Is "work Appropriate Ink" Really A Thing?

[Dont_Flexme]

I'm curious about the comments and questions about work appropriate ink. For me everything is electronic - emails, word documents, presentations, even electronic signatures.

 

I use fountain pens for my own note taking and the occasional thank you card. So the colors I use are only up to me. I'm not restricted other than what's easy on my own eye for my own notes.

 

In this digital age, are there really people using pen and paper for work that others are seeing? And are there any business standards still out there for ink color?

 

Would love to hear about those cases where its still a thing rather than computers when it comes to work.

[ParramattaPaul]

In a sense, yes. My experience is that legal documents have to be signed in black or blue ink. I can remember only blue ink being allowed when I signed some documents about three or four years ago.

[Dont_Flexme]

Interesting and I wonder if thats changing. I sold a condo three year ago and no ink hit the paper- it was all e-signatures. But I bet thats not everywhere and depends on laws for that locality.

[silverlifter]

There is a difference between "work appropirate" and "legally required".

 

The former is still prevalent in conservative workplaces; think public service, legal firms, consultancies, etc where especially among the old guard there is still quite a lot of traffic in paper and ink (managers having their emails printed by EAs, for example, and writing their replies by hand to be either typed back or hand delivered). In those environments, more flamboyant colours can definitely be viewed pejoratively.

 

In the latter case, there are certain documents in the jurisdictions that I have lived, that legally stipulate permanent ink: the registrar of births, deaths, and marrriages, anything signed by an officer of the court or a justice of the peace, etc. The list is surprisingly long and more a reflection of the glacial rate of change to legislation than anything else.

[wallylynn]

When I filled the passport renewal it had to be black ink (not blue). And some other signatures required blue. But those were rare and far between.

[Trekker]

I still need a wet ink signature for some things at work. I had one overzealous person reject a form because she was convinced that the form I submitted was a photocopy. It was signed with Aurora Black. To avoid that, I’ve taken to using blue ink for that form.

 

For the most part, coworkers are writing with darn near everything you could imagine. The younger ones struggle with reading cursive more than anything else.

[Mech-for-i]

well that depends ; your work environment might be all electronic but there are still many cases where work related document are written and mean to be so and be kept. Personally I had many work document that are written ( and on the field ) and its mean to record important things and there's when my IG+Carboon mix ink come in handy. Ever work in field where you are off the grid and of course offline ... work appropriate in many cases mean just that , suited for that job on hand and it does not need to be just blue or black ( well many of my field service record sheet I fill in for customer were in brown , green and even purple, they do not seem to care too much , what they care is what the text carries )

 

Still I use mostly my IG+Carbon ink mix for most of my work documents and others for just in office notes etc ...

[sciumbasci]

I tried to be bold and used a turquoise bic at work for just about anything - mostly signatures.

I got stern looks for it.

[displacermoose]

I'm an accountant in an office that still uses physical work papers, so I generally have to use blue or black. When I'm feeling rebellious I push the boundaries with some really obnoxious blues. Baystate Blue on cheap green copy paper (the paper is color coded based on the kind of workpaper) is quite a sight to behold. Usually I restrain myself and stick to black, though.

[txomsy]

The paperless office is a myth ever since it was promoted in the '80s.

 

Granted, there are many things one can do on screen, but there are many that are far more efficient on paper or written. One may, in due time, perhaps use tablets for some, bus even so, they are less convenient than paper, and certainly than a whiteboard.

 

Whenever you want to explain something, it is more efficient to make a quick sketch on paper than firing up a drawing application. Whenever you want to note customer preferences on field, it is more efficient to use paper. When you must discuss, a black or whiteboard can be shared by many in a way no screen can. Not even an electronic whiteboard.

 

For notes, the most important advantage is the ability to dispose them as you wish and store them bundled efficiently. Browsing through a notebook has no match on the computer. And mind you, I have been trying since the '80s... to no avail. Reading reports? Use the screen. Consulting reports for a complex task? Print them and spread them over your table. One day, screens may be larger than our desktops and more resistant, and we may be able to use them... for now, a pile of papers is unbeatable when I have to write a complex report. I'd spend several times more time doing it on the computer than on the desk.

 

So, yes, there is room for hand writing and sketching in modern offices, and the more technologically advanced, the more important it is. The paperless office is there for not too complex and clerical tasks. For complex creative work, yes, you can do without paper, but efficiency will sorely suffer. I guess in due time, as most people forgets hand writing, and reading, everybody will work on the computer and learn on youtube, and no one will notice the terrible inefficiency of that. Then, the paperless office will be a fact instead of a dream. At whichever cost it comes.

