My job requires a lot of work in front of a computer. I’m constantly using email, IM, facebook, Excel, Word, editing our webpages, etc. Ironically, as I’m the “tech guru” in our office, I find my office, perhaps a because of the computer, a very difficult place to be creative. I think my trip to Jay last week was an example of that.

Another was a trip to Florida. I went down with the swim team on their training trip just after Christmas. For some reason, I was thinking about work all of the time down there. Not in a bad, I’m stressed out when I should be enjoying the time with the swimmers (I love coaching) manner, but in a very productive, creative way. Ideas kept coming and I eventually sat down with my tablet and wrote out a new e-communication plan – something that I’ve been meaning to do for a while, but have felt completely uninspired.

I’m figuring this out as a write this, so bare with me. You’re getting a stream of consciousness flow here.

So I really liked that I was away from the office, and being creative, but there’s another aspect that I’d like to talk about as well and that was the physical act of writing down these ideas. I am very much a pen and paper person on some levels and very much a e-file person in others. I love the act of writing – physically putting pen to paper. Love it. I don’t know why, but I seem to remember things better if I write them down. Organizationally, I do not do paper well. I don’t do files and filing cabinets. It just doesn’t work for me. When I go looking for something, it doesn’t even pop into my head too look in a file. When I go to file something, there may already be a folder for it, but I tend to create a new file folder with a totally different name. I’m a pile person. I pile things everywhere.

I don’t think I’m that unique when it comes to those two traits. I’m sure there are tons of boys in the school system that share similar traits. I think technology can help in this area. I’ve got one of the new tablet laptops and I absolutely love it. The pen feature is great because I can take notes and save them in a structure that makes sense to me. When I was a in school, I would take notes and inevitably, pages would fall out of my notebook, and float around my bag or locker and I’d never be able to find them again. This tablet provides a great solution.

I’ve got to run, but I’m sure there will be more on this.