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Comparing handwritten notes to typing everything in the last five years and the old way still wins for me
I started out in a warehouse job back in 2018 where the senior guy used a little spiral notebook for everything. Orders, repair notes, even who owed him lunch money. I thought he was old school and slow. Then I got promoted to a desk role where we use a shared digital log. Sounds great right? Except I spend 10 minutes a day scrolling through updates and still miss stuff. Last month I grabbed a $3 notebook from the gas station and started jotting down shift details during my morning coffee. It feels dumb but I actually remember what I wrote now. Has anyone else gone back to paper for certain things at work?
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stellac974mo ago
The $3 notebook thing is actually spot on for memory recall. There was a study from Princeton a while back showing that people who handwrite notes remember more because your brain actually processes the info differently vs just typing it out. I think the scrolling issue is real too, digital logs get so cluttered compared to a few pages you can flip through. The only thing I would gently point out is that handwritten notes can be a nightmare if you ever need to email something to a coworker or search for a detail later. I keep a small notebook for my own daily brain space but still type anything that someone else might need to find in a hurry.
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grant_cooper4mo ago
Keep that Princeton study handy by any chance? Always kinda wondered if the handwriting benefit holds up when you're just jotting down quick bullet points vs actually writing full sentences. Might be worth trying the hybrid setup you mentioned, see if the brain still gets the good processing from short notes.
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harper_smith2mo ago
Bullet points probably get the same benefit if you're actually thinking through them... might be worth testing that hybrid idea @grant_cooper.
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