Techie goes analog again: comparison of paper based planners

I’ve been using technological solutions for my calendering and for managing my To Do’s (or Next Actions) for a long time now. The last paper planner I owned and used is pre-2000. My last solution was a PDA I used for planning, contacts and for my Getting Things Done system. But the PDA was stolen recently.

Time for a brand new start, and I’m switching back to paper. I know, I couldn’t believe it myself either, but it’s true.

Drawbacks of the PDA-based system

On my PDA I mainly used the standard software to manage my contacts and appointments. For my GTD system I used ListPro and SOTI pocket controller (a setup inspired by gtdfrk) and it worked out quite nice, but it had some drawbacks that made me dislike it:

1. Entering data was painstakingly slow. (tap - tap - tap - tap -…)
2. The screen was too small. Both for displaying lines of text as for getting an overview of the lists.
3. Synchronizing was a horror. Two-way synch errors made me redo all kinds of work.
4. Loss of ALL data when it got stolen. To overcome #3 I had decided to keep all data for GTD on the PDA
5. No battery = no system. No system = no ubiquitous capture tool.
6. Calender and contacts did synchronize with Microsoft Outlook at home (which I do not use), but not with Lotus Notes at work (which I do use).

To solve most of the issues, I’m switching back to paper. That obviously won’t solve #4, all data is still in one place, nor #6, but I did that by hand anyway. And I discovered that I like writing a lot, old-school handwriting. It’s a lot better than tapping on a screen with a stylus anyway. 

Requirements for a paper based planner

Before starting to look at the different options, I made a small list of requirements for my new planner.

• Must fit in my pocket anytime
  So it must have a small size (about A6-size) and it must be thin.
• Week in one overview
  I don’t have a lot of appointments, so I don’t need a lot of space for them. Preferably there’s also no timescale to the day, let me decide myself upon my working schedules please.
• Ample space for notes
  I do have a lot of thoughts and things to do, so I need a lot of space for them.
• Simple and no clutter
  I don’t need inspirational quotes, pictures and other clutter. I need a simple system as one of the ZTD habits prescribes.
• Not expensive
  I prefer not to spend a lot of money on it. The PDA was expensive, but it had navigation on it too

So the best solution is small, simple and cheap.

Comparing different planners

I’ve limited myself to commercially available ready made systems. There are a lot of DIY planner systems out there as well, but I left them out of the scope. Partly because a lot of those systems assume you have a binder available, because you owned one of the systems already. And partly because I just didn’t want to go DIY on this one, I have already enough on my mind as it is.

Before I dive into the details, I’ll give you the table with the final results. Scoring is pretty easy: Get a requirement right, you get a point. Only the first and the last requirements are a little different:

• Fitting in my pocket is divided into two sub-requirements: Small and Thin. Both score half a point.
• Price is divided in two scores: Cheap ($0 to $50) and Average ($50 to $100). Cheap scores a point, Average scores half a point.

 

Now onto the details and the final result.

Time/System
Time/System has a ring-based binder system for their organizer solutions. Time/System is a well established brand for organizers and has a great choice of fillings available. They claim that you gain 18.4% productivity while reducing stress by 13%. But that test was conducted over 10 years ago, and the landscape of productivity has changed immensely over that period of time.

• Fit in pocket
  There are a variety of sizes available, going down from A5 to almost A6 size (Compact Planner ). I’m looking for A6 size, so they’re still in the race. The ring-based binder system does make the planner thick and uses a lot of unnecessary space.
• Week in one overview
  If you buy the right pages, then you’re good.
• Ample space for notes
  There’s space for notes or tasks for every day, even when you buy the weekly planner pages. Pretty nice.
• Simple and no clutter
  They refrained from putting quotes and pictures in their system, so it’s clean and simple.
• Price
  Ouch. Here’s one expensive system, a full system starts at $129 and a refill costs $50.

They do have a very nice feature with the to do list. You can fold it over the planner pages, making it possible to have all your actions in a central place and have them in sight all the time. Pretty clever thinking!

