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by Keith Robinson

Sometimes the best way to "geek to live" is to not really geek at all. Or at least not geek around with digital technology. Yep, sometimes the newest, coolest, digital solution isn't the best way to go. Shoot, just the other day we gave up on VoIP for a plain old analog phone line.


Sometimes you've got to go with what works. More and more I find that when it comes to productivity and Getting Things Done, I'm leaning on paper-based solutions. Who needs Web 2.0 when you've got the most flexible, scalable and reliable solutions around—pencil and paper?

The power of paper

There are a few distinct advantages paper has over digital. It's usually more flexible, which is important when we're talking about setting up a system to keep yourself organized. It's easy to develop for, too — all you need is an idea and a pencil to add, change or remove features.


It's easier to adapt to many different ways of thinking on paper. One of my biggest problems with digital organization or management solutions is that it's hard to support multiple working styles. This can be a real problem when your setting something up for a team of people to use.

Obviously there are some things paper couldn't replace. E-mail, for example, would be a hard one. But when it comes to organization, time management, planning, design, brainstorming and more simple paper-based solutions can be amazingly powerful and if nothing else a great complement to your digital lifestyle.

Personal organization

How many of you have a Moleskine or a Hipster PDA? I bet it's quite a few of you and I bet most of you see them as one of your favorite tools. It's no surprise we're drawn to these things to keep us organized. For many of us there are places we don't want technology to go, and a sexy Moleskine notebook fills in very nicely.


I also make great use of simple manilla folders. No matter how digital I seem to go, I find that carrying a few of these folders around with me helps me keep organized, de-cluttered and much less stressed.

Time tracking and management

At my company Blue Flavor we've had all sorts of problems keeping track of our time digitally. We haven't been able to find a system that works the way we need it to, so we made our own, using paper. We've combined time tracking, planning, goal setting, and note taking into one simple sheet of paper that gets filled out and filed weekly. It's easy, works great and can be adapted (for the most part) to just about any work style. It even works well with digital solutions.


I challenge you to tell me a time tracking application that can say the same. If there is one, I'd love to check it out. I mean, come on, it doubles as a keyboard protector for my laptop! How's that for an API?

Goal Setting

We've told you about the Printable CEO and you might guess I'm a huge fan. We've been using this around the office for a long time and while I'd just love to have a digital version as well, I can't deny the effectiveness of this fancy piece of paper. We've actually taken to integrating this with our paper timesheets and now it goes everywhere my computer does.


Another great paper-based solution for goal setting is card sorting. Write down your goals on a bunch of note cards, group them, sort them and prioritize.


Project management and workflow

We've talked about paper-based workflow and project management before and I think it's very interesting.


Paper-based project management workflow Another gem found over at Merlin Mann's 43 Folders. This time it's a link to a thread that talks… Read more

Project management is tricky no matter how you slice it and while I don't think paper can replace a digital solution, I do think it can be a great help. For example, I do much better with printed out project reports, and I love a simple weekly sheet that shows all my projects, their status, hours, etc. on them. Obviously this would need to be created digitally, but looking at these things on paper is great.


Brainstorming and collaboration

Paper is the only way to brainstorm and get those ideas going. Some pencils and pens, a notebook (or Moleskine) for sketching, construction paper for cutting, constructing and drawing up big ideas and a bunch of post it notes are the perfect tools for getting creative. The possibilities are almost limitless.


More great uses for paper

Note taking: I've found, on many occasions, that leaving my laptop behind and taking notes by hand helps me get much more out of a meeting or conference session.

I've found, on many occasions, that leaving my laptop behind and taking notes by hand helps me get much more out of a meeting or conference session. Paper Prototyping: For those designers and developers out there who are having problems working out AJax workflows — try paper before you go digital — you might be surprised how much easier it is.

For those designers and developers out there who are having problems working out AJax workflows — try paper before you go digital — you might be surprised how much easier it is. Design: I start all my designs on paper. Always have and always will. It really helps set a good base and can give you rapid concepts in a way a computer probably never will.


Does anyone else have any great paper-based solutions they'd like to add?

D. Keith Robinson is an associate editor of Lifehacker. His special feature Getting To Done appears every Monday on Lifehacker.