The Blog of Author David Allen

Tag: Note-taking

  • Note Taking 2.0: Without a Pen or Paper – Part Two

    image courtesy of davdibiase on sxc.hu
    image courtesy of davdibiase on sxc.hu

    In the last post, I showed how you can use an audio recorder to get all your ideas down. This is useful for coming up with story ideas, monitoring your thoughts, answering big questions that you need several days to answer, and remembering action steps that can change your life. Here, You’ll learn how to synthesize those notes into a simple system for finding them later.

    This will work if you physically write down items as well, though you’ll need a file cabinet or folder system if you want to do this without a computer.

    Find Any Idea You’re Looking For – Without Really LOOKING For It.

    How long does it take you to find something you remember reading or hearing about? Does it take a long time to find something you wrote down to do later?

    This can take tens of hours – just to find one item.

    Your life is too important to struggle that much for something like this.

    Authors like John C. Maxwell can typically find what they are looking for in under two minutes. That’s right, two minutes. With a system in place for storing your ideas, your brain can actually work for you. My system isn’t nearly as elaborate, but it is simple.

    That is because I haven’t been doing it as long, or for the same reasons.

    It is important with anything new that you keep the steps simple enough that you’ll actually do them. Keep it simple, then refine as it becomes habit.

    Step One: It Starts With One Document

    Create a folder you can easily access on your computer. Name this folder ‘notes’. In that, we will make one document. Name it “XX Month Notes XX YEAR” If you’re doing this in April 3030, you’ll write it as “April Notes, 3030.”

    Step Two: Categorize

    This is crucial for rapid recall. When you have to find the notes, you’ll want to search using a keyword category “CTRL + F” followed by writing in the catagory of note you’re looking for. When I record a note, I keep this category in mind as I’m recording it.

    Here’s the format: [CATEGORY OF USE] + [SUBJECT MATTER] + [NOTE]

    Here’s an example from a recent recorded note:

     stand-up comedy  – Celebrity/ Musician  note – Do you think Justin Bieber looks kind of like Ellen DeGeneres?

    Okay, the joke needs more developing. It’s more of an intro to a routine than a self-contained punch line. Still, that’s how I record it into the voice recorder, and that’s how I write it in the note file.

    Enter all your voice recorded notes this way, then delete them from your voice recorder.

    Step Three – Rapid Recall

    When you need to find all your favorite quotes, you type CTRL+F with your document open, then type the word quote (the category), or the subject (like ‘self-esteem’), and your document will instantly highlight the subject or category that contained that word.

    Just in case it’s not perfect. Usually you can tell within 1/2 a year when you discovered a quote or story, or had an insight. If one document doesn’t have it, go to the next month, then the previous. It now takes 10 seconds to scan a document instead of 1/2 an hour. Your computer may even have a search function for all folders, so you can enter your category in the ‘find’ feature, and you’ll search all documents. Either way, your search time is reduced to nil.

    Now, 2 years from now, if you decide to do a standup comedy routine, what do you do? Open your notes, search for all your ‘stand-up comedy’ notes, and you have 10-20 minutes of material to turn into whatever you want.

    All that time, insight, and random ideas? You can harness them all, regardless of when they strike you.

    What system do you use? And why do you use it? Let me know below in the comments.

  • Note-taking 2.0 – Without A Pen Or Paper – Part One

     Inspiration strikes at any time – it does not wait for us to be in front of a computer. In this post, I show you a convenient way I use to record notes. In part 2 we’ll talk about a simple system for databasing them.

    —

    53 minutes 26 seconds - someone loves listening to an episode of Burn Notice, but hates watching it.
    53 minutes 26 seconds? An episode of Burn Notice doesn’t count as a note.

    Ever get a profound idea, only to forget it later?

    If you’re like me, this is a terrible experience.

    –       You get a life-altering business idea, but forget the key points.

    –       A flash of insight that can improve your relationships – if you take action. Trouble is, you’re in your car. By the time you’re at home, it’s gone.

    –       There’s a great movie you want to see, but you forget it by your next visit to Netflix.

    If this happens over and over, it’s a tragedy. Why get good insights if you can’t find and use them later?

    One strategy is to keep a pen and paper with you. That’s a great system, if you ALWAYS have both a pen and paper.

    Two things to remember = two things to misplace.

    SURVIVOR’S NOTE: One day, you WILL leave a pen in your pants. One laundry trip later, your wardrobe is ruined. I’ve done this three times in less than six months, even while reminding myself not to every day. If you have an unlimited budget and want an excuse for a new wardrobe, here it is. For everyone else…

    There’s also a computer or tablet device. This is great as well, as long as you have it with you. However, sometimes you have to drive, or walk, or be someplace where you don’t want to take expensive electronics with you. What then?

    Here is what I use to record notes:

    An audio recorder.

    Specifically, I use an Olympus DP 201 Digital Recorder.

    The pluses:

    –       It’s intuitive. You can learn to use this in 10 minutes – no instruction.

    –       Batteries are included, and recorder mode lasts 80 hours

    –       I keep it in my car or at my desk at home, so I always know where it is.

    –       Larger than a pen, but smaller than a notebook. So you know it’s there, and it’s easier to carry.

    The cons:

    –       It’s 35$, but compared to the wardrobe malfunction above, that’s a bargain

    –       If you lose it, the cost to replace is higher than a pen and paper.

    –       You can’t move the audio files to your computer. There’s not even a USB port. If that’s important to you, use something else.

    Is it the best system? No. But I record notes at the same speed as talking. That alone makes a huge difference.

    So, what do you record? For inspiration, here are some things I record:

    –       Screenplay/book ideas

    –       business ideas

    –       action steps for major goals

    –       great quotes or things to meditate on

    –       jokes or stories for later use in public speaking or networking

    –       great questions to ask myself later

    –       new lessons I learned throughout the day

    There’s no affiliate link for that recorder. I’m just telling you what I use. It is low-tech, but sometimes the fastest and easiest way is low-tech.

    SURVIVAL TIP: If you’re listening to a talk, and there are other audience members, stick to using a pen and paper or a tablet device. Audio recording your notes is an easy way to create a circle of shame around you. You’re at the center, and everyone else is five feet or more away from you.

    In part two, I’ll give you a simple way database your notes. You can then find any idea you want – within minutes of when you need it.

    What system do you use for recording your ideas?