I'm using this in combination with a Python script I wrote that sends me SMS messages for tasks as hard deadlines approach. So, if I get too distracted for some days, because of a technical issue or whatever, to pay much attention to the paper task process, I still get the SMS messages. Since I always check any SMS messages that come in, this prevents me from missing a deadline. And the physical setup of the Analog system means I can always aim my eye at the list that's standing up toward the side of my desk when I have time to do something. And adding something to the paper list is trivial; instead of having to navigate to the right app and type it in, I can just write a quick note on the paper that's always right there within immediate reach.
I think that this combination is great for people with ADHD that can cause one highly compelling task or technical issue to take them over for days so that mundane tasks don't get done (or even noticed) for that period. At least it is for me.
Love the SMS idea, it's the one thing I always check / have access to. Few months ago I setup a # I can text things I'm grateful for throughout the day and it saves them in Notion. Makes it a little easier to practice gratitude as cool things happen without needing a journal or separate app
I like this idea also - I always liked planning with a physical medium (like a notebook) and this is a great way to make sure big things are not missed.
I wonder if there is a way to send SMS based on Google or iOS calendar items? A simple Google Workspace plugin (not a browser plugin - actually for the Google system itself) could be super useful!
edit: In regards to this actual system itself I do like what is going on here but I have trouble justifying a whole new format when a simple paper notebook and pen could accomplish much of this. And the notebook also ends up being highly portable.
I do like however having this vertical card holder gizmo - I may just try to replicate this with some kind of magnetic system that holds my notebook open to the current page.
I have tried SMS alerts for various things. What happens is that I start ignoring SMS. So this isn't something that will work for everyone, especially if the SMS messages become too frequent.
Haha I too have hacked my own desire to check sms. I made a remind me Twilio thing long time ago. I use it almost everyday. I text my Twilio number to send me a string I type in # of hours/mins from now comes back later.
I use it to water my plants every 3 days and leave myself future notes like months from now ha.
My phone is on silent too, I use the Android web messages chrome tab so I get pinged on my desktop.
Same concept maybe, I use emails as my todos and snooze them to popup at the right time. Inbox always at zero so its easy to see something I gotta take action on. Things will definitely get missed otherwise and my email is always with me.
I actually have a twillio + python SMS setup on a VPS that's extremely reliable, but haven't designed a better interface besides cron which is less than ideal.
I saw this last year! You can replicate this system with a stack of index cards and a hair tie. :)
You can even make the top card stand at a similar angle if you want: take the top card off the stack, bend the edge inward by 120 degrees or so, and tuck that "hook" of the bent card back into the hair tie to stand it upright. You can even put a pen in there. It's great to take to the store for shopping!
I've used this system for years, but never considered buying this overpriced product. I am quite sad to see this be so marked up as a designer / minimalist type of product to make productivity seem more sexy than it really is. I know people buy it, but it feels wasteful.
I buy dotted grid index cards and use an old smartphone stand to keep it upright. Total cost is maybe $20 total for a couple years of supply. I use my own notecard template I came up with and bullet journal syntax for each line item. I plan only individual days with notecards. Usually it's one highlight(i'd be happy with my day if done) and three things I want to get done that day.
The benefits of writing things down on paper are insane. It definitely sticks better than apps or websites that provide similar functionality and syncing. I usually use todoist in combination with my notecards. I see the notecard method as my daily "tactics" and a notebook or app as my longer term "strategy".
I think the main appeal for buying something like this is the beautifully designed desk piece, and the productivity comes secondary. That's not a problem, people buy figurines and the like for their desks all the time, but it definitely seems like the focus of this product is making something that looks beautiful form over function.
For those who want a similar system but stay digital, you can use Things from Cultured Code. It has the concepts of Today, Someday, and Anytime.
The process for me is similar to OP: each morning I add tasks to my “Today” list, which can carry undone tasks from the previous day. If you complete the list, you can always add some more tasks.
