I've been taking notes my whole life and it's done me practically no good. Until recently, because I changed my system.
First, let me clarify: I've been using Obsidian for 3 or 4 years (after Apple Notes, Airtable, Notion...) and even though I love this software – I'll talk more about it later – it's not a tool issue. It's a process issue.
Before, I was hoarding notes.
Like an obsessive person suffering from Diogenes syndrome: I was afraid of losing an idea, of letting the providential thought slip through my fingers. So I accumulated, and accumulated. And once in my vault, I did nothing with them.
Over time, I found technical solutions to use my notes more – mainly by putting them in front of my eyes – but that wasn't enough.
What was missing? Pressure.
The most important thing isn't writing a note: it's the work you do afterward to integrate it into a body of knowledge that you use every day. Applying pressure to a set of ideas so they aggregate and form a diamond.
So now, I proceed like this:
- I write a note in a catch-all file (Inbox)
- I then copy it into the relevant file (e.g.: productivity, presence, creation)
- In this file, I group connected notes into large sections with subtitles and summaries.
- I create (or maintain) at the top of this file a global summary in two or three sentences that captures the essence of what's important, often in the form of clear and concrete advice.
- I rinse and repeat.
The final objective is therefore to produce this targeted advice that is immediately applicable and that I organize myself to reread regularly. Having compiled it from multiple sources makes it very personal and concrete.
That was one of this morning's activity.