pen and paper is a good solution–mainly because we aren’t on salary for our work and sometimes can’t just go spend, spend and spend more on fun organizational toys. Sometimes you have to stop and think though: are you actually slowing down your productivity, or helping it?
Here are five freelancing situations where pen and paper will do nothing but weigh you down. I suggest using a new, faster, and shinier application or service.
Situation 1: Your List Requires Frequent Updates
I’ve honestly been a sucker for the list. There’s something awesome about going through and crossing out something you’ve finished. It’s a small victory of sorts–and can make you push on when you have a daunting list of…. oh, say 50 more.
But erasing, changing, scratching out and editing will also generally involve several pages when the list lasts for a while, and thanks to crossed out items, important unfinished tasks can be lost within the cluster of completed ones. There’s also white-out, but that’s messy and unnecessary. I’ve never liked the look of it myself. Or, the smell.
The solution: Google Tasks, Evernote, and Remember the Milk—all of them free, all of them web based, and all of them accessible on your mobile device, so you aren’t chained to your desk, leaning over your to-do list like a mad man (women).
I also love the action method. They have an offline version you can use, and I still use the action runner…sometimes. It’s a guilty pleasure.
Situation 2: Folders Like an Encroaching Army
If you are up to your eyeballs in files, notes, print outs, and folders to keep together client information, then it’s time to move to an online system, or die a slow painful death full of paper cuts and drowning amongst papers. I vote for the online system.
The solution: Fully online systems, such as OpenOffice, Google Docs, and the much anticipated cloud version of Microsoft Office will all allow you to store important files on the web, and retrieve them from anywhere.
Situation 3: You’re Still Carrying a Planner
You can save yourself some effort by combining your planner’s information into your mobile device. I’m a female, and personally, I was SUPER attached to my planner. The problem was (and I’ll admit it) it wasn’t purse friendly… I looked like a high school student. It also doesn’t help that I still look 17.
The solution: Using hosted exchange through Microsoft; you can synchronize your contacts, and basically anything else, allowing you to access all your important contact information from anywhere, anytime.
Situation 4: Not Enough Desk Space at Starbucks
If you have such a clutter of files and documents that you need for work, then you may want to trim down. I’m sure the strangers are Starbucks won’t appreciate you silently encroaching on the table next to you with your files and folders. Especially if they’re sitting at said table.
The solution: Google Documents and other online document apps, as mentioned above, provide one awesome solution. Note taking applications and project management solutions for your mobile device can also help make any place your work space and prevent unfriendly strangers from giving you “the eye.”
Situation 5: Your Notebooks Become a Ball and Chain
If you have a set of physical information that you just can’t get rid of, then it’s time to upgrade your approach, and your toys.
The solution: We’ve already mentioned some great online ways to store your docs. Now, combine these storage locations with mobile apps that let you create automatic PDFs from receipts, print outs, contracts, white boards, and business cards, and you have an essentially magical storage system. All your notes, and not a trace of physical evidence. I love it.
There are many other great tools that can be used to save you time, as a freelancer, instead of chicken scratching at the ol’ piece of paper. However, you certainly shouldn’t take this as a message that pen and paper are now useless. Quite the contrary, actually.
Continue to use pen and paper for all your note scrawling, sticky note, and doodling from boredom, because if you’re anything like me, you’ll be staring longingly at your to-do list, wishing you could cross an item off… just ONE last time.
What About You?
Is your dependence on pencil and paper slowing you down?
Share your stories in the comments.
Image by Sancho Papa
Related posts:
- Best of the Paper Textures Handpicked from Deviantart
- Pen To Paper: Getting Clear On What Work-Life Balance Means To You
- 3 Simple Productivity Hacks For Web-Working Freelancers
- Productivity Tips for Freelancers with Toddlers Underfoot
- Why Every Freelancer Should Slow Down and Brainstorm
About the author: Selena Narayanasamy lives on caffeine and loves all things entrepreneurship, social media, tech and blogging related. You can find her rambling about all of the above (and some randomness in between) on her blog, Esvienne or follow her on Twitter, she's @esvienne or @selenavidya.
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39 Comments
Freelance FactFile
August 6th, 2010 at 8:43 amPen and paper may slow productivity in some areas but it cal also increase my creativity. I’m a copywriter and, when I’m writing my first draft, I find that the keyboard gets in the way of my creative thinking processes. So I scribble stuff down with a pencil (it’s always a pencil). It’s more effective than typing the first draft AND it’s faster.
Ashley Hill
August 6th, 2010 at 8:58 amI’ve moved my work to almost entirely online, with the crackberry as a planner connected to my google account, handling email, contacts and calendar, as well as docs, etc.
What I do use my sketchbook/paper for, is for obviously sketching out ideas for my designs, including organizing websites, etc. This lets me work in a space away from a computer, so I can get more done. I also make a to-do list everyday that is only what I hope to accomplish that day.
It’s a piece of paper I can show my BF and say, this is what I did today (since I work from home). It gives me the piece of mind to see what I’ve done, instead of a huge to-do list that just shows me what I still need to do!
