Let Me Pencil You In!

Accordin to the lobe and Mail:

The number of people usin RIM (Research In Motion Ltd.) BlackBerry devices more than doubled in the past fiscal year. to 2.5 million from 1.1 million.

However, accordin to another lobe and Mail story:

On BlackBerry-addicted Parliament Hill, NDP press secretary Ian Capstick turns heads with his newest oranizational adet: a stack of 3 x 5 index cards held toether by a black bull clip.

These two stories  hihliht my love and hate relationship with oranizational systems.  I love my paper-based planner and I hate my PDA. Althouh it truly is unfair to hate somethin that I have never tried, yet I manae to do  so when it comes to paper-less planners. A lon time client of mine  ave me a BlackBerry many months ao after he saw me jot down a number usin a pen and paper. I think he felt sorry for me. This cute little adet still sits in it's box on the shelf where I placed it.  Many friends have tried to convince me that paperless planners are the way to o.  Ah, perhaps, but I am not interested in oin that way.

Which oranizational planner system do you use? Can you doodle on it? And can you offer me one ood reason, other than a save-the-trees plea, to switch to paper-less?

Comments

[kimbofo]

I'm with you on this one. At least if you use a pen and scrawl something on a piece of paper you aren't running the risk of your device corrupting, running out of battery power, breaking down etc. I use a filofax although my other half has done his damnest to bring me into the 21st century with some kind of PDA thingy.

[Bluegrass Mama]

I have a kitchen calendar and a small weekly planner in my purse which I "synchronize" periodically. I do use my cell phone calendar (with alarm)as backup for appointments I'm afraid I'll forget. If I'm out, I also usually enter phone numbers directly into my cell phone as opposed to writing them down.

[Isabella]

The only advantage I see to electronic orgnizers is search and sorting functions. Whether that's of use to you depends on just how organized you are on paper.

[elle]

The cheapest calender that I can find and fit into my pocketbook. It's always reliable, and never needs batteries, and it also has all my lovely little doodles and spontaneous prose written all over it. Oh, and most importantly, it never rings, or beeps or annoys anyone, and I never have to turn it off when I see a show!!

Of course, I do have a cell phone, for emergencies and I only turn it on when I am away from home.

I'm not an on-call brain surgeon or something that needs to be immediately available for life saving conversation. I'm sure anything we need to talk about can wait.

[tanya]

I don't have a highly scheduled life, but with grad school coming up this fall I've been dying for a PDA. I had a really old palm pilot once and used it fairly often as an undergrad. I just bought a PDA used off my brother-in-law and right now I love it for the game Jawbreaker.

But come august, it's keeping track of my reading and class assignments. :)

I like paper planners too...but the upshot for me? Since I typically remember everything so well, I never bother to write it down. I want to change that before my memory fails me.

[Zee]

The main reason for moving to paperless: ease of rescheduling. When I first joined the 'business world' I had a beautiful, mahogany-colored leather paper planner. It was beautiful. I loved it. But do you know how many damn times people moved meetings around!?? It drove me crazy. They'd send an electronic meeting request, I'd accept and write it down in my planner. Then they'd move it. I'd update likewise. Then they'd move it again.

ARGH!

I now use a Pocket PC, which I adore. It syncs with my Outlook calendar at work and regardless of how many times people change their minds, I don't have to do a damn thing. And an added bonus: it's small enough to fit in my purse so I always have my contacts, calendar and task list. (Oh, and Wi-Fi. I can surf the net too, if I want!)

I can't say enough good things about my electronic organizer. Couldn't live without it. (Just be sure you have a back up somewhere. Just in case :)

[Shannin]

I have a Franklin Covey organizer. I've been using the FC system for close to 10 years. I did try a Palm for awhile, but prefer my paper system. I do use my e-mail calendar in Lotus Notes at work, but only because I have to.

[Kathy]

The best reason I can see to use an electronic calendaring or phonebook system is synchronization.

I have a calendar on my laptop. If I had a Palm Pilot, I could sync it to the laptop, thus being able to carry it around all the time, check my schedule, set appointments on it that will sync with the calendar on my laptop, etc.

My husband also has a calendar. Unfortunately, he refuses to keep it up to date or to share it (via .Mac, which is quite simple) allowing me to download it. So the part of MY calendar that contains HIS races is NEVER really right. Annoying, since he forgets to tell me when they've moved a race.

In this case, a PDA wouldn't be helpful because HE wouldn't use it.

We used paper (Franklin Covey) for years, but we both got tired of carrying it around all the time and changing the calendars out every few weeks (to keep it from getting so heavy.) It was also a hassle to 'sync'.

So that's my answer. But, hey...use what works for you! If you hate a system, you'll find that you don't use it, even if it's the only one you've got!

[Scully]

Yeah, but it doesn't take much to turns heads on Parliament Hill.

I use Microsoft outlook on my desktop at work.

I use a paper dayplanner for personal.

For you though, I think a combo would work.

