Manifesto

Paper, on purpose

The phone wakes us up. The calendar tells us where to be. The to-do app counts what we did not do.

Tidemark is a small step back. A notebook, a pen, and a few minutes a day that belong to you.

Slower, with intent

Writing by hand is slow. That is the point. You choose what goes on the page and what stays off it.

A plan on paper does not ping you. It waits.

Things that last

I have used my own leather notebooks and wallets for about ten years. They have scratches, stains and a colour they did not have at the start. They look better now.

Good leather ages like that. I make things to be touched every day, for years.

What we know

Writing about your own thoughts and feelings has been studied since the 1980s. A meta-analysis of more than a hundred studies found a small but consistent benefit. Small, not magic.

People also bond more with things they helped personalise, and the researchers argue that this bond makes us keep and use them longer.

To see the habit in practice, watch Peter McKinnon: I did this for 800 days and it changed my life.

1. Pennebaker, J. W., & Beall, S. K. (1986). Confronting a traumatic event: Toward an understanding of inhibition and disease. Journal of Abnormal Psychology. doi:10.1037/0021-843X.95.3.274
2. Frattaroli, J. (2006). Experimental disclosure and its moderators: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.132.6.823
3. Mugge, R., Schoormans, J. P. L., & Schifferstein, H. N. J. (2009). Emotional bonding with personalised products. Journal of Engineering Design. doi:10.1080/09544820802698550

Not for everyone

Analog is not for everyone. Some people think better on a screen, and that is fine.

Paper will not fix a bad week. A notebook will not make you someone else. If you are curious, try it for a month and see what stays.