Jordan Walker
August 6th, 2010 at 9:00 amCan say paper and extra sharp pencil have always been a life saver for organization and thought processes. I agree that using modern devices can help over come scratch out, line through, or eraser burn.
Selena Narayanasamy
August 6th, 2010 at 9:22 am@Freelance FactFile- I still (guiltily) do work off the computer too, for less distractions
@Ashley Hill- yes! the best is when you only have certain things to do, for that day, and you get to take them off the list and look back on them. I used to keep a action cahier where each page would be one day’s worth of an action list. It started to overwhelm me though, because sometimes it would take up more than one page.
@Jordan Walker- and it’s funny, because sometimes pen and paper help from computer burn out :)
Jodi Kaplan
August 6th, 2010 at 9:30 amI LOVE my red leather Filofax planner. I actually find it faster and easier to use than an electronic device. I had one, and hated it.
Like the first commenter, I find that typing on a keyboard slows me down – I think faster with pen and paper.
jep
August 6th, 2010 at 11:11 amI don’t know, however I’m a fanatic computer user – can type 350-400 letters per second – and use it a lot. I still like using pen and paper, because – like the first poster wrote – it increases my creativity. Especially when I have an idea, I can sketch things on a paper, think up other things and put really – really a lot on it. However there are programs to do the same thing on the computer (docs, photoshop, illustrator, etc.), somehow I just don’t feel so comfortable with them when doing this…
Federica Sibella
August 6th, 2010 at 11:37 amI stick on pen-and-paper :) I’m a designer and I sketch a lot, sometimes my drawings are not work-related, but pen and paper let my creativity flow (like others already said) and I can find almost always and everywhere a piece of paper and a pen or pencil to use, even when I have no laptop or no batteries!
Jordan Walker
August 6th, 2010 at 12:05 pm@jep
You can type 350-400 letters per second, are you polydactyl by chance?
Web design portfolio
August 6th, 2010 at 12:25 pmI use a notebook and pen to take notes during a meeting or phone call but everything else is done on my comp!
Laura Spencer
August 6th, 2010 at 12:33 pmWhat a fresh perspective Selena!
I certainly agree that having lots of papers with different information on them can be cumbersome and lead to disorganization. However, I fully sympathize with all of the readers whose first inclination is to pick a pen or pencil to record information.
Thanks for sharing. :-)
(Keep the comments coming…)
Shiri
August 6th, 2010 at 1:38 pmAs a web designer, I find it faster to type out my notes and To Do’s rather than writing them down. I always have my GTD window available for quick access. Also, I agree about the coffee shop table space limitation.
Josh Chandler
August 6th, 2010 at 1:53 pmSelena,
I rarely if ever use a pen and paper. I find nothing more time consuming then having to keep track of the pile of paper that is created with the data inputted.
It’s not nearly as simple as creating a digital text document and noting down links and thoughts.
I personally also believe that it is a generational thing. For someone my age (aged 19), it’s a very uncommon thing to not have some basic training in using a computer for word processing and data entry.
On the other hand individuals who perhaps weren’t bought up with a computer have become so used to using a pen and paper that it’s become more effective for them to use that instead.
Selena Narayanasamy
August 6th, 2010 at 1:57 pm@Josh- I see your point with it being a generational thing, but I think it may not always be the case. When it comes to noting links and organizing data, I love using my laptop/iPad.
But for quick reminders (a habit I’m trying to break but don’t see it totally going away) and to-do’s, I really like using post it notes and taping them right in front of me. I’m 25 and grew up with computers (grew up learning DOS… icky!) but I still find solace in pen and paper every now and then. It’s funny how it varies from person to person- I find it really interesting :) Thanks for the comment!
densePIXEL
August 6th, 2010 at 3:57 pmI think pen and paper can slow down productivity but can increase the quality. From a web design point of view, I can sketch out more designs than actually creating them on a computer in the same amount of time. Also drafting a design on photoshop means I spend too much time trying to perfect a design which may not even be used.
sathyam
August 6th, 2010 at 4:09 pmThank’s
.
August 6th, 2010 at 5:57 pmpyrodacwhat?? No, I’m sorry I meant per minute of course ;)… However per second would be very cool and having more fingers too…, wait…., I actually think that will freak people out!
If I would translate it literaly from my language it would mean (bomb)attacks…
Ofcourse I don’t do bombattacks when I’m using a computer!!!
However. Maybe in a computergame…
And I used speech recognition (from Nuance), which was very nice, well, until I got let’s say a bit bored. Anyone else ever used speech recognition??
Stephanie
August 6th, 2010 at 8:22 pmI agree with Laura, this is a fresh perspective regarding the use of pens and paper for organization. :)
I don’t know why but I seem to have this deeper obsession over pens and paper that I wouldn’t be able to write my best if it wasn’t THIS kind of pen or THIS type of paper. If it was an ugly kind of pen or really awful looking paper I would definitely not be as productive as I’d hope to be.
Karen Swim
August 6th, 2010 at 8:45 pmI use a cloud file server and love not having to file papers, it’s cut way down on my consumption of paper BUT I still prefer my planner over my PDA and as many others have noted I often feel more connected to my creativity when I use paper and pen. I also switched a few months ago to a “done” list rather than to-do. I still have a whiteboard with tasks on it but I love writing in my planner things that are done, far more rewarding than looking at a list of things calling my name.
