Over the last week or so we have seen some great tips on organising your diary entries and how to make best use of your chosen format/pages etc.
I would like to ask, does any one have any hints and tips on organising your contact information in your Filofax?
Let's hear your ideas, or tell us about anything Filofax related.
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I find that a bit of a faff to be honest. That's the only thing I still use my Palm for these days. I keep all the contacts on my computer and in my PDA and also on my mobile. In my Filofax go all the ones I receive on the fly. Once every few weeks I transcribe them into my computer.
ReplyDeleteI have a new iPhone so my contacts have gone in there. I do have 2 pages that I made up on the computer that I call Co-Deets. These pages hold the Compnay Details that I may need while at or away from home - the names, phone numbers and account/reference numbers (but not the sensitive ones) and other info associated with insurance companies, electricity, gas, finance, phone, bank, blue card etc. I have found that over time this list has grown a bit and has come in handy, often just for quick referencing when making a call from home and not having to drag the whole file from my filing cabinet.
ReplyDeleteI confess I too keep my contacts in my iPhone rather than my Filo. I do have some business card sheets in the back however all that info is also in my phone too! Keeping my contacts in my phone alleviates the need to recopy pages every time someone's information changes (which seems to be quite a bit these days) Digital contacts are the best for us Type-A's who can't stand scribble or crossing out : )
ReplyDeleteHere's how I operate...
ReplyDeleteI currently use Outlook 2007 as my central store for all contact information.
I then sync this info to my mobile phone a humble Nokia 6300, sorry no iPhone!
I also print out my contacts from within Outlook to go in to my A5 Filofax.
What I need to do is to download the Filofax software and order some Filofax computer paper and try that out. Reviewing it of course and seeing if that makes it any easier for personal size organisers....
Steve
I have to agree with YM (by the way, your filo collection on Flickr is fantastic!) that I cannot stand scribble or crossing out contacts - I deliberately chose last year to leave my business contacts out of my filo just because of this.. My personal friends and only a few close business associates go into my filo more sending cards thru the mail, etc. Hey all, my new pocket arrives tonight! I cannot wait! Panama dark green, tan interior, with "gold" rings which Filo doesn't do too often. All cotton cream, etc. I've even ordered thru the coupon a new "vanilla filo fashion" pen to go with it!
ReplyDeleteI have a full list of contacts (phone & address) in my household Filo, which stays home at all times. What travels with me is a typed list of only those phone numbers I would need while away from home. All of these numbers (plus more) are stored in my cell phone, so it's really a lot of duplication, but while at work I can't use my cell phone, so at least the numbers are always on hand. If I switch to the Guildford Slimline, however, that will be on the things that no longer travels with me, mainly because of the lack of room and because the numbers are all on my phone anyway.
ReplyDeleteKanalt: One thing I can say about the Guildford Slimline is that it really forces you to "cull the herd" and only carry what you NEED. No room for duplicates or redundancy in that thing.
ReplyDeleteMichele: Thank you, and I am going to be posting a new updated photo of my collection (which is now quite disgustingly huge...) this weekend, so be sure to take a gander : )
So I'm starting to think seriously about an A5 besides the Pocket for work. Debating between Finchley, Siena or Guildford Zip. So far the GZ is winning... I don't have many meetings, but my job falls into different catergories so the tabs work best. Don't need the financial and not really the addresses.. Any suggestions or raves about any of these models? I was drawn to the Finchley A5 but it doesnt' seem to have sections. It's either a Filo, or a set of marble notebook or moleskins, but I thought I would help the Filo Sales Figures ;-).
ReplyDeleteInterestingly - it is the looking up of contacts and addresses that was the straw that broke this camel's back.
ReplyDeleteI hate having to look up electronic contacts and always reach for (or dig out of the drawer) my old filo - couple that with my huge mistrust of the e-calendar and reliance on syncing/connection and you end up going back to the filo-fold.
I don't keep any contacts electronically. The only exception is the numbers I have in my cell phone, but I only use my cell for local contacts. When I call family or friends in the US I use Skype. I have all of my addresses in my household A5 binder, which also serves as a backup of important info from my main Filo, my black personal size. So most of my addresses/ contacts/ etc are in both my main personal Filo and also the A5.
ReplyDeleteI use the alphabetical tabs for most of my contacts. But I also use "directories" meaning lists of types of contacts. For example, I have a list of my cell phone numbers, in case my phone gets fried all those numbers won't be lost. I also have a list of doctors and dentists, for easy reference. I have a list of travel info such as frequent flier numbers, hotel reward plan numbers, accommodation contacts, etc. For things like this I find it's easier for me to find information when it is grouped.
As a other, that's one thing I don't use Filofax for. iPhone and Mac are better at it. Plus it's a time saver being able to access them directly from other apps (Email, Quicksilver, Spotlight,...) :-)
ReplyDeleteIn other Filo news:
ReplyDeleteI ordered both the Guildford Slimline and the Guildford Extra Slim to see which one I'd like better (see long, confusing explanation below). I have to say that I didn't see much of a difference between the ring sizes, which is what I was basing my decision on. I was going to return the one I liked least. I love the planner itself (the soft, supple leather), but I find that both of them are too thin for my use. After much thought and debate, I am returning both. I was able to pare down what I carry in order to use it, but to do that I would need a home-base Filo (separate from my household Filo) for all of the other information that would stay home. The idea of moving to the Slimline was to make my life a little easier, a little simpler. But to use two planners (one at home and one on the go) make that point moot. It would have been too complicated.
I am very disappointed in this entire endeavor - I ordered the Extra Slim and when I received it, it did not fit the description on the US website, at least not that I could tell. The US website says that the Guildford Extra Slim has 5/8 inch rings - the rings do NOT look like 5/8" - more like 1/2" or smaller, so I thought maybe the descriptions between the Slimline and Extra Slim had been mixed up on the website and the rep I spoke with lead me to believe that this was indeed the case, that the descriptions were mixed up, that the Slimline has bigger rings than the Extra Slim. So I exchanged the Extra Slim for the Slimline, only to find out about an hour later, via an email from the rep I spoke with, that the Extra Slim is slightly bigger than the Slimline. So I knew I would have to exchange again for the same item I had just sent back (BTW - the rep was very nice about all it, minus the mis-information originally, and offered to reimburse me for the shipping costs for the two exchanges if I sent him copies of the receipts). So I ordered the Extra Slim again so that I could compare the two side by side. I didn't see much of a difference (or a big enough difference) so they are both going back.
On the plus side though, I am making another exchange for the personal Kendal in black, which I have been eying for a while. And I know the ring size will work for me, as all of my other Filos are the same, although slightly bigger than what I was hoping for in a Slimline.
I would love to see a Filo where the ring size falls between the Slimline (most of which are 7/16" or 1/2") and the Personal (most of which are 7/8"). I know the Amazona Slimline (this style is not for me) is 3/4" - maybe more of this ring size could be implemented...just a thought, Filofax. =)
My contacts are in Gmail and I use a T-Mobile G1 phone, so all my contacts sync automatically. I do keep some names and numbers in my Filofax, but mostly depend on my G1phone.
ReplyDeleteI have all my contacts in my mobile phone and tend to use this a lot, but that's just phone numbers. I have everyone's address and numbers in my filofax as well and it's a mess of crossings out, but I don't mind as it also shows me a bit of history - who lived where and when etc and brings back memories. I don't mind a few crossings out in my filo - makes it look well-used! So I never delete anyone or anything entirely.
ReplyDelete