I feel the entire article is very confusing. Maybe I would need to have read the book to understand the article. I went in with the expectation of informative guidlines to effective notetaking, and left feeling i hade read a very lengthy way of saying taking notes is important. Coupled with a description of a complex way to archive notes(slip box), with no explanation of how to use the structure (your box).
How to Take Smart Notes
21–30 of 116 posts
Re: How to Take Smart Notes
#22Is there an app for that? Seriously.
I believe this is what Roam[1] is kind of built for, whether they intended it or not. I haven't used it but was inspired to take another look at it after this article. [1] https://roamresearch.com/
agree, this seems to be everything what Luhmann did. All the branches can be own sub bullet in roam or even a sub page connected to the parent.
Re: How to Take Smart Notes
#23Interesting the first few principles are not about note-taking, but writing in general. If you believe in the power of the written word to drive clarity (e.g. as in Amazon-style 6-page narratives), these principles are gold: Principle #1: Writing is not the outcome of thinking; it is the medium in which thinking takes place Principle #2: Do your work as if writing is the only thing that matters Principle #5: Standard…
I confess I'm having trouble understanding what principle #2 means. I would appreciate it if someone who read that and responded with a feeling of 'yeah that definitely makes sense' could elaborate.
Another way he states that principle is essentially "write as if you're going to publish your work." (In a journal, blog, etc.) This purpose informs how you work on the subject. It will encourage you not to gloss over vague explanations or detour into irrelevant minutiae. After all, the presentation (you'll never give) will be an embarrassment if you get a core question and fumble through an answer because don't really understand it.
Re: How to Take Smart Notes
#24Simply keeping a list of ideas has made a huge difference for me. Instead of feeling distracted by an idea when I should be focusing on something else, storing it somewhere means I can come back to it. Reviewing the idea list inspires me and gives me something to do when I'm bored. Finding articles or papers related to an idea, or capturing random thoughts about it is as easy as dumping it in a folder (eg in Dropbox…
Any chance you still have that article around? I would like to read it if possible.
Re: How to Take Smart Notes
#25Earlier quoted context omitted.
> While I confirm that writing is a powerful medium for thinking, anybody writer with a shower to take or a hike to walk will tell you that thinking takes place in many ways. This is an article about note taking, not taking showers or going on hikes, or thinking in general, so I think trying to interpret its points outside that context is unreasonable. I think you’re imposing an unreasonably literal an exclusive inte…
> The author doesn’t say it’s the _only_ medium. No, but the author does say: "Completing these tasks is exceedingly difficult inside the confines of our heads. We need an external medium in which to perform this elaboration, and writing is the most effective and convenient one ever invented."
Which is not even close to saying that writing is the only medium, and in fact confirms that there are other mediums to think, including just keeping stuff in your head.
Re: How to Take Smart Notes
#26> For example, you could memorize the fact that arteries are red and veins are blue. This is not a "fact", it's just a common convention used in medical drawings. The actual fact is that arteries are bright red, and veins are a dull red.
Well. That kind of makes the full article of taking “smart notes” not that smart.
Re: How to Take Smart Notes
#27Interesting the first few principles are not about note-taking, but writing in general. If you believe in the power of the written word to drive clarity (e.g. as in Amazon-style 6-page narratives), these principles are gold: Principle #1: Writing is not the outcome of thinking; it is the medium in which thinking takes place Principle #2: Do your work as if writing is the only thing that matters Principle #5: Standard…
Principle #1 is too extreme. While I confirm that writing is a powerful medium for thinking, anybody writer with a shower to take or a hike to walk will tell you that thinking takes place in many ways. Parts like "If you want to learn and remember something long-term, you have to write it down" depends so much of context. Again, writing down does help me to commit things in memory, but for some information, audio is…
Agreed, I think I'd just change a single word:
> Principle #1: Writing is not the outcome of thinking; it is a medium in which thinking takes place
"the medium" → "a medium". It's still a powerful statement.
Re: How to Take Smart Notes
#28Is there an app for that? Seriously.
I am writing one as we speak (web based). Do you want a note when I get it out of the door?
Re: How to Take Smart Notes
#29Is there an app for that? Seriously.
For tasks, I use TickTick. I know it works for Windows, MacOS, and Android and it has been a godsend for me. The premmium features seem nice and I'd maybe one day pay for them but it's totally not necessary. If you're looking for notetaking and documentation of stuff then I wouldn't really know where to start with that.
I read that as TikTok, and thought I had seriously misunderstood something...
Re: How to Take Smart Notes
#30Interesting the first few principles are not about note-taking, but writing in general. If you believe in the power of the written word to drive clarity (e.g. as in Amazon-style 6-page narratives), these principles are gold: Principle #1: Writing is not the outcome of thinking; it is the medium in which thinking takes place Principle #2: Do your work as if writing is the only thing that matters Principle #5: Standard…
I vigorously conquer principle #5: standardisation is the enemy to creativity