Wow, we are already 4 weeks into 2026. 1/13th of the year is gone. I’m not one for new year resolutions, or making random weird goals just because it is a new year. But…
I have made some changes already this year - mostly in how I manage my work. I have always been a procrastinator who is easily distracted. I always will be but now I am running my own business I need be even more on top of things than I have ever been before.
Before I get into that though, a word from our sponsor:
This newsletter is sponsored by Sana Learn.
Building a business means focusing on the things that actually move you forward. Same goes for L&D. Sana Learn is an AI-native platform that helps learning teams stop being content factories and start being strategic partners. The AI handles the admin - enrollment, translations, course creation from existing docs - so you can focus on solving real business problems. Their dashboards let you ask questions about learning performance in plain English and get answers you can actually share with stakeholders. If you're thinking about consolidating your learning stack, it's worth a conversation.
Right, back to it.
I have tried a ton of tools for task management, project management, note taking, reminders with limited success.
I might use them for a day, a week, or maybe even a month. Then I revert to my old methods - keeping things in my head. This also isn’t very effective, even more so now I am moving through my 5th decade.
Last week I bought a new notebook and some fineliners. My wife was confused - “You have loads of notebooks, and we have pens all over the place. Why do you need more?”
My response: I need to start afresh. I need a better way of working and digital is just too distracting. The notebooks I have, have all been used before - some with a few pages used, some with more. The pens are all randoms that have come from previous jobs, conferences, or hotels.
I wanted a blank slate and something that was chosen by me as the best tool for the job. Of course, I went down the rabbit hole of research, Youtube videos on Bullet Journalling, note-taking. I ended up distracted and not focused on what was right for me.
I wanted to start simple.
One week into it and I ended up with one shiny notebook that is used for a light version of Bullet Journalling. I have a second specifically for scribbled notes while on calls - they get transcribed over if needed to the main journal. The third notebook (“wait Mark! You said this was simple”) is for my writing specifically. Ideation manually without sneaking into Gemini for assistance.
So how has this helped me?
So far, it has kept me on track - I have a list of tasks every day. I write down the outcomes of every meeting each day which might become part of the next days task list. I reflect at the end of every day and write down something that was the highlight. I reflect at the end of the week and write a couple of paragraphs about the previous week along with some thoughts to take into the next week.
I’m tracking some habits - did I do my 6km daily walk? Did I take a photo with my camera? Did I create content? Did I update the journal itself?
Why is this important to me?
Building a business is complex. There are so many things I COULD be doing, but only some things will move me forwards towards my goals. I need to FOCUS on the right things and not all the random stuff. I need to see that I am doing things properly. That I am reducing procrastination and distraction.
I know this isn’t my normal kind of newsletter but expect some of this kind of content sprinkled in amongst the normal Learning Stack content moving forwards.
I found this video the best inspiration for me for a simple journalling method - thank you
AND FINALLY, THE CURATION STACK
Here is just one thing that caught my eye this week:
Ben West launched a new site - https://www.reasonstostay.co.uk/ aimed at helping people remember that no matter how bad things are, we are not alone. This is the about page but go and take a look for yourself even if you are feeling in a good place mentally.