Final score: 3.5 

FranklinCovey
FranklinCovey have both ring-bound and wire-bound systems. The system is based upon the principles of Stephen Covey as he described in his book The 7 habits of highly effective people (read more about those habits here).

• Fit in pocket
  There are a variety of sizes available, in both systems. The wire-bound systems are pretty thin, however the ring-bound system is not.
• Week in one overview
  If you buy the right pages, then you’re good.
• Ample space for notes
  There’s space for notes or tasks for every day, although this could be more in my opinion. It’s there, but it’s minimal.
• Simple and no clutter
  Nope. The simplest system still has quotes splattered around the pages. The bigger the system gets, the more space is used for decoration and clutter.
• Price
  Small wire-bound planners are available for less than $50.

Somehow I expected more. I love the Eisenhower Matrix that Stephen Covey uses in his book, but I can’t find it implemented in the planners.  

Final score: 4.0  

Filofax
Filofax is the name with respect to organizers, at least for me it is. That might have to do with the 1990 movie Taking care of business with James Belushi. It was released in The Netherlands with Filofax as the title. 

• Fit in pocket
  Filofax also has a range of size available. The Pocket size is the size I’m looking for. Unfortunately the ring-bound binder makes the planner kind of thick. The thinnest system is an inch thick.
• Week in one overview
  As with most loose leaf systems: if you buy the right pages, then you’re good. They also have my favorite layout: Week on one page, and a full page for notes.
• Ample space for notes
  Like I said a full page for notes…every week!
• Simple and no clutter
  Yes, no quotes or pictures to fill up otherwise usable space.
• Price
  This surprised me, the small system with the basic binder is very affordable.

The binder systems only encourage procrastinating I think. If you have so much space to dump scraps of paper, business cards and other stuff, there’s hardly an incentive to get a smooth system. The movie made that clear to me (it was on television a month ago). 

Final score: 4.5 

Daytimer
I never heard of this brand before I have to admit. I guess they’re not so big in Europe as they are in the USA.

• Fit in pocket
  Pocket size is the size I’m looking for (gee, I wonder how they found that name). The wire-bound system ends up being fairly thin, so it’s a full score on this requirement.
• Week in one overview
  Yep, sweet overview on two pages.
• Ample space for notes
  There’s space for notes on every day, although it’s rather small.
• Simple and no clutter
  They refrained from putting quotes and pictures in their system, so it’s clean and simple.
• Price
  The Pocket sized planner with weekly pages comes to a little less than $50.

A full score on all requirements. It would be nice if the layout for the pages left more space for notes though.

Final score: 5.0 

Moleskine 
Moleskine is known for their notebooks and sketchbooks, that have apparently been used by Picasso, Van Gogh, Hemingway and the likes. Unknown to many is that they also have a range of calender and planners solutions, in similar sizes as the notebooks.. 

• Fit in pocket
  They come in various sizes, ranging from pocket size (9 x 14 cm or 3½ x 5½”) to extra large (19 x 25 cm or 7½ x 9¾”). The books are bound as books, so there’s no rings or wire in the middle. I kind of like that!
• Week in one overview
  The “12 month weekly planner notebook” has my favorite layout: Week on one side, space for notes on the other side.
• Ample space for notes
  Yep, every week an entire page. And then some in the back.
• Simple and no clutter
  Only in the early pages are some unnecessary pages with timezones and stuff.
• Price
  This is great! These little books are not expensive at all, around 10 to 20 bucks depending on where you buy (Amazon has them too).

A full score on this one as well! I have the luxury of choice now.

Final score: 5.0 

X47 
X47 is a German company that has a nifty solution for their organizers. They have a binder system, but without the rings. Instead they use small booklets that are held in place by a rod that slides into position. They have it animated on their site. 

• Fit in pocket
  One of the sizes is even called A6 (Germans just love standards). And due to their binding system, the planner is very thin as well! And quite elegant at the same time.
• Week in one overview
  If you buy the right pages, then you’re good.
• Ample space for notes
  If you buy the right pages, then you’re good. You get a booklet (in the binder) for notes.
• Simple and no clutter
  Clutterfree, and only whitespace to be found.
• Price
  Ka-ching! This is very expensive, the basic system is available for around €150, but a typical system is around € 210 ($220 to $320).

