Uniball Zento Signature

You have an idea. The excitement builds up in your chest, and you can’t wait to work on it. You can already see it; everyone is using that idea that’s been sitting in your mind all this time, but now it’s real. Everything is finally coming to fruition.

Except you forgot it.

All the details you thought about while you were on the way to the gym. The execution you mapped out while you were commuting back home. Seeing the finished product while you’re in line at Trader Joe’s.

Gone.

Why the Notes App isn’t Enough

I’ve been putting ideas and thoughts in my notes app like everyone else. And just like everyone else, that note gets buried below a new note. A frivolous note reminding you that you needed heavy whipping cream and butter for dinner.

The thoughts were there, they just had nowhere to be more than just thoughts.

The Most Expensive Pen I’ve Owned

Buying the Uniball Zento Signature was an intentional purchase; it was the most expensive pen I’ve ever owned. At first, it was hard to justify such a purchase. I get it, it’s a pen. The telos of it is no different than the classic plastic blue Paper Mate pens we see at the bank.

But then I thought about my tools in the barbershop.

At the barbershop I work at I only use my tools. I know how my scissors cut; one wrong angle and you’re pushing hair and not cutting; the slightest weight difference causing you to cut too much or too little. Each tool I use for a haircut has its time and place.

Balanced.

In Japan, there is a concept called Kodawari — the relentless, personal pursuit of perfection in one’s craft. As a barber, I worked on that from behind the chair. But now, as I pursue this creative side of my life, I realize I need the tools that demand the same level of respect.

The Zento Signature became that kind of tool for me.

The Crafsman of the Self

By committing to my Uniball Zento Signature meant I was committed to something bigger: myself. Finally putting my thoughts and ideas on to paper. Becoming more intentional.

“Suppression of expression leads to depression.”

The way the pen glides across my journal makes me feel like I’m actually releasing something into the world. Because of the way the ink is – extremely viscous – you hit that flow-state when you write. No drag, no skips, no more shaking the pen to see if it works, or dipping the nib on your tongue. Just thoughts. Just ideas. Just you, pen, paper, and a moment of silence.

Through this process of journaling, I’ve finally begun becoming the craftsman of my own self.

Why Journaling with this Pen Became a Non-Negotiable

We know that the next distraction is one ping away, but being intentional about how we think and feel is becoming a lost art. I didn’t want to lose myself because of ping or some haptic feedback on my desk. Using these distractions to drone out the things that mattered most: How I’m feeling.

It’s not something guys say out loud. But I’ll say it: Stop thinking that you always have to be a hardened individual. Becoming emotionally attuned to yourself is one of the strongest and bravest things you could do. Not every problem is a nail, and not every feeling needs to be solved and figured out. Sometimes it just needs to be written down, and that’s ok.

Understanding the “OK-ness” of emotions needs to be talked about more.

That’s why this pen is important to me. It made it possible to just start. And my journal made it easier to keep going.

The Threshold

When was the last time you actually sat with a thought long enough to write it down? Tell me in the comments—I’ll share mine with you.