You can also plan ahead and build a backlog of tasks to do, and just browse through them to add them to your “Today” list.
Simple system, with not many parts, but extendable with Projects, Notes, Repeatable tasks, Reminders… Also integrates with your calendar to keep everything in one place.
Very polished product that can be as simple or as complex as you want it to be (but mostly simple).
I initially balked at the high price of things but WOW I've never been so productive using it. And like the analog site says - it feels so good to cross something off.
I also use a similar process and its easy to backlog things that you know you just won't get to today. I recommend this app to all of my friends and +1 for the commenter above.
Their Emergent Task Planner kept me on track for years, and I still go back to it when I feel like my day is spiraling out of control. It's a great companion to my existing digital productivity tools.
For anyone looking for a non-precious, well-designed analog companion for work, I've really enjoyed using David Seah's Emergent Task Planner notepads [0]. They're great if you've got a busy day interspersed with meetings. I like the full-sized version. You can print them up yourself or just pick up some very nice pre-printed pads from his store [1].
1. Get a small spiral-bound notebook, say 3x5 or whatever is sitting in the supply cabinet.
2. Write today's date on the top of the first page. Write each task on one line on the page. (You only need enough detail to remember what the task is.)
3. As you complete tasks, draw a line through them. It's more satisfying that check marks or whatever.
4. As you add tasks, just write them on the today page.
5. Or, if you know you aren't going to get to them until tomorrow, write tomorrow's date at the top of the next page and put them down there.
6. Or, if you know you can't get to it until Monday, write the dates on the pages in between, one page per day, until you get to Monday and write it there.
7. At the end of the day, look at the list of tasks you didn't get to. Carry them over to tomorrow's page and mark them out on today's. It feels great.
8. Try not to carry too many over to any particular day; after two or three, put the rest on the next day's page. Some days I'm only good for one or two things.
It's all about a) making sure you remember things, and b) making sure you aren't overwhelmed by what you have to do at any one time. (I almost never move a task up.)
I tend to avoid self-promotion, but this was just too on the nose to ignore: what you've described is almost quite literally the functionality of https://teuxdeux.com.
We like to say that our biggest competition is pencil & paper.
After years of trying to be productive with to-do apps, I've found that nothing beats the flexibility of plain old pen and paper. Even analog systems like Analog or Bullet Journal impose rules of varying inflexibility, and that made them very unappealing, for me at least.
I guess this is because people have different ways of thinking about goals, tasks and timeframes. For me what works best is a 'week todo' that contains coarser/larger tasks and a daily todo that contains more granular tasks, often sub-tasks of the weekly ones. Adopting this method has made me more productive than I've been in years.
I've done exactly this and it works well. However, I've tweaked a couple things over time.
1. Tasks not completed may carry over to the next day, or a backlog if the next day already had something planned in my calendar.
2. Minimal markup to backlog tasks, such as a hard due date (i.e. other people expect it done by this date) and/or an urgency marking.
3. Keep the list on my phone so it is always with me. Having it digital reduces busy work (such as moving tasks between today and the backlog). I don't like using my phone so I don't tend to get sidetracked, thus YMMV with this.
I am honestly surprised to find that the cards used in this incredibly overproduced riff on Getting Things Done's method are the same size as commonly-available index cards, so you can use the cute tray without spending $10 for a pack of 50 cards. Or maybe not - the tray has rounded corners designed to fit snugly with the branded cards, while a $5 pack of 300 blank white index cards from Office Depot has sharp corners.
I'm going to sound like a party pooper, but the core market for these kinds of products are people that want to get organized so they buy these things to feel like they're doing it, only to put it at the back of their desk drawer after a week of use.
I have a pretty similar system, except instead of pen and paper and 'symbols', it's "folder with files with custom icons" (a process made extremely easy with Total Commander on Android).
It works like a charm, and can be synced with Dropbox for access from all relevant devices. In theory you can go nuts with it and even create scripts when things change in dropbox, but I haven't seen the need for that.
