The Paper Trail

In a business meeting, everyone comes prepared…to kill time.

Most functions that require various business professionals to sit around a table of rectangular-ovular shape are run by one or two people. The other 6-8 people there have come to listen. And as in most cases, if only 15% of the material is applicable to their job, then they need a diversion. A diversion that will keep them from falling asleep and performing the awkward trying-to-prop-thy-head-on-your-raised-arm-so-that-you-can-cover-one-eye technique. This is where note-taking comes in.

With the exception of the guy who fiddles with his Blackberry all meeting long, all attendees usually bring two things to a standard business meeting – a writing utensil and something on which to use said utensil. We’ve covered the importance of selecting your scribing implement wisely in the past. But today we write to warn you of something you may not realize…

Your choice of paper says a lot about you.

Yes, this isn’t the third grade where the teacher hands out that weird sideways paper with the giant lines on it. We’re not here to practice cursive. We’re here to take notes at a meeting. And we trust you to be a professional. So what you choose to write on is completely up to you. We just wanted to let you know – we’re judging you because of it.

What does my paper say about me?

Single Sheet of Printer Paper – You really don’t intend on paying attention at all. In fact, it’s unlikely that whatever you write down actually makes it all the way back to your desk – there’s many a rogue wastebasket between here and there. The sheet was probably brought out of obligation – there’s really no way to cover your work – it’s not like you can write on it in your lap – and unless you turn the paper over, your sketch of the boss with horns and a tail will be visible by all. In essence, you’ve phoned it in, both the meeting and your ability to keep your real actions covert. Sarcastic Golf clap for you, sir.

Marble Composition Notebook – This guy’s the opposite. He values everything he takes out of this meeting, senseless scribbles and otherwise. After all, he’s chosen a notepad that requires you to keep everything you write. Have you ever tried to rip a sheet out of a marble book before? It’s like trying to do surgery at a construction site. No, Mr. Marble is a meticulous one, and he probably has a bookshelf in his office of every note and memo he’s written in his entire career. You may either be a little homicidal (like this guy was), or maybe you’re an engineer and love having the inside cover metric table at ready access.

Any paper that’s not white or pale yellow – you are a dork. You may think that a blue/green/rose pad expresses your personality, but in reality, it just reminds us that you should be sitting at the kids’ table.

Legal Pad – The only time I’ve really heard of lawyers using legal pads are in John Grisham books. I swear, anytime one of his lawyer characters needs to get a deposition or witness testimony, Grisham makes sure to point out that his young gun scrawled his way through a whole box of these extra long paper repositories. I feel like the lawyers today have laptops and PDAs and other cooler gadgets to write on – hell, it’s not like they don’t have the money for that kind of swag. So what has become of the legal pad? Oh, it’s still alive and well, and someone in your meeting has probably got one, too. The legal pad writer is there to get down to business, and to be noticed in the process. Your notes seem way more important when written on that yellow parchment. What’s more, the ultimate show-off move can only come courtesy of the legal pad. In a normal notebook, going to the next page requires a casual flip of the page. With a legal pad, it’s a freakin’ production. Lift up the pad. Take finished paper and flip it upwards. Tuck the page underneath the pad. Place pad back down. And watch in amazement as your colleagues are impressed that you filled that whole page with notes. Man, you’re special.

Spiral notebook – You’re versatile, and we like you. It’s not a pretentious choice, and probably cost-efficient for the company. However, it’s the most likely candidate for a time-killer. There are plenty of pages, plenty of space for mindless lists, drawings, and calculations to balance your checkbook. The margins may seem sacred, but you’ll defile them and flip the page faster than you can say, “Do those icons come in cornflower blue?”

Laptop – Damn, you could just let that game of Minesweeper go, could you?