First Field Notes
The pocket notebook habit is sticking
Last week, I filled up my first Field Notes notebook. The experience of carrying around a small notebook was enjoyable for me, and I have already started writing in my second. Here, I want to record some reflections on how I used my Field Notes and what I learned and changed in the process.
Product: Original Kraft (Mixed Three-Pack)
Dates: August 25, 2025 to October 18, 2025
Format: Graph
I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the freedom of not dating anything (with the exception of meetings). I normally rely strongly on time and almost always record the date first before I write anything else. But with Field Notes, I just let myself write whatever, whenever, with no need to know what day it was when I wrote something. It helps that Field Notes notebooks are small—3.5 by 5.5 inches and 48 pages—and inside the front cover there is space to indicate a start and end date, so I at least know that the contents of the notebook were written sometime within that fairly short two-ish-month period. Not dating my entries decreased the friction of getting a thought out of my head and onto paper.
Though I no longer use a Bullet Journal, I have internalized certain practices, such as keeping an index, threading, and using certain bullet symbols to denote different things. When I start a new page, I manually number it, and every once in a while, I’ll flip through the notebook to see if there is anything I want to be able to reference easily later on. I list these on the index page I reserved at the front of the notebook. Some examples from this Field Notes are notes on the release of the iPhone 16 and a log of IVF injections. If I write down something that is related to or a continuation of content from a previous page, I “thread” them together by noting the page number of the previous/next occurrence on that page1. As for the bullets, a dash is a note and a dot is a task.
I noticed that my inspiration to write in my Field Notes came in bursts. A few days would go by without anything significant to jot down, but then I would fill a couple pages in one day. I think the conscious itch to write in the notebook will fade as the novelty wears off, but it will always be useful to have a notebook close at hand when inspiration strikes.
After some experimentation with commonplace book-type entries (i.e. quotes), I settled on primarily using my Field Notes for brain dumps, random lists, and short-form journaling. Basically the kind of stuff I would normally try to keep in my head, write on a sticky note or scrap piece of paper, or type in Notepad and not save. It’s also a good place to note various recommendations from people (e.g. TV shows, movies, songs) and keep prayer requests or sermon notes. There were a few times I wrote down grocery lists, but I think I still prefer to do that digitally2.
Carrying a Field Notes around with me really got fun when I started adding stickers. The first ones were a couple I grabbed from The Fox Mercantile on our last day in Florida (one of which I stuck on the cover), and then I realized the notebook was a perfect place for the random stickers Augustine comes across: birthday party goodie bags, doctor’s offices, Sunday School, McDonald’s Happy Meals, etc. The stickers are a visual marker that remind me of what was happening at the time and place of their appearance.
Field Notes come in three primary formats: graph grid (3/16" or 4.7 mm), ruled lines (1/4" or 6.4 mm), and blank. Some releases have other layouts, such as dot grid or ledger. Again, because of Bullet Journaling, I have become a fan of dot grid, but that is uncommon in Field Notes. So, I bought the Mixed Three-Pack that has one of each graph, lined, and blank to see which of the core formats I prefer. I used the graph notebook first, but I was a little nervous that I would find the 4.7 mm grids too small. Turns out, that wasn’t a problem. And now that I’ve started writing in the lined notebook, I know for sure I prefer graph. I don’t think I will like blank at all—too little structure!
One thing that makes starting a new hobby fun is deciding on various accessories and peripherals. For the longest time, I was a staunch Japanese gel pen snob. Specifically, I used various dark colors of the Uni-Ball Signo DX 0.38 mm. But nowadays, at least for more casual writing, I prefer my Pilot Acroball 0.7 mm ballpoint pen. Ballpoint pens are less finicky and don’t smear as much. Plus, I like the convenience of the click style so I don’t need to keep track of a cap. I bought a cheap leather cover and a pack of dot stickers, and for now I am using an index card as a pencil board.
I mentioned this last point briefly in my first Field Notes post, but I really appreciate the fan community around this brand. I joined the Field Nuts Facebook group, and for the most part, everyone is kind and generous and enthusiastic. I enjoy looking at people’s in/out posts, creative sticker applications, and rare Field Notes editions.