PTPL 126 · What the Dash-Plus System Looks Like in My OBTF and Analog Notes

Patrick Rhone’s symbols vs Ryder Carroll’s Bullet Journal bullets

Ellane W
5 min readOct 14, 2024

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A page with stylised lines (representing text) sits at an angle on the left of the image, with text overlaying it that reads Plain text. Paper, less

Non Medium members can read for free on my blog.

Writing daily notes is simple.

Writing daily notes in both digital and analog formats that are useful to your future self, not so much!

The Bullet Journal method of categorising notes, where every entry is assigned one of three possible categories, was my go-to for years. Dots for tasks, dashes for notes, circles for events.

No longer. Since discovering the simplicity of the Dash-Plus system last week, I’m all in! Patrick Rhone’s method of starting every note with a dash is a wonderful mélange of logic, elegance, and simplicity.

Now, I’m not saying one of these two systems is inherently better than another, but one of them is definitely a better fit (at the moment) for me.

Dash-Plus on paper

A handwritten list, with a dash preceding each item. Black ballpoint pen on white paper. The page is part of a discbound notebook and has a light grey dot grid in the background
The Author’s notebook — raw notes

My very most favouritest part of the Dash-Plus system is the way every note begins with the exact same symbol. No…

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Ellane W

Designer and educational publisher for 30 years+. Plain-text advocate. Still using paper, but less of it. https://linktr.ee/miscellaneplans