[maryse]

for home i have a list on my fridge and a dunkin donuts calendar on the wall.

for work i have a to do list that i update and print because i like the satisfaction i get from physically crossing stuff off a paper list.

then there are post it notes.

i find that i'm not important enough for a blackberry/pda. and that when i've tried such things i ended up feeling pressure to fill them with crap(that includes filofaxes). i'm very organized in my head and i manage to remember a good deal if i jot it down somewhere first. anywhere, hence why i love post-its.

[reese]

wanna sell me the blackberry? ;) ;)

[melina]

ms outlook + palm m505

[annie]

I can pretty much get everything I really need in my cell phone. It has a calender, a calculator, a list maker, an alarm clock, a bunch of other junk, and it takes pictures and movie clips, has e-mail access and limited Internet access.
I do have a small phone/address book I keep at home, and use the calendar that hangs in my kitchen. And I send the best photos to my e-mail so I have them in my computer.
If I'm going to the store I write a list by hand but only on scrap paper I have recycled from printing mistakes. I cut it into fours and turn the unprinted side up and staple it into little notepads.

[Arethusa]

I have a weekly planner. I already have a laptop and a simple cell phone (no camera) and an iPod so I figure I'm pretty hip, gadget-wise already and a PDA would be an overkill.

[Saraliz]

I rely mostly on my cell phone. It has made it possible to maintain a social life between working two jobs. I call friends and family on the way from one job to the other, make plans, listen to voice messages, etc. I'd be a sad, lonely, little human with a lot less time on my hands without my cell. I try not to be obnoxious - I keep conversations short, I don't shout, and I keep a mental tally of those friends who are cell-friendly and those who are cell-haters. If I am hanging out with a friend who snaps the minute a person answers a cell call, I let it ring and make sure they know how very important they are, that I would let my phone ring because my attention is on them. If I am with a cell-friendly friend, we can both be on our cells simultaneously and neither of us minds. It's a great way to take care of mundane business that doesn't take full concentration - automated phone trees for paying your bills via phone that can be done while doing other things. Magical time-saving devices, cell phones. And, they can be a travel alarm clock as well. And, my cell phone currently rings the Cantina band song from Star Wars.

[Cara]

The only thing I keep on my PDA are appointments and birthdays. Oh, and phone numbers, too. However, most of the time it sits on the charger next to my computer and I forget to take it with me. I see the benefits of using a PDA...I think it's just a matter of getting used to it because I can find all the information that I have in my PDA on my calendar in the kitchen or in my address book.
I think that you should use what you are comfortable with. However, if you want to pass on that Blackberry PDA to me, I'd be much obliged! LOL

[tommy]

My organizational planner is called a calendar. I make notes on the appropriate date and it stays on the refrigerator at the house. Once I am away from the house if I don't remember it, it obviously wasn't important enough that it really had to be done anyway.

Actually I don't write on the calendar, someone else does that and uses it to remind me of things she thinks I should do. Some of the things she reminds me about, really do need to be done.

[christine]

No I cannot, I'm afraid.

I have a paper based planner. Even when my DH bought me a Palm Tungsten (which was a HOT little gadget), I barely used it. I am too fond of writing things down, and crossing items off my to do list once its done. DH did it again, and recently bought me a cute little blackberry. It certainly would be more convenient for me to use it. I am trying to make the transition, albeit reluctantly.

[wavybrains]

I bought myself a Dell Axim--planning a future full of synching and effiency. Alas, it too went unused. I'm back to old faithful--a leatherbound planner that I can slip into my purse. The only advantage I can see on a Palm is continuity--year after year, and in theory the "repeating" appointment function saves a lot of time. It did not for me. I find myself much more organized when I can write something down WHEN I learn it, not once the machine boots up, gets to the correct screen etc etc.

[InsanePreschoolMom]

What is a BlackBerry? My youngest is allergic to all berries, so I avoid them. My organizational system is the brain of a bipolar mommy and a phone call from someone else the night before.

[catherine]

I LOVE my Palm m515 with portable keyboard.
Here's why to use a PDA instead of paper:
1. Everything you write is in one place and you can find it.
2. You can set alarms to remind you of everything. Meetings. Reminders to stop at drycleaners or the grocery store with the list attached.
3. All phone numbers and emails are in one place.
4. With Docs to Go, you can work on Word, Excel and Powerpoint files right on your pda, then upload them to your computer.
5. My checkbook is in there. Everytime I go to a store and use my ATM card, I enter the amount. I use Handy Checkbook. It even automatically fills in the names of stores I go to regularly.
6. Games - not that I use them really. I only play Solitaire occasionally. But my son can play several I have.
7. E-books. Yes, you can read entire books on your pda. It's a great format, too. Bookmarks, write notes to links to pages, etc. Whip it out while you're in line somewhere and squeeze in 2-3 pages.
I type every one of my posts in DayNotz, a program that works on my palm or my desktop. If I am out somewhere, I whip out my portable keyboard, which fits in my small handbag, and type my post! Then when I get home, I upload, copy & paste to Blogger.
I take notes at meetings and upload them later, email them to everyone. It has all the advantages of a laptop except internet surfing. And the newsets palms have that too!
It took me awhile to get away from the paper and pen writing, but I can type so much faster, I will never look back.