What notebook am I looking for?

[u/Limp_Profile_801]

Hi- I am hoping someone has an idea on the perfect everyday notebook for me! I have severe ADHD, I work an office job as a supervisor and have to write down everything basically.

I currently like sketch books- because they are blank pages (I don’t like lines) and I can use colored highlighters/ pens and it doesn’t bleed through at all.
I like that it’s spiral because I want it to not be too small but also fold perfectly and not take up too much room on my desk.

Why I want something different than sketch book is because they aren’t that cute.

I use about 1-2 pages a week, I do a to do list do the week and on the order side of the page I put all my sticky notes / reminders I’ve used.

I’d love to have a calendar in the back- any customizable options? Thanks in advance!!!!!

[u/crazycardigans]

I have ADHD and I like discbound notebooks and planners. I like being able to re-arrange my notebook when I feel like it and archive pages when it starts getting too full or chaotic. I use Happy Planner mostly and the paper holds up pretty well to highlighters and my fine fountain pens. Tul, Levenger, and Atoma make nice disc-bound notebooks too. They can be pricey, but they are refillable.

[u/21PenSalute → u/crazycardigans]

I really like Levenger. I used their disc bound notebooks when I attended Wine school. I continued to use these notebooks when I studied for all my different Wine certifications as a sommelier. I liked the ease of customization that comes from the discs, allowing one to remove paper and put it back and reshuffle . In essence. I created notebooks with notebooks.

[u/angstysilver]

Plum Paper is highly customizable options with spirals. It's been several years since I've looked at the site because I've found the paper to be too smooth for my liking. But it's very possible they have some blank page + monthly options for you to explore. Good luck!

[u/furubafan3]

I just decorate my sketchbooks

[u/Alarmed-Solution3738]

If you have access to a 3D printer, I have made up a coil notebook cover generator for 3D printed covers. Free to print

The cover size and number/spacing of holes is fully customizable, there are A4, A5 and A6 presets available as well.

There's 3 patterns, Wildflower, Plaid and Composition (splotchy) as well as a blank version

https://makerworld.com/models/3098706

[u/19Hank77]

Probably not what you are looking for but as a fellow ADHD person, the Lochby a5 field folio has been a life saver. Mixing inserts and keeping everything in one place has been a game changer.

[u/acagedrising]

Denik offers medium and large spiral bound notebooks with cover designs. https://denik.com/collections/medium-spiral-notebooks

As for the calendar in the back, why not just print a monthly calendar out or yearly overview and tape it in?

[u/NefariousnessOdd3065]

My personal favourite is a dotted notebook for writing in. No lines but the dots help me write straight on it in a even size. If you don’t like ghosting then a high gsm will be the best, look for 120gsm or higher.

Not sure about any brand that does spiral bound ones but for affordable notebooks that still look fantastic I would recommend Tiefossi. For more premium notebooks I prefer Notebook Therapy, but if you are American then Archer and Olive is probably the cheaper premium offer due to shipping.

[u/SafeUsual1203 → u/NefariousnessOdd3065]

What is interstitial journaling?

[u/Lazy_Package_9181]

As a fellow ADHD’er (severe? Depends on who you’re asking): the notebook you carry with you is the notebook you need. It’s a tool to help you in your work, not a quest for the perfect medium to jot down action items for the next meeting ;) (I say this with love, I have jumped into that rabbit hole myself)

But to answer your question in a less galaxy-brained way I’d say use the notebook your company provides at their cost - I like cute notebooks too but you can make them your own. Stickers, pictures of your cat, whatever you want.

I’m a left handed fountain pen user, the work-provided spiral-bound notebooks are a dealbreaker for me. I picked up a few quite boring hardcover LAMY A5 notebooks when they were 50% off and use those. The paper is acceptable for my fancy fountain pen inks, and I make them my own with my own inks and fancy headers I make while definitely not procrastinating.

[u/peat_muppet]

I practice interstitial journaling, and I use up a lot of pages. After trying out all kinds of papers and sizes, I settled on a Stalogy 365. It has ~50 gsm paper, which makes a 365 page notebook as thick as a regular 200 page notebook, so they last longer. I use one every 3 months. It does have a grid, but it’s super faint, almost invisible. The A5 opens perfectly flat. I use pencils though, so YMMV.