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With the right apps, a smartphone can do almost anything, but it’s also
useful to occasionally ditch your phone in favour of a trusty notebook.
Here are seven reasons to carry a physical paper notebook around with
you.
Notebooks trump apps when it comes to versatility. They aren’t just for
journaling, though they’re great for that, too. A notebook can be a
repository for all the odds and ends you want to remember, from your
monthly budget to your grocery list to your list of all the great
restaurants you’ve visited of coffees you’ve enjoyed drinking. Nor do you
need to use it solely for writing. It’s also a great place for your sketches,
doodles, and diagrams.
A notebook is the perfect place to jot down a quick thought before you
forget it. While you may think in the moment that the memory will stick
with you, chances are, that little tidbit of information or spark of an
idea won’t stick. Not only is memory fleeting, but it’s incredibly fallible.
Eyewitness testimony in court cases has been found to be highly
unreliable, and researchers have found that even people with so-called
Highly Superior Autobiographical Memories – super memory skills that
allow them to remember just about every detail from their lives – are
susceptible to false memories. Even when we believe we remember events
vividly, our recollections can be wrong. Is it any surprise, then, that we
struggle to remember phone numbers and grocery lists?
Carrying pen and paper makes it easy to write down information on the
fly, providing a more accurate snapshot of the day when you go back to
your notebook. Writing down events and thoughts during the day is a
good way to bolster your memory, but a notebook can be used for less
lofty purposes, too, like writing down where you got that amazing slice
of pizza.
Digital planners and apps are convenient and useful – until your phone
goes dead. Paper and pen don’t require any charging and are always
ready to use. Even if you use your phone or computer for most writing
tasks, it’s great to keep a notebook on hand for when your digital devices
run out if juice. Even if your phone isn’t yet dead, using a notebook can
help you save that battery life for something more important, like
getting directions or playing games.