This week, I’ve been experimenting with my watches and a notebook. Staying mostly analog has helped me keep my sanity, at least in the short run.
Six days ago, I brushed the dust off my quartz watches. Yeah, I also had to carve out time and some money to replace the batteries in it. The whole point of this little experiment was to use an analog watch instead of my Apple Watch when I’m not working out.
I love my Apple Watch 9. It’s beautiful, and fits my mood and outfit thanks to the watch faces and bands. I’ve turned off most of the notifications to save myself from being constantly distracted. And the always-on display solved the last logical argument in favor of analog watches — I now can see the time without turning my wrist all the way up. But I was still curious to see how switching to analog would feel.
A bit later, I stumbled upon a video that was promoting using paper notebooks over digital planners or journals.
The results so far have surprised me a lot.
My concentration has improved — albeit for the past two days. I felt myself less anxious and tense throughout the day. Why? Earlier today, I had 15 minutes to read a book on my Kindle. I deliberately left both my iPhone and Apple Watch behind. During that time, I felt an urge to get distracted by the following:
- Look up if I could connect a keyboard to a Supernote device,
- Check for any local shops that sell Moleskine notebooks,
- See the weather forecast,
- And something else I’ve already forgotten.
None of these impulses had anything to do with reading, but if I’d had my phone with me, I probably would’ve acted on them. And the Apple Watch? I would’ve used it to check the weather. Because why not? It only takes a moment to do any of the actions I listed. But they all cost me my focus and peace of mind.
By removing the temptations, I allowed myself to stop worrying about whether I should be doing something else.
Later, I sat down to write in my journal. I did worry if what I was going to write would stand the test of time (but honestly, who cares?). But what I didn’t struggle with is picking an app to use. Should I type my note in DayOne? Or write it by hand in GoodNotes? With pen and paper, the choice is obvious.
I wonder how my experiment will go. Will I still feel the same benefits in another week? A month? I’ll keep you posted.
In the meantime, I’d love to hear your thoughts on going analog. Share in the comments if you have tried this route yourself?
P.S. I wrote the whole draft of this text by hand in my Moleskine notebook.
Leave a Reply