 

Sounds harsh? Think the press. It should have done away with amanuenses, and yet here we are still hand writing. To each task its tool. Mashing everything with a hammer as if everything were nails may work in the end, but is not better than knowing your tools and applying to each task the proper one. Despite power tools we still use hammers and screwdrivers.

 

So, is there a "work appropriate ink"? As much as there are clothes appropriate for specific jobs, or any other tool. It will depend on the job, but certainly there is.

Edited September 20, 2019 by txomsy

[JakobS]

It depends on the work culture, how many documents and what kind you have to fill out or sign with ink. The only document that I have had to sign with black ink was a I-9 document for the US government when hiring wage employees, otherwise, wage payroll, purchasing forms, and any other document that is sent into the university bureaucracy could and was signed with any color I wanted. Diamine Orange, Autumn Oak, Tyrian Purple, Grape, Apple Glory, KWZ Eldorado to name a few specific ones. I have used every color on the color wheel. I have even used some of Diamine's Shimmeristic inks for signatures, no one has ever batted an eye, or sent a stern email, because the reality is they just need a signature. It doesn't matter how, or with what, they just want to know I've approved the purchase or hours of work, so they can file it away to never be seen again. Some of this has now transferred to the computer, so less signatures, more clicks. I do find the need to write with fountain pens to be less and less each year for work, so I expect the few documents I need to still sign to disappear soon as well. The department would love to have me purchase through the web based purchasing system as much as possible, but it lacks the vendors we tend to use, otherwise I would, and there would go the last thing I need a signature for. There are holdouts in any number of fields, but my take is the whole "legal, or work appropriate" ink demand is less and less important as different ways of approval are created, and they come to realize a signature is signature is a signature, and really that is the most important thing....

Edited September 20, 2019 by JakobS

[sansenri]

Much like the OP as I mentioned in a recent thread on appropriate ink, in my office and for my tasks/responsibilities sharing hand written documents has become unnecessary.

My handwriting will reach others in the company formally only as a signature, informally as a post it note sometimes.

Any other communication is verbal or by email, electronic attachments spreadsheets, word document, PowerPoint, etc. I take hand written notes only for my own purposes (many coworkers do the same) and any ink will do, no objections. Coloured ink is less easy to read, I stick to blue, but really any kind of blue. By own choice I avoid very light blues and turquoise, which I tend to dislike.

[wallylynn]

So,ii filled out a few forms with heart of darkness, and it really looked like part of the print toner. Upon closer inspection you could see feathering and bleed on the reverse, but it did give me mixed feelings if it was appropriate. The paper was blue, so I didn't want to use blue either. MaybeiI should have used brown or violet.

[kazoolaw]

We recently sold two houses and bought one with everything being accomplished with docusign.

 

Currently dealing with Releases for the disclosure of medical records in law suits. Some medical providers insist upon handwritten signatures.

 

My signature ink is usually a shade of blue, blue/black, with an occasional wild-and-crazy venture into sepia.

 

gary

[Kalessin]

I work in the IT department of a court system. Our internal forms are mostly printed, but our HR department does expect documents that must be signed to be signed with a blue, blue-black, or black ink.

 

In court, there are lots of handwritten items, by the judge, by the clerk, by counsel, etc. While nobody is tracking ink colors, it is a formal environment, and they use blue, blue-black, or black ink.

 

My everyday note-taking is in many colors.

[Freddy]

As a matter of usual practice in office and or signing documents...Blue..Blue-Black..Black.

Board Meetings..public and or executive..If you take personal notes....I don't care....{ go hog wild }{Freakin'SmileyFaceTimeThingie}

Fred

Edited September 20, 2019 by Freddy

[Charles Rice]

Notes to yourself - who cares. Write a note to your boss in yellow ink and you might not be invited to the next pizza party.

[Dont_Flexme]

 

Notes to yourself - who cares. Write a note to your boss in yellow ink and you might not be invited to the next pizza party.

Now that's a work use I can use.

[TennesseeTrash]

Im a lawyer and in Tennessee when we win cases we write orders for the other party and the judge to sign. I sign in blue. My clients may not be particularly interested in how cool I am to sign in pink or burgundy.

[gistar]

Paperless? Since computers became commonplace the paper consumption in my work multiplied at least fivefold. Communication volumes increased by an order of magnitude. Anyway. Documentation (contracts, agreements and such) that needs to be exchanged and filled in originals and copies, I will always sign in some shade of blue to avoid confusion as to which is the original. No real policy, simple personal practice.