Yesterday, for the first time in my life, I took notes in General Conference on a laptop. It was very easy. I was able to write several pages of notes and even share quick quotes on Facebook every once in a while.
However, I found that there were some drawbacks. Since I could take notes more quickly on a keyboard than by hand, I found myself copying more of the Apostles' exact words and not so many of my own thoughts and impressions. Also, while sharing inspired thoughts on Facebook was fun, having quick access to Facebook and to the rest of the internet was distracting to me.
Today, I decided to take notes by hand, as I always had, and it went great. I recorded more of my own thoughts, or the thoughts the Spirit gave me, I'm not sure which, and they told me how I could apply the words of the Apostles to my own life. It helped me answer some of the questions I had brought to Conference, and it helped me feel the Spirit more than I had yesterday.
I still brought my laptop, on which I'm blogging right now, between sessions, but I won't be using this laptop during the Sunday Afternoon Session. I'll avoid the distraction of the internet and the temptation to copy down every quotable phrase I hear. Instead, I'll record the most personal and important impressions of a piece of paper by hand.
A bit of a disclaimer, though: Many of my family members use their laptops to take notes, and there's nothing wrong with that. There are many advantages to taking notes on a computer. All I'm saying is that I've tried it, and I've found that it's not what works out best for me.
1 comment:
It's good to find out what works for you. I like using the laptop, but now you have me thinking about personal impressions. What I think might be really great, though, is watching/listening to the talks again on the computer while maybe doing notes and impressions by hand. or I wonder if you could do both on the computer at the same time. and if that would work well. One of the things I like about the computer is that now that I have a smart phone I can have my notes with me.
How grateful I am that you seek the things of the spirit and you share your insights and thoughts!
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