So far as we've looked at A System for Writing we've talked about words being scary, taking more time to process your notes, and exposed the "writing is easy" lie that gurus try to pass off. What we haven't covered is what I think it takes to have a good note system.

Not Magic

I've harped on this for years, but no tool is going to be magic. Unfortunately magic is what most people are looking for when they look at tool reviews, or even look for new systems. They want "one simple fix" to get good notes, and decent writing/ideas out the other side.

Sure you need some type of system. Some people like PARA or going physical, or like me use tagnotes. In many ways the system and specific file organization doesn't matter as long as you have a few basic folders that work for you. I like the following as a minimum.

  • Inbox: where things start

  • Sources: for your notes on books, articles, readwise....

  • Notes: for your thoughts based on sources

  • Tags: for tagnotes

  • Writing: for your...writing

  • zz - Assets: where I set obsidian to upload all images

I have subfolders for Writing/Ideas and Writing/Ready to move files around as I'm working on them but whatever system works for you is fine. Seriously, if you have a system for filing your notes already don't change anything. Keep it as it is, no new system will make a meaningful difference. You'll spend a bunch of time moving shit around instead of making progress.

Time...yes again it's about time...and discipline

Yes I've talked about this pretty much every week this month because it's the single most important thing you can do...spend time with your notes. Today we'll put a caveat on that, you need to spend good time with your notes.

This week my kids have been off for Spring Break which has meant my 8 and 11 year old have been in/out of my office many times a day with questions about things that are important to them. All week I've felt unable to focus with all the interruptions. I did try to write and was unable to write anything worthwhile because I couldn't spend good time with my notes.

It's not just kids though, Slack notifications, notifications at all. Flipping to your social media of choice, or checking out what's new on YouTube...All of these things break any flow you could get in your notes.

I sometimes even find that my regular desk with it's 4 monitors is distracting and long for an iPadOS that lives up to the power I need while still sticking with the focused workflow I love in the iPad.

If you want to make good use of your notes, you need to spend focused time with them. I often get up early on Friday to have time to write without distractions. I put headphones on, the dog naps behind me, and I can not even open Slack because there are no pressing things for me to look at. No one expects me to answer messages, so I don't bother opening it. I set your computer up for focused work if I want to get good work done.

If you've got a good environment then it's time to dive into the advice from Paul Silvia in How to Write a Lot. Silvia rightly points out that you need a writing routine, a time of day that you set aside to write and only do that. He counts anything related to "writing" as a viable activity during this time.

Research if you need more information for your writing. Proof if you're done and the piece needs a check over. Submit your writing if that's the point you're at. Follow up with your submitted writing.

But all you're allowed to do is tasks related to writing.

I've heard of another writing that goes to their writing spot and only allows themselves to write or do nothing. They can sit and stare at the sky, or write. No phones, no internet, only writing or nothing.

This 'writing or nothing' idea means you can self-soothe that momentary difficulty in writing with a quick check of social media. You have to sit in the hard spot and do nothing. Distractions don't just pull us away when we want to focus, they let us avoid the true hard parts of working notes and ideas...when you have nothing and need to think more. It lets you avoid discomfort, the discomfort that if you're willing to work through it will bring the best ideas.

The more you self-soothe away the hard parts of your work, the easier it becomes and the more distracted you're going to be. You'll get less good work done because of your fractured attention.

This is what most people don't want to hear though. Instead they'll pick up the next book or tool looking for the magic fix to their own laziness1.

If I want to be a fast cyclist I need to ride my bike. I need to do hard workouts, sometimes ones that make me feel like I'm going to vomit. If I simply read about bikes, tried new bikes, and swapped parts around but never got out and trained, I wouldn't get faster. If I told someone my training consisted of swapping bikes for the next "magic" solution to make me faster but didn't ride, no one would think I was doing a good job at being a fast cyclist.

The same principles apply to writing and working notes. If you're not doing the hard work, sitting in the agonizing times when nothing is flowing and working through them without reaching for distractions, you're not training.

With bad effort, expect bad results.