E35 Jorge Arango: How To Extend Your Mind With Connected Notes
Jan 3, 2024
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Jorge Arango, an information architect, discusses how connected notes can extend the mind. Topics include principles for creating a knowledge garden, boosting creativity with connected notetaking, and the value of note taking in the digital age.
Connected note-taking promotes efficient and effective thinking by capturing key ideas concisely.
Connected note-taking systems like Obsidian and Roam allow for a more fluid and personalized approach to knowledge organization.
Thinking with the knowledge graph in connected note-taking enhances cognitive abilities and understanding by focusing on the connections between notes.
Deep dives
Principle 1: Take Short Notes
One of the main principles of connected note-taking is to aim for taking short notes. This goes against the traditional approach of lengthy, detailed notes. The idea is to capture key ideas and insights in a concise and focused manner. By keeping the notes brief, it allows for easier organization and flexibility in connecting different concepts together. The goal is to promote more efficient and effective thinking by avoiding the overload of information that can come from excessively long notes.
Principle 2: Embrace Bottom-Up Structure
Connected note-taking systems, like Obsidian or Roam, offer the advantage of a bottom-up structure. Unlike traditional systems that impose rigid hierarchies and categories, these systems allow for more fluid and cross-referential connections between notes. This principle encourages a more emergent approach to note-taking, where the structure and organization of notes can evolve over time. It encourages freedom and creativity in connecting ideas, promoting a more flexible and personalized approach to knowledge organization.
Principle 3: Think with the Knowledge Graph
The concept of thinking with the knowledge graph is at the core of connected note-taking. Instead of focusing solely on individual notes, the emphasis is on the connections and relationships between notes. The knowledge graph becomes the object of focus, empowering users to create meaningful associations and discover insights through the interplay of ideas. This approach opens up possibilities for expanding cognitive abilities, extending the mind beyond the limitations of the individual brain. It highlights the transformative potential of connected note-taking in enhancing thinking and understanding.
Principle of taking short notes and organizing them into different types
The first principle discussed in the podcast emphasizes the importance of taking short notes and organizing them based on different types or ideas. The speaker shares their personal practice of moving away from the traditional method of capturing everything and instead focusing on one central idea or type of note per note. They give an example of using different repositories of notes, such as one for personal thinking and another for project-specific notes, allowing for better organization and retrieval of information.
Principle of linking notes for better connectivity
The second principle highlighted in the episode is the value of linking notes. The speaker acknowledges that while linking notes can be done with paper, it is more efficient with digital tools. They provide an example of how meeting minutes can be linked to individual notes for people who attended the meeting, enabling a better understanding of the relationships and connections between different pieces of information. The speaker emphasizes the power of linking notes to facilitate navigation and create a broader knowledge network.
Jorge Arango is an information architect, author, and educator. For the past 25 years, he has used architectural thinking to bring clarity and alignment to digital products and services. He’s the author of Living in Information: Responsible Design for Digital Places, co-author of Information Architecture: for the Web and Beyond, and host of The Informed Life podcast. Besides consulting, writing, and podcasting, Jorge also teaches in the graduate interaction design program at the California College of the Arts.
In this podcast you will learn:
How to extend your mind using connected notes
The three simple principles for creating a knowledge garden
How to boost your creativity and upgrade your thinking with connected notetaking
Buy Jorge Arango's New Book Duly Noted: https://amzn.to/3TFnKfn (Use the code: aidanpkg at checkout for a 20% discount)