It is true, however, that there is something about having a piece of paper in front of you that still beats having to physically grab your phone to check stuff (and obviously I don't have devices to spare in order to waste one of them as a glorified picture-frame so that it's in front of me all the time). Which means I've often found myself jotting down notes on paper anyway. So Analog does seem interesting in that regard ...
He should extend this to an analog "device" that can be used to structure meetings. I'd bet that companies would pay a lot for things reducing the cost of their meetings and you would need way more of the cards :-)
Did you also once work in a company that was paying hundreds of dollars for SCRUM office utilities? :-)
Now that I think about it, maybe I'll print some content of my article[1] notes onto cards and make a quick buck...
Well, at least there is no obvious sign that something so secret about Analog, that it cannot be told in the video and that you can't rebuild it yourself without paying.
I like it though (if you don't take it quite so seriously)...
In the past I'd eyeroll at $100 for some index cards, as something for the 20s/single/300k programmer crowd. But these look great I have to admit its tempting. I like 2 or 3 things on my desk MAX and it does matter those things are pleasing to look at 14 hours a day.
I really hate everything that tries to bring your focus back to you as it should be. I think it's all bull*hit. The one true thing is that focus is on the psychological side and we just have to deal with discomform, that's how you win, not by buying some magic paper.
I really love the simplistic, analog system. But, I'm more interested in the metadata of my habits, which is why I prefer a digital based system. How many tasks have I written down in the last week and not touched? How many tasks have I abandoned in the last 30 days. etc
I’ve tried these kind of systems with pre-printed forms/lists/labels on cards or pages. I’m not convinced they’re worth the extra $ beyond my good old fall back: a couple different colored post it note pads and notes organized around the edge of my monitor.
I love post it notes! I stick them semi-randomly around my desk/on my monitor and they give me a real-time sense for how I'm doing:
* I stack the completed ones, productive days have fat stacks.
* As my desk gets more cluttered by post it notes, it triggers my desire to "clean" my desk, by accomplishing the work.
* I periodically re-assess the utility of the work, which keeps me focused on the most important things.
* Their specific location on my desk is a fuzzy ranking system; the more inconvenient the sticky note, the higher priority. For example, I'll put a sticky note in the middle of my monitor if it's immensely important to more or less prevent me from working on anything else. Other times they can go next to my keyboard, further way on the edge of a desk, and I've occasionally hidden sticky notes (not entirely) behind speakers, if I just need to remember the information but don't want to be distracted by acting on that info just yet.
It's not very portable, but when I'm at my desk it's worked pretty well to keep me on task.
I have a problem with any paper-based solution which that the paper tends to disappear (or become lost). This effect becomes worse if you work from multiple locations, go on vacation etc. Each transition between work location introduces the potential to lose track of the paper. That said, I think a paper system is a good way to debug the workflow prior to creating a persistent software implementation.
All jokes aside, this looks really well designed and thought out, but the pricing is hard to justify even if you're the type of person who can drop $100 on a block of wood and index cards without wincing, especially if you're the kind of person who is self-aware of their socioeconomic status. I do applaud the creator for giving an overview of how he came up with Analog in the intro video (which includes him mentioning he first found success with index cards).
I do agree with him that it's hard to stay on track when using digital productivity tools. I use a whiteboard I bought at Walgreens, draw a bunch of checkboxes on it, and keep that over my desk, so I can't ignore it.
[+] [-] garyrob|4 years ago|reply
I think that this combination is great for people with ADHD that can cause one highly compelling task or technical issue to take them over for days so that mundane tasks don't get done (or even noticed) for that period. At least it is for me.
[+] [-] jamesvclements|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Melatonic|4 years ago|reply
I wonder if there is a way to send SMS based on Google or iOS calendar items? A simple Google Workspace plugin (not a browser plugin - actually for the Google system itself) could be super useful!
edit: In regards to this actual system itself I do like what is going on here but I have trouble justifying a whole new format when a simple paper notebook and pen could accomplish much of this. And the notebook also ends up being highly portable.