Unfortunately the site is only available in German, French and Chinese (I think). English is still under construction, which frankly is kind of stupid in my opinion. If not for price, this system would be on top.

Final score: 4.0 

Quo Vadis 
Another unknown brand for me. I stumbled on this site, through comments on an article I found somewhere (nope, can’t remember which). I doubt that they’re available in Europe, their site doesn’t even have a shop. 

• Fit in pocket
  Quo Vadis has a lot of different systems and different sizes. I looked at the Space17 in particular, due to size and thickness. It scores on both accounts.
• Week in one overview
  Space17 has my favorite layout. I could do without the time schedule on the days.
• Ample space for notes
  A page for every week, gotta love that.
• Simple and no clutter
  It’s so clean, it’s almost boring. I don’t even think they have international holidays in there.
• Price
  And it’s available for a bargain as well.

The only setback? It looks cheap too!

Final score: 5.0   

Succes Organizing system 
This is a system that’s in stores in the Netherlands. The site is strange though, the focus is primarily on leather and it seems like the fillings are only accessories.

• Fit in pocket
  There is a small size available, I looked at the Compact system. But every system is a ring-bound system, which makes it too thick.
• Week in one overview
  If you buy the right pages, then you’re good.
• Ample space for notes
  There are separate pages for notes…if you buy them.
• Simple and no clutter
  Another clean and simple system.
• Price
  Due to the expensive binders this system scores only half a point. But it’s available for under $100.

Final score: 4.0 

Rite in the Rain
Rite in the Rain has one distinctive feature. It’s contents are made on water resistant paper. This makes it a perfect solution if you need to take notes while you’re outside and when it rains. And it’s environmentally friendly as well, no chemicals or plastics are used on the paper.

• Fit in pocket
  Nope. The smallest size for planners is simply too big for my purposes, and because it’s a ring-bound system it’s also too thick.
• Week in one overview
  Yep, that is if you buy those pages. There’s not an awful lot of choice, but it is available.
• Ample space for notes
  Yes, but that is if you buy those pages.
• Simple and no clutter
  Nothing but lines and date numbers.
• Price
  It’s not overly expensive, but it’s not cheap either. Water resistant pages drive up the cost I guess.

This system deserves a place here, because it’s unique. Co-developed with soldiers, it’s a perfect solution if you work outdoor and might need to check your planner in the rain. That won’t happen for me. I now realize that size is a knock-out criterion…

Final score: 3.5   

Planner pads 
The site looks amateuristic, but the product is quite nice. A lot of though has gone to the page layout, and it shows. They use a kind of funneling technique to draw your attention to all the relevant stuff that you might need in a planner.

• Fit in pocket
  The system is thin, but the size I’m looking for is not available.
• Week in one overview
  Yes, the design has the week in one overview. Along with other relevant stuff.
• Ample space for notes
  That’s incorporated in the design too.
• Simple and no clutter
  Only the elements of the design are on the pages, nothing more.
• Price
  The price is in the Cheap section with $25 to $30.

My fellow GTD-blogger Stephen of HDBizBlog has made DIY planner pages, inspired by this design (amongst other inspirations). Take a look at the pages through the ad on the right “Raw data in. Information out.” if you’re interested. If you decide to buy them (for a couple of bucks) I earn some change as well

Final score: 4.5 

Top 3 and the final choice

There are 3 systems that have a perfect score of 5.0. They are:

• Daytimer
• Moleskine
• Quo Vadis

In the end I chose the planner by Moleskine. It won the race from Daytimer because it isn’t a wire-bound system and it won from Quo Vadis on aesthetics.

As soon as I made the decision I went out to find the planner, but around Christmas planners for 2008 are mostly sold out. As was the Moleskine planner, but in the end I found one (the last one) in a local shop. Two weeks in, I’m using it a lot and I particularly like the notes page every week, it’s a great place to store next actions and put down some thoughts.

Now to see if I’m going to miss the digital benefits. Moleskine is pretty analog after all.