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How to Use Notebooks in 2026 (The Best System)

Tell me if this sounds familiar: you buy a beautiful notebook, excited by all its possibilities to help refine your thoughts and generate new insights. Then it sits unused until you forget about it.

Cal Newporthost

Jul 13, 20261h 4mWatch on YouTube

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EPISODE INFO

Released: July 13, 2026
Duration: 1h 4m
Channel: Cal Newport
Watch on YouTube: ▶ Open ↗

EPISODE DESCRIPTION

Tell me if this sounds familiar: you buy a beautiful notebook, excited by all its possibilities to help refine your thoughts and generate new insights. Then it sits unused until you forget about it. The problem is not *what* notebooks you own but instead *how* you use them. In this episode, Cal walks through the four different notebooks he owns, and the four different ways he uses them. More from Cal Download Cal’s FREE guide to cultivating a deeper life: calnewport.com/ideas Learn more about Cal’s books: calnewport.com/books Listen to Cal’s podcast: thedeeplife.com/listen Chapters (0:00) How to Use Notebooks in 2026 (30:11) Comments on a controversial article (33:18 ) Statistics about smartphone bans in schools (38:15) A practical question about remote work (40:57) A question about focus and the World Cup (46:08) What Cal is up to (48:12) What Cal is reading Resources Mentioned: https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/general/a-neurologist-claims-gen-z-has-a-lower-iq-than-millennials/ar-AA1XAIFu https://x.com/JimenaJuani/status/2072095851816620191?s=20 Sponsors: https://www.superhuman.com https://www.factormeals.com/deep50off https://www.monarch.com/deep https://www.mybodytutor.com Credits: Podcast Production: Jesse Miller Newsletter/Research: Nate Mechler Theme Music: Jay Kerstens

SPEAKERS

Cal Newport
host
Professor and author known for writing about productivity, deep work, and building a deep life.

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode of Cal Newport, featuring Cal Newport, How to Use Notebooks in 2026 (The Best System) explores Four notebook roles that make analog tools actually get used Cal Newport explains that notebooks fail when they’re purchased for aesthetics rather than assigned a clear role that benefits from analog constraints.

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