Six Psychological Reasons to Manually Write Things Down

Kaya Ismail reports:

"Writing down your dreams, goals, and business ideas helps you brainstorm on a more ambitious scale. There’s nothing quite like writing down a startup idea in the middle of a blank page and then branching out with a flurry of ideas. Plus, writing down your thoughts gives you a chance to explore dreams that you may not wish to share with others. It also affords you a physical space to keep track of those thoughts, and return to them later if needed...A study carried out in 2010 by Indiana University found that the areas of the brain associated with learning worked far better when kids were asked to write words like 'spaceship' by hand versus just studying the word off a whiteboard...Learning and remembering are two different things (outside of the school system, that is). Writing things down that you need to remember – like checklists – gives you a far better chance of actually remembering them when you have to. But don’t just take my word for it. In 2014, the Association of Psychological Science reported that students who physically took notes received a memory boost – particularly when compared to those who took notes via a laptop...Shunning your notepad to write on a device is a dangerous game. As you type, notifications will often slide into view to drag you away from your task. Plus, your favourite [sic] social media platform is always just a few taps away. [Good] old[-]fashioned paper will keep you focused – and focus is the key to thinking clearer, and thinking better...When you note down your ideas, thoughts, and emotions, it helps your brain to unload some baggage, giving it room to think about other things. Or better yet, with all that extra space, it could even begin to relax...According to the world[-]renowned science journal Neurology, writing things down will keep you on top of your memory game for longer...[I]f you want to remember where you left your keys thirty years from now, I suggest you start writing more today...The benefits of writing things down the old[-]fashioned way are very real, and they’ll make a serious impact on your daily routine – and on your life as a whole. And the best part is, unlike some other 'life hacks' out there, writing is an activity that’s hugely accessible to almost all of us."