Ahh… the continuous debate. Some people like handouts – others appreciate an email recap. Here’s my thoughts on the paper vs. technology debate.
I actually I fully utilize both when getting organized but there is a very large distinction.
I use technology to organize my projects and my calendar. For example, my life is run by my Outlook calendar. Co-workers and friends know that if they want to schedule something (even after work hours), it’s good to send me a meeting request for it (is that anal-retentive?). I falsely assumed that my other team members shared my affinity for Outlook calendars when I created a shared calendar that we could all post our projects and time off on. It didn’t take off. But not because anyone is lazy – I just needed to realize that some people appreciate planners and color-coded notebooks more.
Technology is also great for working on colloborative projects. There should always be enough easy resources available on a shared intranet so that you could be hit by a bus and anyone could reference your project. Havng meeting summaries, budget outlines, and other quick “cheat sheets” are great to have online – so yes, technology is great for that too.
Now my to-do list is a whole other story.
In my opinion, the “task” function in Outlook is a waste of time – who looks at them? I HAVE to keep my to-do list on Post-it notes. I would personally die without Post-It notes. In my opinion, your to-do list is constantly changing and it makes more sense to keep it on a portable tool. That way, if it’s urgent, you can stick it right on your computer screen and the less important items can go on a file folder.
I also use paper for outlining projects. This way, your brain can think about new ideas – not about what button to push to create a bullet point. In my opinion, paper is the perfect tool for scribbling down ideas, but then once you have a plan, then, you can create your final draft online. This also helps you keep your online references organized because you know that whatever “plan” is online is the final draft.
So here’s a recap of my project process:
- Create a to-do to start the process – on a Post-it of course.
- Outline the process for the project on a large piece of paper.
- Once a plan is determined, then the technology comes into play – creating meeting re-caps, spreadsheets, and saving all materials to shared folders for everyone’s reference.
Could there be a better way to do this? I’m open to suggestions. Just don’t take away my Post-its.
.cb
2 Comments
April 9, 2008 at 3:04 am
I’d have to say that I have a similar step process when I’m trying to put together projects or programs. Pen and paper is much faster to use when my brain starts going crazy with ideas, then after I narrow out the ridiculous ones, I can start typing my ideas and plans out in a more formal process.
Another great use for Post-it notes that I learnt in the Education Program is to buy a large calendar (with squares big enough for a whole or half post-it) and write lesson plan topics or meetings on the Post-it notes. Maybe put things that are set-in-stone on red notes and flexible things on yellow. This way, if a lesson plan needs to be pushed back or ahead, it’s easy to re-organize quickly, and without wasting paper!
April 14, 2008 at 5:31 pm
Papers usually clutter my office, I try to avoid them as much as I can. I take notes sometimes during meetings, and then I transfer these notes to outlook, this way I know they’re permanent on my PC. If I write something on a paper and do not transfer it to the PC, then there is no way I’m gonna remember about it…