Introduction

In this video, the speaker introduces the adapted version of Zettelkasten called Productive Thinking. The original Zettelkasten was designed for scholars over 60 years ago and may not fit modern use cases perfectly.

Purpose of Original Zettelkasten

• The original Zettelkasten was created to help scholars write better publications.

• Four types of notes are part of the system: fleeting, literature, permanent, and reference notes.

• Literature notes are transferred into permanent notes at the end of the day and connected to existing notes in the system.

• Permanent notes are archived into a referencing system and main slipbox.

Pitfalls of Original Zettelkasten

• Not designed for digital tools that do not have physical limitations like index cards and slip boxes.

• Created for scholars who may not have needs that working professionals have such as personal development or learning from daily experiences.

Adapted Version - Productive Thinking

• Productive Thinking is an adapted version of Zettelkasten designed for broader use cases beyond scholars.

• It helps bridge daily actions with goals by transforming one's mind to better perform daily actions.

• Daily, reference, permanent, and hub notes are similar to those in Zettelkasten but with key differences.

Types of Notes in Productive Thinking

Daily Notes

-: Sort of like a scratch pad where anything that happened during the day can be recorded.

Reference Notes

-: Can be about anything that you consume.

Permanent Notes

-: Similar to the one in the original Zettelkasten but can be updated throughout your life.

Hub Notes

-: Designed to synthesize understanding about permanent notes related to it.

The Six C's of Productive Thinking

• There are six C's in this framework.

• The first two C's are about capturing things that come to mind, such as thoughts or ideas.

• The next two C's are about clarifying and connecting those captured items.

• The final two C's are about creating and contributing.

The Productive Thinking System

In this section, the speaker explains the six C's of the productive thinking system and how to set it up in any note-taking application.

The Six C's of Productive Thinking

• The first two C's are Capture and Crystallize. Capture involves taking notes on information you consume, while Crystallize involves turning those raw notes into something more permanent.

• The next four C's are Connect, Create, Comprehend, and Communicate. These involve connecting your permanent notes together, creating projects based on your learning, comprehending the information you've captured, and communicating it with others.

Setting Up the Productive Thinking System

• To set up the productive thinking system in any note-taking app, you need to classify your notes as daily notes, reference notes, or permanent notes.

• You can classify your notes using folders, tags or emojis. Tagging is recommended because it is quick and allows for sub-tags.

• Recommended note-taking apps include Obsidian (best for PKM), Roam Research (good for bottom-up approach), Notion (non-techy option), and Evernote (popular with new linking feature).

• To set up Obsidian specifically for daily notes feature go to settings > core plugins > turn on "daily note" > select "open daily note on startup".

Setting up Obsidian, Roam Research, and Notion for Note-Taking

In this section, the speaker explains how to set up Obsidian, Roam Research, and Notion for note-taking.

Setting Up Obsidian

• Create one folder for simplicity.

• Use double brackets to create a link to a video or article. Classify notes as reference notes by typing "reference" or further classify by adding tags such as "/YouTube".

• Use brackets and parentheses to make links more visually appealing.

• Summarize notes in permanent notes. Tag them with "permanent" and add additional thoughts.

Setting Up Roam Research

• Double bracket a link to a video or article. Classify notes as reference notes by using tags such as "/YouTube".

• Take advantage of the graph view feature.

• Link permanent notes to reference notes.

Setting Up Notion

• Create four databases for daily notes, permanent notes, reference notes, and upnotes.

• Use list view for reference notes.

Productivity Systems Comparison

In this section, the speaker compares different productivity systems.

Obsidian vs. Roam Research

• Graph view is more dynamic in Obsidian.

• Obsidian has more functions than Roam Research.

Roam Research vs. Notion

• Roam Research has a more dynamic graph view.

• Notion is a database app.

Obsidian vs. Notion

• Obsidian has a more dynamic graph view.

• Notion is better for creating databases.

Conclusion

In this section, the speaker concludes the video and encourages viewers to try out different productivity systems.

• Try out different productivity systems to find what works best for you.

Setting up Notion, Obsidian, Evernote and Roam for Permanent Notes

In this section, the speaker demonstrates how to set up Notion, Obsidian, Evernote and Roam for permanent notes.

Setting Up Notion

• To start your day in Notion, create daily notes by typing in the dates.

• To create a note in Notion, click on the add sign and type in the name of the note.

• To mark a note as YouTube or any other category in Notion, add a property called Select and type in the category.

• Backlinks are automatically created in Notion when you link one page to another.

Creating Permanent Notes

• To create a permanent note in Notion using double brackets is replaced with an "@" sign.

• Permanent notes can be linked to reference notes or hub notes.

• Hub notes are used to consolidate insights and ideas that matter to you.

Setting Up Evernote

• Create two notebooks: an active notebook and a slip box containing all notes.

• To start your day in Evernote, create a new note with today's date.

• In Evernote, there is no way to create another note inside an existing note. You have to create a new note separately.

• Links are formatted differently in Evernote than other apps because it is not a markdown application.

Using Roam Research

• No relevant content found.

Conclusion

The speaker demonstrated how to set up Notion, Obsidian, Evernote and Roam for permanent notes. They showed how to create daily notes, reference notes, and hub notes in each app. The speaker also explained the differences in formatting links between the apps.

Creating Permanent Notes in Evernote

In this section, the speaker explains how to create permanent notes in Evernote and how to tag them as reference nodes and permanent notes.

Creating Permanent Notes

• To create a permanent note, create a new note and type in the title and body.

• Tag the note as reference nodes and permanent notes.

• If you want to know where the note originated from, add a backlink to the source.

Organizing Notes

• At the end of each day, copy all your notes into a slip box.

• You can put everything into one notebook or slip box. However, if you prefer different notebooks for different types of notes, that is also an option.

• Simplicity is key since tags eliminate the need for multiple notebooks.

Conclusion

The speaker concludes by stating that he will cover more topics related to Evernote in future videos.

Conclusion

• This concludes the tutorial on creating permanent notes in Evernote.

• Stay tuned for more videos covering other topics related to Evernote.