Note-taking strategies
# Discerning what’s important
(Notes from this video)
- Understand the difference between conceptual notes and sequential notes
- Conceptual notes: atomic and specific notes that extend what you know
- Sequential notes: taken in order of presentation (e.g., in class, as a lecturer is teaching)
- Try to prioritise conceptual notes over sequential notes, since the latter combines your knowledge (both old and new) into one without decaying the older ones
- Old notes provide a framework or foundation for making learning new content easier
- Questions can come up in real-time instead of after class when analysing sequential notes
- It’s too much work to go back and rewrite whatever content the lecturer has gone through; that’s likely why we focus on writing sequentially
Obsidian-specific tips
- Try not to make a note for the concepts you already know; it’s already in your primary database (your mind!)
- Don’t treat this as a big project management project; it is not
- You’re not here to hoard data, you’re here to organise your thoughts
- Try to impose as little structure to your notes