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If you’re struggling to stay productive and organized despite digital calendars, task managers and note apps, going back to basics may offer some solutions.
Personal analog systems provide the structure that many people need — without the endless distractions and complication of technology.
There’s a reason paper planners are making a comeback alongside bullet journals and plain old pen and paper. Sometimes simple and tactile works best when trying to wrangle your workload.
The Pull of Paper
It’s almost ironic that right when digital productivity systems offer more features than ever for organizing every detail of work and life, many people discover they yearn for the simplicity of paper and pen.
Bullet journaling, with its pared down logs, lists and notes, has taken off as a backlash against overly complex digital options. Paper offers that tangible feeling of progress from physically checking off tasks that apps can’t replicate.
And opening a paper planner simply provides less temptation to spiral into doomscrolling than firing up yet another screen.