--- title: How to Take Smart Notes subtitle: One Simple Technique to Boost Writing, Learning and Thinking author: Sönke Ahrens authors: Sönke Ahrens category: Academic writing publisher: totalPage: 188 coverUrl: http://books.google.com/books/content?id=wzv9zgEACAAJ&printsec=frontcover&img=1&zoom=1&source=gbs_api coverSmallUrl: http://books.google.com/books/content?id=wzv9zgEACAAJ&printsec=frontcover&img=1&zoom=5&source=gbs_api publishDate: 2022-03-07 link: https://books.google.com/books/about/How_to_Take_Smart_Notes.html?hl=&id=wzv9zgEACAAJ previewLink: http://books.google.com/books?id=wzv9zgEACAAJ&dq=How+to+Take+Smart+Notes&hl=&as_pt=BOOKS&cd=1&source=gbs_api isbn10: 3982438802 isbn13: 9783982438801 --- [[Books]] ## Introduction - The first step to improving writing is improving organization - Writing begins before the main piece > [!tip] The Goal > - Learn to turn thoughts and discoveries into written pieces. > - Build up smart and interconnected notes - Bad notes hurt more than you realize - **Writing doesn't have to be difficult** - Good Writing is based on good note taking ## Chapter 1 - A good structure is trustworthy - It unburdens your brain by letting you trust the system works as intended so you can focus on your efforts - How do you plan for insight that cannot be anticipated? - A plan leads to inflexibility - Good solutions are simple and unexpected > [!info] > Most people try to reduce complexity by separating into folders and subfolders, but that becomes complicated. > > Hmm. Should I give up on the folder system and just focus on MoCs? Maybe I can start by switching to the Favorites section and bookmark the MoCs. Won't change anything until after I finish the book though. ## Chapter 2 - Taking Notes isn't the main work - Thinking is - Reading is - Understanding and coming up with ideas is ### Writing a Piece **Take brief notes**. Fleeting notes, even! In the context of my own efforts, this is where I drop anything I'm thinking about. I think one way I could implement this is seeing if there's a widget to take me to create a note on Obsidian Android for when I'm out and about. Otherwise, I need to remember to always go back to the Fleeting Inbox. *Even if it would exist in my other folders, I should start here and start writing.* I had a good start with this when I posted the [[Destiny is Kingdom Hearts for Jocks]] note, but I need to do it more consistently. I also can tell that I'm looking at this note as a full effort, and not a place to jot down my thoughts to build out later. Progress! When reading, playing, etc.: make deep notes THEN AND THERE. Write down what I'm thinking of, what I want to use in my own writing, or what I don't want to forget. Use my own words. Don't quote often unless it REALLY stands out. Once a day, go through my notes and make them permanent. Think about how they're relevant to what I'm interested in or thinking about. Don't collect - develop. Combine ideas, and really think about the new information. These notes should be clear and written as if I'm explaining to someone else. Full sentences, sourced, etc. Delete the 00 Fleeting notes and keep the deep notes from step 2. Link these notes together. Continue. Take more notes. Develop ideas, then stop if you're not interested anymore. Don't brainstorm - peruse through The Shagohod to find chains of notes and ideas. > [!Note] > I'm beginning to realize that my biggest gap isn't even organization: it's the note-taking itself. Stopping what I'm doing or reading because I'm enthralled to write notes about it is where the challenge seems to lie for me. Gotta be more consciences about that, particularly by reducing friction with the Fleeting Notebox. Now write based on what I *have*, not based on an unfounded idea. Using my connections and relevant notes, bring them together and draft. (This part is actually pretty easy for me, lol) I'll always be thinking about multiple things. It's about finding connections and getting ideas, not letting them go to waste even if what I'm looking for in a piece isn't there. It could be useful elsewhere. ## Chapter 3