Am I the only one who still geeks out walking the aisles of Office Depot or Staples?

It completely takes me back to my days of going back-to-school shopping. I remember hoping to find the Trapper Keeper in my favorite color or the cool Matchbox-branded pencils with the case and built-in pencil sharpener.

And there is nothing more satisfying than opening up a new pack of legal pads and inserting one into your case. Or knowing you’re the first one to use that flip chart. Or, one of my absolute favorites, getting to refill the Post-it note holder on my desk.

There is just something about being old school.

At the recent AENC Annual Meeting, there was a speaker talking about the differences between the generations. Afterward, I had a chance to talk with someone who clearly identified as a Millennial. She confessed that her way of tracking to-dos still involved a pen and a piece of paper.

“Girl, I am right there with you,” I said.

As much as I pride myself on being an early adopter when it comes to technology, and as much as I am not afraid of any technology, I still love my handwritten to-do list.

There is something so rewarding about taking notes on my notepad and then, following the meeting, going to my other legal pad and transferring any action items from the meeting.

Additionally, at least once a week, usually on a Monday morning, I will sit down at my dining room table after I have finished my smoothie and review my to-do list. I make sure I’ve checked off everything I have done. Sometimes, I will even write things down that I already completed just so I can check them off.

Then I rewrite my to-do list on a separate page, adding the things I know I need to accomplish for the week.

It’s funny. Even when I started Tying It Together, I thought I would try, once again, to give Microsoft To Do a shot.

It lasted maybe a month.

It’s just not as satisfying as ripping off that page, full of completely crossed-off action items, and throwing it into the recycling.

You can’t get that sensation on a laptop.

Sorry, Microsoft.

Now, I do admit that I like tools like Monday.com for more complicated projects, and I certainly appreciate spreadsheets that can track strategic plans. But for my everyday tasks, give me a paper dashboard.

And speaking of strategic planning, how great is the feeling of walking out of a board meeting with a roll of flip-chart paper?

The thicker, the better.

All those words are just waiting to show up in a Word document and give some organization much-needed direction for the next few years.

And how fun is it to tape all those sheets of flip-chart paper all over your room while you sit in the center in your swivel chair, typing up the objectives and tactics that surround you?

I am absolutely positive I could modernize the way I facilitate strategic planning, but there is nothing like standing at the front of a room with your flip-chart marker in hand, looking like the conductor of some board philharmonic.

You are writing the notes feverishly as they speak, knowing they will become part of some master composition.

That is the magic of facilitation.

You are not there to play every instrument.

You are there to listen for the themes, bring the sections together, keep the tempo moving, and help the group hear the music they are creating together.

So yes, I will continue to explore different technologies to make my business more efficient and bring greater value to the associations I serve.

But I refuse to give up my paper, my marker, and my gel pen.