{"text":[[{"start":7.03,"text":"Given how many things there are to rage-tweet about these days, it was almost a pleasure to stumble upon the hate for the Analog to-do list system, available from a Philadelphia-based design studio, UgMonk, for a mere $100. What does that $100 buy you? Basically, some nicely formatted index cards, and a luxurious wooden box (walnut or maple) to keep them in. You can even get a subscription to get more cards sent to you every quarter! What’s not to despise?"}],[{"start":39.63,"text":"I have no plans to abandon my trusty notebook. Still, I think the haters are sadly mistaken, as haters often are. This rather pretentious piece of design gestures towards three truths about productivity systems that we’d do well to embrace."}],[{"start":56.370000000000005,"text":"The first is that the multifunctionality of our digital devices is often a curse. Tools that do less often give us more."}],[{"start":66.06,"text":"Our electronic devices don’t work for us; they work for Big Tech. Anyone using apps for basic organisation must run a gauntlet of distractions before they can answer the simplest questions about what needs doing. "}],[{"start":79.85,"text":"Gloria Mark, author of Attention Span, is known for her increasingly alarming studies of our proclivity to be distracted. Using software to log people’s computer habits, Professor Mark has found that we now average 47 seconds on one screen or window before clicking away to the next thing. You don’t need to believe the precise number to recognise the problem."}],[{"start":105.58,"text":"Some of these distractions (TikTok, Instagram reels, YouTube shorts) don’t even pretend to be useful, but checking email or Slack can feel productive, responsive and professional while actually diverting you from the serious projects you hoped to accomplish. What were those serious projects again? You can’t remind yourself without running that gauntlet. "}],[{"start":129.66,"text":"In such an environment, trying to make real progress on what matters to you is like trying to lose weight by signing up for a gym located between an ice-cream parlour and a hamburger joint. It’s not impossible, but you are demanding of yourself an act of focus and willpower every time you try to do the right thing."}],[{"start":150.95,"text":"Such acts of focus and willpower are possible, but you can do yourself a favour by avoiding the worst offenders entirely — nobody needs TikTok in their lives — and relegating others to the desktop rather than the phone, and by installing blocking software on your browser to remove the temptation to check email or YouTube for the next hour or so. All this can help make your technology work more in your interests and less in the interests of the tech titans. "}],[{"start":180.54999999999998,"text":"Still, it is telling that such measures are tempting. We have computing power at our fingertips that previous generations could barely have imagined, and yet what often passes for productivity advice these days starts with trying to kneecap the computer before it kneecaps us. Should we really be surprised that a paper-based productivity system seems attractive?"}],[{"start":206.1,"text":"The second truth is that the art of productivity is mostly quite simple. Keep track of what’s on your mind by writing it down. When you’re deciding on what to do next, pick from a short list, not an exhaustive (and exhausting) one. Use a calendar so you don’t miss appointments. Be decisive. Don’t let small tasks linger. Do them, delegate them or discard them. If a large task is hanging around, stop to clarify what it really involves. Be realistic and be kind to yourself about what anyone can really achieve in a day."}],[{"start":243.79,"text":"Is that it? No, but that’s about 80 per cent of it, and it’s all perfectly achievable with a paper calendar and a notebook or, sure, fine, a stack of index cards. The other 20 per cent of useful personal productivity skills are more complicated and more controversial, and, in most cases, technology won’t help much with the complicated stuff either. "}],[{"start":null,"text":"
"}],[{"start":270.53999999999996,"text":"That, then, is the case for a simple paper-based productivity system. It’s not a compelling case — digital calendars have some useful features and so do project-management tools such as Trello. But while it would be a radical act to insist on using a typewriter instead of a word processor, or to spend days at a time without internet access, there is absolutely nothing odd or self-denying about relying on pen and paper as an organisational tool. "}],[{"start":301.83,"text":"The final question, then. Does it have to cost $100? Of course not. A stack of 3in x 5in cards will do the same job. But one could say the same thing about a Rolex or a Birkin bag: alternatives are available that will do almost the same job for a fraction of the price. We all get to have our own priorities. "}],[{"start":324.96999999999997,"text":"For what it’s worth, there is a defence to be made for buying high-end productivity tools. David Allen, in his personal-productivity bible Getting Things Done, argues that a good productivity system isn’t reliant on fancy equipment, but adds that the fancy equipment can be a big motivator. Allen is a fan of label-printing machines and nice pens. “I have done some great thinking and planning at times, just because I wanted to use my great-feeling, smooth-writing fountain or gel pen!” he enthuses. You may chuckle (I do) but if he’s brainstorming his next big idea while you’re playing Clash of Clans on your iPhone, perhaps the joke is on you."}],[{"start":369.34999999999997,"text":"Cal Newport, author of Deep Work and Digital Minimalism, emphasises the importance of ritual in helping us to focus. If you’re trying to get into German philosophy, for example, take the book to the pub and order a German beer to sip while you read it. (He calls this the “Heidegger with Hefeweizen” tactic.) Looking for what’s fun and memorable about the real world helps us push back against the endless samey stimulation of the digital. "}],[{"start":400.88,"text":"I don’t think I need any more walnut or maple in my life, and I don’t need a subscription to get fancy notecards. I suspect I’ll be sticking to my unglamorous combination of notebook, Trello boards and Google calendar for now. But this morning I experimented with pulling out an index card, writing a list on it, and propping it against my monitor."}],[{"start":424.42,"text":"A second card of a different colour represents the “next” list. It includes a bunch of other tasks that I might have been tempted to face immediately, but which are tucked away out of sight and out of mind until the first list is finished. This is a delightfully simple way to focus on just a few urgent or important tasks, secure in the knowledge that the backup list is in easy reach. A multicoloured pack of index cards costs £2.99 for 100 cards, and even without the walnut box, they seem to be working just fine."}],[{"start":459.55,"text":"Find out about our latest stories first — follow FT Weekend Magazine on X and FT Weekend on Instagram"}],[{"start":476.98,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1762511885_5394.mp3"}