I don’t know about you, but 2021 threw up some exciting challenges for many of us. Some of you may have managed to capitalise on the opportunities, but most of the world struggled, or maybe your life didn’t change that much at all. However many dents and scratches 2021 gave you, 2022 is here, and it is time to start on the right foot. So, prepare to learn the 7 Reasons Successful Perth Business Owners Use a Notebook.
So grab your journal or notebook and……. What do you mean you don’t have one? You can get a cheap one from Officeworks for less than $10! Did you seriously ask why you need one?
Success is made on paper!
Behind almost every successful person since the industrial revolution was a notebook. No, it’s not some magical one passed down from generation to generation in the Illuminati that gives them financial rewards.
I won’t bore you with the likes of Thomas Edison, Henry Ford or Einstein as, of course; they used notebooks and journals; that’s all they had available. So instead, I will talk about a few notable people from more current times who are vastly more affluent than you and me. How rich you ask? Like you, me and 50% of all Australians combined kind of wealth!
Sir Richard Branson, the CEO and Founder of the Virgin Group, doesn’t go anywhere without a notebook. He uses it to write down ideas, take notes when having meetings and even makes cheeky plans for pranks on his family and friends. Whilst he is busy running over 300 separate business groups, a philanthropic charity and trying to get to outer space, he still makes time to write, read and re-read his notes. “I always have a notebook on hand. My secret ‘life hack’ has been to write it down! I can’t tell you where I’d be if I hadn’t had a pen on hand to write down my ideas as soon as they come to me.”
Bill Gates is another super successful corporate warrior famous for carrying around a notebook at all times. He has even been seen to write his speeches in a notebook, tearing out pages before going on stage. Look, the list goes on and on. Nike CEO Mark Parker, Facebook’s Cheif Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg, Famous Hedge-Fund Manager James Altucher, Entrepreneur Tim Ferris, Mythbuster Adam Savage. This isn’t even mentioning the countless authors that still work out their stories in notebooks.
I also run a notebook at all times (He says, smiling as he compares himself to billionaire business owners). As someone who has a hundred ideas a day, it helps me sort out my thoughts, feelings, ideas, and, as you will read below, even my whimsical side.
Leather bound? Moleskine? Collins?
You don’t need a monogrammed, gold and diamond-encrusted custom journal to benefit from having a notebook. Seriously any of the cheap notebooks are fine. Just aim for something that has over 90 pages, and even the cheap $1 ones will work. I prefer A5 sized hardback notebooks as they can take a beating and are small enough to carry around easily. For the ladies reading this, it fits in my partner’s handbag perfectly, too.) Usually, it will also be strong enough to allow a pen to be jammed into the spine, so you never lose the most essential part. If you have a favourite brand, that is fine, but let’s face it, a notebook is a notebook. Just get something comfortable for you that you don’t mind carrying everywhere.
Also, while we are on the topic, any pen will do. Please don’t overthink this and delay the benefits of using a notebook by getting in your own way trying to find the perfect Pen and Journal. Just grab something so you can start using it today.
Time is your most valuable resource.
You know that your time is the most critical asset as a business owner. However, it is still the most important thing to manage, even in your personal life. We all get the same amount, 1440 minutes a day. How you spend these minutes is the deciding factor in your life. Using a journal or, if you prefer, a diary can be a great way to organise your time more efficiently. Im not saying you can’t or shouldn’t use your google calendar or phone reminders, but there is evidence that writing down things activates parts of your brain, helping you with memory and inspiration. Numerous studies have shown that writing things down with pen and paper uses more brainpower than typing does. This activation in the brain forms stronger bonds between your neurons and aids in memory recall when compared to typing everything into a computer. So although this won’t save you time initially, you will be able to recall things more quickly in the long run. A technique from some universities is that once students have read a chapter, they write down what they can remember from memory.
Don’t limit your notes.
When I first started using a notebook, I fell into the trap of using it for one goal only, my business. This was a huge mistake. I even started carrying around multiple notebooks, thinking that I could maximise my benefits by organising it all. Writing in your notebook is not about getting perfect ideas rounded out and polished. Your notebook should be about getting information out of your brain and onto paper. How many random thoughts and ideas have you had and then forgotten? How many have you seen come to fruition but brought to life by someone else (Who probably wrote it down)? Don’t limit your notebook; get your thoughts onto the paper, doodle, squiggle, circle, highlight. It doesn’t matter how messy it is; write it down. Hell, I’ve even written small poems in my notebook that randomly came into my head. They aren’t worthy of publishing, but they do make me smile. So let yourself be inspired by the world around you and when something makes you feel good, write it down. Think of some alternate song lyrics? Write them down. Thought of a new product idea that could revolutionise an industry? Draw it and write it down. Who knows, the next idea you have might be the one that changes your life.
Don’t let good ideas die.
Now here is one of the most important things. Re-read your notes constantly! It would help if you went over your day’s notes at the end of every day. This can be in bed before you sleep, at the end of the workday, or whenever it feels right. But don’t stop there; re-read the week’s notes at the end of the week. At the end of the month, the month notes too. Re-reading your notebooks will allow you to work out what is essential and what is random poetry the world will never see. If you only write things down but never go over them again, you could miss some great opportunities. Just because something you wrote wasn’t valid at the time doesn’t mean it won’t be a good idea now. Some of the entrepreneurs mentioned above even have archives of their notebooks and go over them yearly to pick up any lost ideas that fell through the cracks.
It makes you stronger and more resilient.
Having a notebook handy at all times will also allow you to journal. Journaling has been a long-standing method that phycologists prescribe to people who suffer from depression or anxiety. Keeping track of your thoughts, feelings, fears and negative thought patterns can help clarify them. You don’t even have to be suffering from any mental health issues to feel the benefits of just getting things out of your head and onto paper. You can think of it like a friend you call when you need to sort something out that is annoying you. Writing it down is enough to feel better or find a solution most of the time. It works because it free’s up space in your head; you don’t have to keep thinking about the issue; it’s on paper.
Your way.
There is one more thing I would like to point out for you about always carrying a notebook or journal. Do things your way. Don’t buy one of those purpose-made journals with neat columns and sections. Trust me when I say you’re probably not going to utilise it as intended. Instead, do what everyone before you has done, play around with it. This is your notebook, your life, your thoughts and ideas. If ruling the book with columns and sections works for you, then do it. If you like to write randomly, do it. If you want to draw pictures and glue in newspaper snippets and write around it, do it. This is your journey; no one has the answers and what works for one is almost always different for another. So have fun with it, and hopefully, by the time you have filled out your 3rd or 4th notebook, you will have a system that works for you.
So like always, Live Large and Take Charge – Cam.
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References:
https://academic.oup.com/psychsocgerontology/article/51B/4/P226/650810?
https://www.jowr.org/articles/vol7_2/JoWR_2015_vol7_nr2_Mangen_et_al.pdf