I do like however having this vertical card holder gizmo - I may just try to replicate this with some kind of magnetic system that holds my notebook open to the current page.
[+] [-] throwawayboise|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jcun4128|4 years ago|reply
I use it to water my plants every 3 days and leave myself future notes like months from now ha.
My phone is on silent too, I use the Android web messages chrome tab so I get pinged on my desktop.
[+] [-] dpweb|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] spicybright|4 years ago|reply
I actually have a twillio + python SMS setup on a VPS that's extremely reliable, but haven't designed a better interface besides cron which is less than ideal.
How does your system work?
[+] [-] sigg3|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] autarch|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jonwinstanley|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] gcr|4 years ago|reply
You can even make the top card stand at a similar angle if you want: take the top card off the stack, bend the edge inward by 120 degrees or so, and tuck that "hook" of the bent card back into the hair tie to stand it upright. You can even put a pen in there. It's great to take to the store for shopping!
[+] [-] thenerdhead|4 years ago|reply
I buy dotted grid index cards and use an old smartphone stand to keep it upright. Total cost is maybe $20 total for a couple years of supply. I use my own notecard template I came up with and bullet journal syntax for each line item. I plan only individual days with notecards. Usually it's one highlight(i'd be happy with my day if done) and three things I want to get done that day.
The benefits of writing things down on paper are insane. It definitely sticks better than apps or websites that provide similar functionality and syncing. I usually use todoist in combination with my notecards. I see the notecard method as my daily "tactics" and a notebook or app as my longer term "strategy".
[+] [-] fmajid|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jouleshey|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] leohonexus|4 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] bbx|4 years ago|reply
The process for me is similar to OP: each morning I add tasks to my “Today” list, which can carry undone tasks from the previous day. If you complete the list, you can always add some more tasks.
You can also plan ahead and build a backlog of tasks to do, and just browse through them to add them to your “Today” list.
Simple system, with not many parts, but extendable with Projects, Notes, Repeatable tasks, Reminders… Also integrates with your calendar to keep everything in one place.
Very polished product that can be as simple or as complex as you want it to be (but mostly simple).
[+] [-] jspann|4 years ago|reply
I also use a similar process and its easy to backlog things that you know you just won't get to today. I recommend this app to all of my friends and +1 for the commenter above.
[+] [-] yboris|4 years ago|reply
This is my favorite way to organize a year - a beautiful design, one page to collect everything:
https://davidseah.com/node/compact-calendar/
[+] [-] defulmere|4 years ago|reply
Their Emergent Task Planner kept me on track for years, and I still go back to it when I feel like my day is spiraling out of control. It's a great companion to my existing digital productivity tools.
https://davidseah.com/node/the-emergent-task-planner/
(edit: name correction)
[+] [-] galfarragem|4 years ago|reply
[0] https://github.com/slowernews/hamster-system
[+] [-] hkhanna|4 years ago|reply
[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullet_journal
[+] [-] ctrlp|4 years ago|reply
[0] https://davidseah.com/node/the-emergent-task-planner/ [1] https://shop.davidseah.com/
[+] [-] mcguire|4 years ago|reply
1. Get a small spiral-bound notebook, say 3x5 or whatever is sitting in the supply cabinet.
2. Write today's date on the top of the first page. Write each task on one line on the page. (You only need enough detail to remember what the task is.)
3. As you complete tasks, draw a line through them. It's more satisfying that check marks or whatever.
4. As you add tasks, just write them on the today page.
5. Or, if you know you aren't going to get to them until tomorrow, write tomorrow's date at the top of the next page and put them down there.
6. Or, if you know you can't get to it until Monday, write the dates on the pages in between, one page per day, until you get to Monday and write it there.
7. At the end of the day, look at the list of tasks you didn't get to. Carry them over to tomorrow's page and mark them out on today's. It feels great.
8. Try not to carry too many over to any particular day; after two or three, put the rest on the next day's page. Some days I'm only good for one or two things.
