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Scription Chronodex Weekly Planner Jul - Dec 2023 Released

For those who love analogue, paper, visual and mind-mapping, here you go the Jul - Dec 2023 Chronodex is now released. Sorry for the slight delay, I know you've been waiting :P

Happy Chronodexing!

Chronodex Weekly Planner Jan - Jun 2023 Released

Oh man, thanks for all the waiting; it's been a crazy 2022, especially the 2nd half. Finally, I got to work on the 11th-year Chronodex, and without further ado, here it is for immediate download.

A lot of beautiful things happened in 2022, despite all the COVID measures and nonsense. I seem to be able to get more exercise, particularly with my Brompton bike (oh yeah I sold my Strida at a great price and finally able to afford a Bromie 2 years ago). I am also transitioning to a new role at work kind of smoothly, not without everyday challenges though. Sadly this new role also left me with a lot less time for my personal life, and WTF there's no need to travel too, I need to connect to the rest of the world man, something has to change in 2023 otherwise I will have to be brave to move on. So much unspoken thoughts and feelings, hope I can handle 2023 gracefully and wish you all good luck to do the same too! HGJN.

Chronodex Weekly Planner Jan - Jun 2021 Released

Finally closed some projects at work and able to finish producing Jan-Jun 2021 Chronodex! So here it is for your immediate download. (UPDATE on 6th Jan 2021: Monthly calendar in May 2021 was showing wrong dates and it is now corrected, if you have downloaded it before 6th Jan, feel free to download it again for the correction. You can simply reprint page 29 and 30 and replace just that spread)

If you are new to Chronodex, the most difficult part is printing out double-sided correctly, so do read this guideline before you start printing, it is important you get it right.

The image above is how I typically use Chronodex. Simply draw a line from the clock dial to any empty space on your paper, start writing the description of your appointment and shade the period of time, most important appointments you shade 3 levels (as shown in red in the above diagram). That's it, you can use any space on your paper for anything, that's the beauty of Chronodex, you liberate the space.

BTW, recently I was being interviewed by Stationery Cafe, at around 47 minutes in the following video I talked about the origin of Chronodex and how I'd use it. So do check it out if you want to know more.

Finally do keep track of the fun things I do on my Instagram account @patrickng, and join the Chronodex Facebook Page for experience sharing.

Chronodex Weekly Planner Jan-Jun 2020 Released

Without further ado, here's the most updated Chronodex release, tailored for Traveler's Notebook format: Download Chronodex Weekly Planner Jan-Jun 2020.

To give you a little refresh of how it is used: I created Chronodex because all of the diaries I imported are totally not visually oriented for people like me, I needed to visualize my days and weeks in the form of a clock face. Essentially it is just a clock face but you see there are 3 layers there for you to indicate "importance" of your events. First, you draw a line from the starting hour (to the 15 min. intervals which is already good enough for most situations) to any empty space, then you write down a description of your event. To indicate the end time as well as the "importance" of your event, just shade the pie, for normal priority you shade one layer, high priority you shade three layers.  That's it.

The benefit of this method is to help you visualize both the event periods and the importance of them. Another benefit is that different from most other diaries, you can use ANY empty space on your page! Imagine Chrondex a mindmap of your schedule.

Again, if you want to print it out perfectly, do read the visual guide I made specifically for that.

If you are like me having a lot of tasks lying around all day, you may need to handle a typical day jumping around various tasks using the Chronodex Daily Scheduler with GTD to-do list. You can print this double-sided in A4 paper, fold it into a third so that you can slide it inside your Traveler's Notebook.

BTW, Traveler's Company does make a nice plastic folder (029) which allows you to just slide in the A4 paper and fold into a third without any hassle.

While you are going to struggle how the printing is done (double-sided, short-edge binding), why not cold brew yourself some nice tea like me and be patient, enjoy the process of making your own diary! I highly recommend Fortnum & Masons' Smoky Earl Grey, simply great to sit back and take your time doing something fun isn't it.

Oh I've also released a Whatsapp/Telegram sticker set with our beloved Manual Factory Bear character.  Just follow the instruction and you'll have some fun stickers on your iPhone/Andriod. Download here.

 

Chronodex visual scheduler and task management on MD Paper

2018 is a great year when finally I spared enough time to make the first licensed Chronodex real.

Chronodex visual scheduler and task management on MD Paper, a pack of 3pcs in A5 size. It is gonna be released exclusively @logonhk Festival Walk store on 1st Sep for the MD Paper 10th Anniversary event in Hong Kong. The limited production was made possible thanks to LOG-ON and Designphil teams. It is Chronodex’s first ever licensed product, I’m tremendously thankful for those of you who support and respect original design.

On the left of the spread is the most updated Chronodex version.  On top there are icons reminding you to drink enough water and recording the day's weather, they are there to help you take a little time off from a busy day.  There's also "Today's Focus" so you can write down what's the most important thing of the day.  The "Gratitude Note" is for you to summarize the day with reflection, appreciating even small pleasant things instead of bringing home just a tired body.

On the right, there are sections to capture your random thoughts, things you personally want to do but may not be a good time, things that are less important so perhaps later, things to be captured in various projects.  Most importantly, there are 3 columns to capture important to-dos.  They are "5 min.", "15 min." and ">30 min." sections, whenever you need to capture a task, instead of pouring everything into one big inbox, you take 1 second to determine if they are tasks that can be finished within a few minutes or you need to spend more time, this is very important because when things are accumulating, it is so overwhelming you start to ignore the huge list.  This helps you to have a better grasp of TIME needed to complete those tasks, you choose to be easy to yourself this hour and dive deep into time consuming tasks the next, or the other way around, which gives you a sense of control.

