Paper or iPad - the best planner for you

my not very aesthetic but effective notes

Long story short - no. You will need both digital and paper organizers to efficiently manage your time. Never underestimate the power of external tools for productivity.

When I talk about external tools I mean planners, binders/folders, and tracking templates. We’ll keep this one short and to the point.

1. Planner: The perfect planner for you is the one that’s always accessible. Bringing a phone to my school is basicallya felony so a fully digital planner isn’t possible but carrying a pocketbook is encouraged. And that’s how I keep track of my assignments, tasks and thoughts. I have a small spiral notepad that isn’t very pretty or expensive so I have no hesitations to rip pages out when needed. Unlike some people I know (direct quote from an ex-friend: "don’t need a notepad sugar, all is up there"), I cannot hold onto thoughts because of how fast I think. A notepad helps. This is where the integration comes in. If one of my tasks is packing a book I need for my next lesson, it’s not making it to the digital calendar. But if I get an assignment due after 5 days, it’s going on the calendar. I use Apple Reminders and Apple Calendar to keep track. I have weekly reminders for deep cleaning my room and daily habit reminders that I can access after school. I’m not big on handwriting anything so I do not use iPad planners (like this one) but people love this way of planning and it's a viable option!

2. Binders/Folders: I use binders/folders to organize my papers and notes. I tried for years to get myself used to iPad note taking and it just wasn’t working. I started making Feynman sheets, condensed notes, and flashcards on plain a4 sheets. To sort them I use big cheap binders with binder dividers for the following sections:

- Notes

- Flashcards

- Formula Sheets

- Diagrams

- Important numerical

- Previous Year Questions

Other than studying I keep all of my medical records in physical folders for easy access, as well as certificates. Now how do I integrate this with digital organization? I keep scans of the papers on my Apple Notes on my phone so I always have what I need.

3. Tracking Templates: I have been trying to make a habit out of measuring the ‘analytics’ of my habits. This is a great way to see how you’re progressing what habits you effortlessly implement and the ones that don’t seem to stick. To start off you might just get a simple printable like this one. A very simple monthly habit tracker can give you a great overview of your life.

It’s really hard to stick to one way especially if you live in a environment where you don’t always have access to a phone or the time to make a physical note. And that sums up how to organize your life with paper and without it.

Yours lovingly,

Vanta <3