How To Use Your Moleskine Notebook
Even in today’s predominantly digital age, you can’t beat a good old fashioned notebook or diary planner and they don’t come much better than a Moleskine Notebook. These semi-hard notebooks with their vinyl covers are more than capable of withstanding the riggers of being tossed unceremoniously into an already overstuffed backpack!
They’re perfect for capturing ideas whenever and wherever they might spring to mind and are an excellent way to keep on top of that daily task list. Available in all shapes and sizes, the best Moleskine notebooks can be purchased in different colors, specialised formats. From their extra small Volant which is no larger than a business card to the almost letter-sized Chair. There’s the perfect Moleskine notebook for you and your needs and if it’s not quite right, then it can certainly be adapted as we’ll go on to discover now. The first decision you, therefore, need to make, is which of their wide range of products is best suited to your needs. If you like a calendar, then go for a dated planner. For those of you who write a lot, then a ruled notebook will probably be the most practical option. Whereas if you love to illustrate, grab yourself a plain notebook or one that’s watercolour friendly.
How To Use Your Moleskine Notebook
So today we’re taking a look at some creative and inventive ways in which you can get the most out of your investment. We’re huge advocates of the Moleskine as a general capture all resource but with a little bit of ingenuity and thinking outside the box. You can adapt your notebook to be a multi-tasking business resource. Here’s how!
1. Replace Your Wallet
The Cahier pocket-sized notebook has a vinyl cover which means it’s durable enough to withstand being repeatedly removed from a pocket, not just a backpack. So consider ditching the front pocket wallet and using your notebook to fulfil this function. Credit cards can be stored in the back cover pocket while notes can be folded and secured in the front.
2. Get Yourself Organised
The best thing about a Moleskine notebook is that it allows you to get completely organised. Use it to keep track of daily tasks, ages and times and store important addresses and information. How about taking your to-do list up a notch with circles. As you work through the tasks, the circles next to the action can be filled in with marks depending upon the level of completion. For example, a new task is an empty circle, and a cancelled task gets a cross drawn throughout, a half-completed task is denoted by a half-filled circle. In contrast, a completed action is filled in completely.
3. Get Creative And Vision Board
This is your resource, so how about adding a touch of your personality to your notebook by decorating some of the pages or using them to vision board ideas? You could dedicate a few pages to collating inspirational images and ideas that will keep you motivated. Stick in photos and ideas from magazines of brands you love, places you’d like to visit, people who inspire you. Then, whenever you feel the need for a boost of positivity, reflect upon these pages to bring some energy and drive back into your day.
4. Create An Expenses Log
Keeping on track of your expenses can be a chore and cause a world of pain when it comes to doing your tax return! So it makes a lot of sense to track and record your expenses on the go. Chances are your Moleskine notebook goes everywhere with you, so use lined or grid paper to jot down expenses in real-time. Receipts can easily be stored in the back pocket rather than your wallet so you can quickly reconcile at the end of the week or month depending upon how many you have.
5. Create A Handy Index To Quickly Reference Vital Information
It’s handy to have everything in the one place, especially when it comes to passwords, WEP/WPA keys and registration codes. Setting up a new computer is a nightmare otherwise. If you have a Moleskine notebook with a tabbed back section, use this to create an index of all the vital information about your computer and network. If not, you could set aside the final pages of your notebook to use as a system for indexing all kinds of useful information, not just relating to your computer.
6. Use As A Blog Log
If you run or write several different blogs either for yourself or other third party clients, consider investing in a separate coloured Moleskin notebook to capture and record all your brainstorming post ideas. The medium size is ideal for this purpose. You can also log relevant passwords, configurations relating to imaging resizing and tagging etc. as well as make notes about changes needed. Having everything together in one place makes life so much easier.
7. Divide Up Your Notebook Using Plastic Tabs
You can make your Moleskine notebook even more productive and multi-tasking if you break up and highlight sections using plastic divider tabs. Separating dedicated chunks of your notebook for specific purposes will help you remain even more organised. Blogs, expenses, inspiration. All these topics could have their own tab for easy visual reference.
8. Choose The Right Pen
One final recommendation on how to use your Moleskine notebook is to switch the pen you use. You’ll be amazed how much your experience will improve from using the right pen. For starters, pick one that won’t bleed. You don’t want your notebook smattered with messy ink spots. On a similar vein, chose something that won’t smear either. You don’t want to be waiting for the ink to dry before you can write another idea down. Finally, select a pen that’s comfortable to hold and that feels like a natural extension of your hand. The inspirational ideas will flow fast and furious if you and your pen are at one with your new Moleskine notebook!
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