The Power of the Pocket Notebook
One tiny book changed my life.
I remember seeing that if you want your children to move away from electronics, you should lead by example. This stuck with me. That is why I always try to have a book in my hand as much as my phone.
The other thing that has helped reduce my phone consumption considerably is a tiny, pocket-sized notebook. I keep it with me at all times. This notebook contains my to-do list, ideas, appointments, and random thoughts. It is a catch-all for my brain.
To spark your creativity, you need time and space to think. To allow your brain to do this, you cannot be holding things in there you need to remember. Writing this down in a tiny notebook will free your brain.
The bonus is you tend to remember things better if you write them down.
Writing them down seems to move the information out of your short-term holding brain into your long-term memory. You no longer need to think about it. It is just there.
It does not need to be pretty; it just needs to be practical. So consider grabbing yourself a cheap notebook from your local supermarket and keeping it with you.
Write down ideas as they come to you. They can be as stupid as possible.
At the end of the week, go through these notebooks. Discard the rubbish and action the gems. This way, you should never find yourself searching for an idea to write about again.
Until next time: Find the time, find the words, find the way.
Sam 😊
The impulse to write things down is a peculiarly compulsive one, inexplicable to those who do not share it, useful only accidentally, only secondarily, in the way that any compulsion tries to justify itself. - Joan Didion