It's all about a) making sure you remember things, and b) making sure you aren't overwhelmed by what you have to do at any one time. (I almost never move a task up.)
[+] [-] jperras|4 years ago|reply
We like to say that our biggest competition is pencil & paper.
[+] [-] unexistential|4 years ago|reply
I guess this is because people have different ways of thinking about goals, tasks and timeframes. For me what works best is a 'week todo' that contains coarser/larger tasks and a daily todo that contains more granular tasks, often sub-tasks of the weekly ones. Adopting this method has made me more productive than I've been in years.
[+] [-] mrlemke|4 years ago|reply
1. Tasks not completed may carry over to the next day, or a backlog if the next day already had something planned in my calendar.
2. Minimal markup to backlog tasks, such as a hard due date (i.e. other people expect it done by this date) and/or an urgency marking.
3. Keep the list on my phone so it is always with me. Having it digital reduces busy work (such as moving tasks between today and the backlog). I don't like using my phone so I don't tend to get sidetracked, thus YMMV with this.
[+] [-] KennyBlanken|4 years ago|reply
For comparison's sake: a small-ish clairfontaine cloth-bound notebook costs about $10
[+] [-] rozhok|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|4 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] surfmike|4 years ago|reply
And these todo cards off Baron Fig for $10 (they have a dot pattern and a todo pattern): https://baronfig.com/accessories/strategist-index-cards
[+] [-] egypturnash|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] spicybright|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] tpoacher|4 years ago|reply
It works like a charm, and can be synced with Dropbox for access from all relevant devices. In theory you can go nuts with it and even create scripts when things change in dropbox, but I haven't seen the need for that.
It is true, however, that there is something about having a piece of paper in front of you that still beats having to physically grab your phone to check stuff (and obviously I don't have devices to spare in order to waste one of them as a glorified picture-frame so that it's in front of me all the time). Which means I've often found myself jotting down notes on paper anyway. So Analog does seem interesting in that regard ...
[+] [-] sandreas|4 years ago|reply
Did you also once work in a company that was paying hundreds of dollars for SCRUM office utilities? :-)
Now that I think about it, maybe I'll print some content of my article[1] notes onto cards and make a quick buck...
Well, at least there is no obvious sign that something so secret about Analog, that it cannot be told in the video and that you can't rebuild it yourself without paying.
I like it though (if you don't take it quite so seriously)...
[1] https://pilabor.com/blog/2021/04/tips-and-tricks-for-meeting...
[+] [-] dpweb|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] calculated|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] itsmemattchung|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] porcoda|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] TameAntelope|4 years ago|reply
* I stack the completed ones, productive days have fat stacks.
* As my desk gets more cluttered by post it notes, it triggers my desire to "clean" my desk, by accomplishing the work.
* I periodically re-assess the utility of the work, which keeps me focused on the most important things.
* Their specific location on my desk is a fuzzy ranking system; the more inconvenient the sticky note, the higher priority. For example, I'll put a sticky note in the middle of my monitor if it's immensely important to more or less prevent me from working on anything else. Other times they can go next to my keyboard, further way on the edge of a desk, and I've occasionally hidden sticky notes (not entirely) behind speakers, if I just need to remember the information but don't want to be distracted by acting on that info just yet.
It's not very portable, but when I'm at my desk it's worked pretty well to keep me on task.
[+] [-] dboreham|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|4 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] toastercat|4 years ago|reply
All jokes aside, this looks really well designed and thought out, but the pricing is hard to justify even if you're the type of person who can drop $100 on a block of wood and index cards without wincing, especially if you're the kind of person who is self-aware of their socioeconomic status. I do applaud the creator for giving an overview of how he came up with Analog in the intro video (which includes him mentioning he first found success with index cards).
I do agree with him that it's hard to stay on track when using digital productivity tools. I use a whiteboard I bought at Walgreens, draw a bunch of checkboxes on it, and keep that over my desk, so I can't ignore it.