With the new year fast approaching, we in the office supplies trade are working our socks off – fulfilling orders for promotional christmas products, searching for the next big office trends and filling up next years’ order book. We’re also busy sourcing and supplying calendars, planners and paper diaries for the new year.

We’ve been so busy in fact, that it’s only just hit us! A burning question: are physical paper diaries and calendars actually still relevant? In today’s increasingly digital world mostly everyone has a smartphone with extensive calendar, planning and scheduling features. So why bother carrying a paper one? Is the trusty paper diary dead?

Short answer, no. Here’s why:

Paper diaries: No distractions, no excuses

We’re not denying it, today’s smartphones are great! Never before have we had so much information immediately available to us, tucked neatly in our pockets or bags.

But with this information comes a wealth of distractions – whether it’s a message, a traffic alert, an interesting news story or something else. And the more we get used to these distractions, the more easy it becomes to ignore them, whether they’re important or not. I can’t count the number of times I’ve forgotten do something because I’ve dismissed a notification without even thinking about it!

You simply don’t get this with a paper diary. Your task or reminder is there until you do it or make a conscious effort to cross it out.

Divide and conquer

Unless you have the luxury or having a specific smartphone for work, it can sometimes be difficult to separate your personal and work life. Although most calendar apps are able to categorise your appointments and reminders, it can take some time to set up and keep on top of. And even then, your calendar view can look crammed and confusing.

Using a specific paper diary for your work cuts this problem out immediately. One diary for work, and one for everything else. Once you get into the habit of using a separate physical diary for work, you’ll soon be able to master your schedule.

Paper is easy

Ever opened up your planning or calendar app and not known where to look? If you’re having an off day, the last thing you need is to navigate through your calendar app to simply add a quick reminder. With a paper diary, you can get to the point quickly and write whatever you like to make sure you remember. There’s also something special about the physical act of writing things down that you don’t get with entering text into your phone.

So that’s why we love the humble paper diary and we’re dead sure it’s not going to go away. However, it’s important to mention that no one size fits all and what might work for us might not work for you! We’d love to hear from you, do you use a paper diary? What are your favourite things about it?

Need some for your business?

If you need to order some new paper diaries for next year, why not get in touch? We provide a wide range of branded products and our experts will be able to help you find something that fits for your business. Please bear in mind that orders need to be placed as soon as possible to make sure you beat the christmas rush!