Anyway, this is just one of the many possible ways to manage your day, it gives me pleasure to do scheduling and task management like it's a game.  I hope many of you will benefit from it.

This limited Chronodex edition is part of the celebration of MD Paper 10th Anniversary in LOG-ON Festival Walk store.  The event will also feature selling MD Paper blocks by weight, special event only stamps and pencils, exhibits from 4 professional users, workshops from talented @kalomakeartand @Pooi_chin. Any purchase of MD Paper product over HK$300 will also get you this event only tote bag!

Why the first licensed Chronodex is released on MD Paper?  Coz I admire how Designphil/Midori meticulously manage their product quality and never succumb to cheap ideas to exploit great brands. This is true with Traveler's Notebook and MD Paper Product brands I know deeply of.  Besides, the people behind these brands are my heroes, I'm so glad to be part of their initiatives.

So, it is a small thing but it means a lot to everybody involved.

Official press release: https://goo.gl/tQVYoV

Scription Chronodex Weekly Planner Jul-Dec 2018 Released

Since it was released and it was updated in the Chronodex page and I forgot to update this main page.  Here you go.

Chronodex Weekly Planner Jul-Dec 2018 is now released! I wish it was earlier but yeah this weekend is probably a good time for you to prepare it for the next 6 months’ visual/radial scheduling/journaling.

Download: https://goo.gl/Wuzc3G

Scription Chronodex Weekly Planner Jan-Jun 2018 Released

Stepping into the sixth year of public release, wow!  Let me just say thanks to all Chronodex supporters, I believe it does change lives, especially for us visual thinkers.  Everyday since I created it, I enjoy moments of tranquility by just slowing down and reflecting on my agendas and thoughts through using it.  Sometimes the happenings around the core are calligraphic, sometimes scribbles and many times something in between, but most importantly the space the Chronodex core freed up for creative association becomes a life saver, for time and space are actually the very same thing, if you have learned enough in life how to deal with limited resources, you know space as in blank space on paper or in time-out for thoughts is often being traded off by task specific time demand from others.  It pains us isn't it? When do we get our own time?  The answer is clear to me, we steal time, we demand/redeem time in the form of space, after all 95% of task specific time demand from others are trivial, unimportant for your life goal.  Well, the percentage varies person to person but you get my point.

Having said that, I recall a wise director from the company I work for once said, "I am going to be conscious of the energy I spend instead of the time I spend on work", you simply have to find a way to be conscious, still responsive, not just reacting from circumstances, just be conscious while you are being busy, you will see the difference.

A final note about being conscious and self-discovery.  If you can write down your thoughts, they can be materialised, the path will be cleared.

Here's the Chronodex January -June 2018 version formatted for Traveler's Notebook for you to download. The assemble instruction is always at the Chronodex main page.

The assembly instruction is here for you to print correctly:

Again, for a very crowded day, the page is not enough to record schedules and tasks altogether, you can consider to use the Chronodex Daily Scheduler with GTD to-do List.

So happy journaling and may the force be with you in 2018 and onward!

Scription Chronodex Weekly Planner Jan-Jun 2017 Released

Wow time flies, I forgot to put a blog post about the released Jan-Jun 2017 Chronodex although the link to download was being updated in the Chronodex page.  So for the record, do try out this visual method of planning/recording your date related tasks.  Download Jan-Jun 2017 Chronodex Weekly Planner here.

While you are cutting away the edges of the 2017 Chronodex pages, don't throw away those left over paper stripes, simply clip them together and you get 68 faces of paper for your to-do list!

Enjoy!

Related articles

Chronodex Daily Scheduler & GTD To-do List Released

How Traveler's Factory Was Built

Scription Chronodex Weekly Planner Jan-Jun 2016 Released

Here you go, Merry Xmas and a Happy New Year for Chronodex fans!

This implementation is featuring weekly inspiration quotes on every Monday to give you a fresh start for each week.  Topics included are art, motivation, life, inspiration, love, work, etc.  I’m sure you will enjoy the little thoughtful addition for your weekly Chronodexing :) DOWNLOAD HERE.

In addition, don't forget my other very useful tool Chronodex Daily Scheduler with GTD To-Do List, which is in A4 size, when printed double sided you can 3-fold into a very slim format (Traveler's Notebook size) tackling all your tasks in stressless manner.  Combining the dated Chronodex and this GTD version, you can practice "relaxed focus" as proposed by David Allen.

(use it flat as individual pages) 

(Or you can fold it two times, insert it into the front or back pocket of your Traveler's Notebook, or slide it under one of the elastic bands in your notebook)

If you are new to Chronodex, the Chronodex page on this blog contains all the versions I released so far with useful notes.  Visit the Chronodex Facebook page to check out what others are doing with it.  Finally, my Instagram is where I post most of my works and thoughts on stationery... and beyond :)  Hashtag #Chronodex to spread the love! 

 

How Traveler's Factory Was Built

It was a happy coincidence last year when I visited Tokyo I met Mr. Narita who was the contractor to build both the Traveler's Factory Nakameguro store and the Narita Airport store.  I was blessed to see some of the sketches at times before the stores were built.

Courtesy from Mr. Narita on his Flickr site, you can see "the making of " photos from the former paper factory situated in Nakameguro Tokyo to the current Traveler's Factory principle store.  From stories I heard, it was built with a lot of hearts from choosing the site, material specification and sourcing, sign painting to the product selection.  It is definitely one of the classic stores in our lifetime.

Check out Mr. Narita's Flickr set of photos here.