Why the Future Needs More Pen and Paper

We–humans–are not machines. Through this new wave of leveraging technology and artificial intelligence, I’ve been claiming this is the year of analogue.

Wrist watches only telling time. Alarm clocks unable to talk back to us. Wall calendars. Sketchbooks. Hand radios. These are things we’re turning back to.

As humans, our best ideas don’t always show up when we’re staring at the screen. They come in the shower. On a walk. Mid-convo with a friend. In those in-between moments when we’re not trying so hard.

Here, we’ve learned to trust and value the process.

The process of putting pen to paper—even if it’s messy; playing with different materials and going in the wrong direction; printing things out, taping them to the wall, and seeing how they feel in different light. The process of walking just to think, sitting down with another human and talking it through, and turning work off to enjoy a mental martini (shaken, not stirred).

By leaning into the analogue, human activities, unique and artful solutions are found to our problems.

We don’t rush it. We don’t skip steps. We discover new opportunities.

When we respect the human’s approach, we end up with intentional ideas, clear directions, and work built to scale and stand the test of time.

And perhaps, we have AI proofread or add on to the ideas.

So—how do you human?