Should I Use Notebooks More Often? (Cal’s Strategy) | Monday Advice
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How does Cal define the problem with unused notebooks and why does usage matter?
Do you like the idea of an old-fashioned paper notebook? I mean, a lot of people do. There's something aesthetically pleasing about a well-made notebook. There's also the excitement of anticipating the original thoughts or insights that this tool is going to help you usher into the world. But then, if you're like most people, you buy that fancy new notebook and it ends up sitting idle and then eventually you forget about it. So here's the problem. It's not enough to simply own a nice notebook. You need a specific use for it that takes specific advantage of its analog format. When it comes to paper, in other words, it's how you use it that matters just as much as what you own. This, of course, inspires a natural question.
What are the most effective ways to make use of a notebook? Well, it's Monday, which means it's time for an advice episode of this podcast, which is the perfect opportunity... to go looking for some answers. All right, so here's my plan. I'm gonna use myself as an example. I actually use four different types of notebooks on a regular basis. I have them here. And I'm going to go through them. I'm going to go through each of the four different types of notebooks that I use. I'm going to explain how I use each notebook. I even have close-up shots of interior pages of each so you can see that use in action. So if you've ever felt an urge to integrate more pen and paper into your daily life but you weren't sure how to make that habit worthwhile…
then this episode is for you. All right, as always, I'm Cal Newport, and this is Deep Questions, the show for people seeking depth in a distracted world.
All right, so as mentioned, here's my approach today. I have four notebooks, four notebook types that I actually use. I brought four of my own notebooks here today, and for each, I'm going to go through and tell you three things. What activity I use that notebook for, why that activity is well-suited for analog on paper instead of doing something digital, and then why the specific type of notebook I use for that activity, why is that specific type of notebook the right one, at least for me? All right, so we're going to start with the first type of notebook I use on a regular basis, which is a planner. In particular, I use my own product, the TimeBlock Planner. What do I do with this particular type of notebook?
I plan my days. So if you haven't heard me talk about time blocking before, it's an idea that I first introduced in my 2016 book, Deep Work. The best way to make the most out of your mind during a workday is to actually block out the time of that day, to give every minute of your workday a job, to make a plan for your cognition as opposed to just reacting to what's happening, what's incoming, and what you feel like doing next. It can be an exhausting way to work, but it, I usually argue, gets about, on average, 2x more results per time. It makes it much easier to control distraction. It makes it much easier to arrive in states of depth. I'll pull up on the screen here. Here's a sample time block plan page from inside that notebook.
You see it's pretty simple, right? We have on the left side of the page the hours of the day, and then I'm just blocking off the hours of the day and saying what I'm going to do during them. So from 9 to 9.30, I'm reading. From 9.30 to 11, I'm finishing the podcast prep. From 11 to 12, maybe I'm recording a podcast. So I'm giving a plan for every minute of my day. Just you might notice my formatting here. I just evolve over time my own formats for time blocks. But you'll notice dark lines like around read is how I indicate deep work. Double lines like under finished podcast prep is how I indicate administrative work or work that doesn't require deep work. And then triple lines. I don't know where this came from.
But triple lines on the right is an appointment. So something where it's actually also on a calendar. Other time blocking tricks, I put a number in this admin block down here, and then up in the upper right, I can have a more detailed list of tasks that are supposed to fit in that block.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
How does Cal define the problem with unused notebooks and why does usage matter?
0:00–4:17
2
Which four notebook types does Cal use and what will he explain about each?
4:17–9:29
3
How does Cal use a paper TimeBlock planner to plan his day and why paper for scheduling?
9:29–27:53
4
Why does Cal prefer a Remarkable digital notebook for longer-term strategic plans?
27:53–51:41
5
What are Field Notes notebooks used for and how do they support single-purpose brainstorming?
51:41–1:04:05
Speakers
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