|||
After years experimenting with different tools and methods, and switching far too often between them than was good for me, I’ve finally come up with a tool stack that meets my needs.
Many people have inspired me along the way. Even though I don’t use their exact methods (or apps), seeing their passion and learning what works for them has helped me to find my feet at long last.
Your tool stack is the collection of resources you use to organise your life, solve problems, and create things.
Aside from any vocation-specific tools, your tool stack will include places and ways to —
It can be fun to learn about the tools used by people who do cool things, and maybe even try them on for size.
But it can also be a trap.
It’s easy to fall for the subconscious suggestion that the tool imbues the skill. Good tools support and augment existing skills, they don’t create them. The way you use your tools is much more important than the tools themselves.
Expensive paints can’t turn you into an artist, and sophisticated task managers can’t define the core values that inform your priorities.
The common thread between the following people and apps is a commitment to being in charge of one’s own digital information. In other words, a plain text (or analog equivalent) foundation.
Scott Nesbitt has the strongest plain text mindset of anyone I’ve ever (virtually) met, except maybe Karl Voit. Scott appears to be more of a vanilla file purist, while Karl loves the power Org brings to his text. I drift pleasantly somewhere between these two approaches.
Steph Ango (@kepano), the CEO of Obsidian, often talks about something close to my heart: the file over app mindset. It’s a concept I’d been feeling in my bones since 2016 but hadn’t known how to articulate until years later. Obsidian isn’t an essential app for note making, just as a finely tuned fountain pen isn’t essential for writing. I’m not inclined to give up either.
Johnny Decimal’s Life Admin system brought order to the minutiae of my life in ways that PARA could not. My files once were lost (and lost.final.FINAL), but now can be easily found. Priceless!
Ryder Carroll’s book on the Bullet Journal system continues to influence me, even though I don’t use a traditional BuJo. It’s a brilliant book on productivity, highly recommended.
Anna Havron has a wonderful way of organising her life with paper, and plenty of wisdom to share. She put me onto the Wonderland222 planner, a Hobonichi-inspired planner with fountain pen friendly paper. I don’t intend to continue with it next year, but the experience was valuable.
Task management apps I’ve used and like, that work on plain text files:
This is the tool stack that is working for me today. Tomorrow might look different.
As a graphic designer I also use Serif’s Affinity suite, PDF Expert. Plus some helpful Mac utilities:
There are free versions of those utilities that can do much the same thing. I already pay for a Setapp subscription so they cost me no extra. (Setapp affiliate link: use the code ELLANE for a 30-day free trial instead of the usual 7. Over 200 Mac apps, including Ulysses, MarsEdit, Permute, and AI resources I have no need for)
This post was inspired by Nolen Jonker’s article on replacing all his note taking apps with a cross-platform plain text stack.
“If it can open and save a text file, it works”, Jonker declares.
Jonker has a simple way to store and retrieve information that doesn’t require links. I admire that! But links between files are not something I’m willing to give up. I make good use of Wikilinks in Obsidian and iA Writer. This blog is written in Obsidian and uses wiki links to reference other posts.
Though PARA can’t compete with the Johnny Decimal system for organising the itty-bitty details of life, I can see the attraction of a simpler set of folders.
People who read about tool stacks either love the topic, or are unhappy with their current setup. Or both. Which are you?
My advice is to seek a set of tools that fade into the background, letting you focus on the work at hand. Nothing wrong with a bit of fun playing with a new tool every now and then (once your day’s top tasks are done), but do beware of the trap of sophisticated procrastination!
💬 I love to hear from readers! email hello at ellanew dot com or message me on Mastodon or Bluesky.
If you get value from my work I invite you to share this post with someone you think will like it and / or contribute to my support jar. You may also like to check out the free resources on my productivity themed Gumroad store or the Comfort Quotes I made to help people going through tough times.
You can follow my RSS feed https://ellanew.com/feed.rss, or sign up to receive posts in your inbox