Selena Narayanasamy
August 6th, 2010 at 11:23 pm@stephanie- ha! I’m weird about pens too. I have to like the pen I’m writing with or else it bugs the hell out of me. I’ll even rewrite the same thing a few times until I find the right one. I thought I was the only one :)
TLC
August 7th, 2010 at 12:40 amSelena: Enjoy looking 17 while you can. I was always one of the youngest in my class, and hated being one of the last to achieve legal drinking age. Now I’m looking at 50 and being very grateful that I still look much younger.
I keep my weekly calendar with pen and paper. It really helps me to see at the end of the week all the things I’ve accomplished. I also need my visual reminders — that’s how I work best.
I’m stuck with pen and paper for calendars. My office is in the basement and our main family calendar is upstairs. I wish someone would invent an electronic family calendar system with panels that could be placed in several parts of the house. You could update the closest one, and all the other ones would update. Now THAT would be helpful!
The Freelance Geek
August 7th, 2010 at 4:12 amLast week I got an iPad… Two days later I went paperless. I got a stylus and there’s no reason for me to use paper anymore. I’ve also ditched my laptop and stored everything in my cloud. I can literally be out of the door in 30 seconds with no briefcase weighing me down. Not cheap but the benefits have definitely made it value for money for me.
Motta
August 7th, 2010 at 8:23 amGuau, ¿Cómo lo hacéis para que parezca tan fácil? Un aporte genial y un diseño aún mejor.
Amidaweb
Empresa de diseño gráfico.
(Palma de Mallorca)
Stephanie
August 7th, 2010 at 9:01 am@Selena: Oh wow and I thought I was the only OC person in the world when it comes to pens! :D I also write or sign scratch papers with my signature just to test out a pen before buying it. Not only does the ink have to be dark enough but it should last until it runs out as well.
Marek
August 7th, 2010 at 7:58 pmAll in all.. I like my productivity tools, quick planning and brain storming I use MinNode, sharing files between my Macbook and other hardware.. whether Win or Mac, Dropbox just rocks.. Mockflow is great for wireframes.. but I still cant go without my Moleskin :-) Quick sketch or note while I’m at the lights.. no way I can do that on my Blackberry be whipping out my MBP…. so I think traditional and digital media.. works well together. Can’t dismiss it.
Jodi Kaplan
August 8th, 2010 at 9:45 am@Josh, it might be generational, but I’ve been using computers since 1969 – I grew up with them – I still like paper.
I can flip open my little notebook and write something much more quickly than someone with a laptop or phone can open a program and type something in (except perhaps jep – the polydactyl commenter).
Plus, I’m visually oriented. I remember where things are by visual cues – no cues on a computer – you have to remember, or search for, the file structure.
Selena Narayanasamy
August 8th, 2010 at 11:05 am@stephanie- haha nope! there are plenty of us out there :)
@thefreelancegeek- I have an iPad too, I was hoping it could replace pen/paper/planner for work purposes, but it’s tough. At meetings, I can’t stand having sloppy notes so I write notes by hand IN the meeting, then take them over to the iPad and stick them in evernote. What apps do you use? Anything good for organization and productivity purposes? I’m looking for new stuff!
By default, I use post it notes for dates, tasks etc, and no matter how hard I try to break the habit, i can’t :(
Selena Narayanasamy
August 8th, 2010 at 11:05 am@stephanie- haha nope! there are plenty of us out there :)
@thefreelancegeek- I have an iPad too, I was hoping it could replace pen/paper/planner for work purposes, but it’s tough. At meetings, I can’t stand having sloppy notes so I write notes by hand IN the meeting, then take them over to the iPad and stick them in evernote. What apps do you use? Anything good for organization and productivity purposes? I’m looking for new stuff!
By default, I use post it notes for dates, tasks etc, and no matter how hard I try to break the habit, i can’t :(
harly
August 14th, 2010 at 11:58 amSuch a nice post.ome of us are both employees and freelancers, so we need to learn to deal with the challenges of both worlds. I’ve scoured some of the best productivity sites (and some that aren’t productivity sites) and came up with a list of some of the must-read tips from those sites that apply to the challenges of freelancers.Thanks for share the information with us.
June
August 27th, 2010 at 1:23 amI do agree with you that pen and paper would really slow down one’s productivity. However, pen and paper is the most basic thing that all of us own.
I like working with pen and paper. However, my notes tends to get lost and then I get stuck on a task. I like using my iPhone to help me get more organized. However, when it comes to planning my daily activities, I am able to better see them on my organizer which is a notebook I carry it along with me.
I tried using the calendar in my phone for notifications and alerts for a few months until my phone crashed and all my data was gone for good! I then revert back to my old-school organizer. Although it may be time-consuming, it may get lost, but pen and paper is something that will always be in Black and White!
Emerson Schwuchow
January 25th, 2012 at 7:15 amGreat write-up, I’m regular visitor of one’s website, maintain up the nice operate, and It’s going to be a regular visitor for a lengthy time.
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