(This post is part of an ongoing “Less is More” series)

PDAs, iPhones, moleskines, cell phone applications are all marketed to consumers to be life-saving organizational devices. There’s a catch though, for me at least, and it’s that my productivity goes downhill when cramming my work life into these battery coasters. It could be that I’m a frugal American and don’t feel the need to grab the latest and greatest tech toy each month, but these supposed handy dandy coordinators-in-your-palm deals don’t tickle my professional fancy.

Now, don’t get me wrong here, because I’m very much aware that my co-workers and friends rave about how much time and effort their handheld devices save. It’s just that I keep a fairly open schedule and relatively small list of contacts. Furthermore, I store these all in one spot. Call it a personal habit, but I prefer phone numbers, appointments, and such, to exist in one reliable source that I can easily access when I need to.

There is one potential downside to this, and it is that sometime I wish to bring up a bit of data while I’m out and about the town, but times like those are when memory comes in handy. Not everyone wants to (or could possibly) memorize their digital life, but for someone like myself who’s a green tea aficionado, I guess those antoxidants kick in at the right moment when attempting to recall an associate’s new screen name.

So, take some time to determine whether a low-tech approach to organizing your life is for you; or if dropping close to a grand on a digital notepad is truly worth it. Remember that sometimes… less is more.

Share This