Review of 'TAKE NOTES!', a Note-Taking Method to Boost Creativity

This may be sudden, but are you familiar with a note-taking method called Zettelkasten?

Zettelkasten is a note-taking method born in Germany, but it is almost unknown in Japan.

Until I encountered this book, I didn't know it existed, and I still can't say the name Zettelkasten from memory.

Its developer was a sociologist named Niklas Luhmann, who published 58 books and wrote hundreds of papers in his lifetime.

The secret to his prolific writing was his note-taking method, Zettelkasten.

As far as I know, this book, 'TAKE NOTES!' is the only book on Zettelkasten.

Many books on 'how to write' in the world tend to focus either on 'formatting, such as writing style and sentence structure' or on 'psychological methods to keep writing until the end.'

However, what both have in common is that they start from a blank page.

Zettelkasten is about moving away from the state of starting from a blank page, and instead being in a state where you always have a stock of ideas and are ready to start writing.

If you learn about Zettelkasten and take notes the right way, the more notes you take, the more they become your assets, and you will naturally be able to write major works.

Benefits of using Zettelkasten

Every intellectual endeavor begins with 'writing,' and writing plays a central role in learning and work, yet many people are largely indifferent to writing.

In fact, the process of writing begins before you even face a blank page.

If you start writing from a blank page, your thoughts may not come together well, or you may overlook crucial parts, resulting in low-quality writing.

The solution to prevent this is to utilize Zettelkasten and take notes effectively on a daily basis.

By simply storing notes wisely, you can always have a stock of ideas and make it possible to produce high-quality output over the long term.

Also, by using Zettelkasten, not only writing, but also the work of learning and generating new ideas itself becomes enjoyable.

How to do Zettelkasten

You need the following three things:

1. Small boxes (at least two for storing index cards) 2. Index cards 3. A pen

Notes taken using the Zettelkasten method can be broadly divided into the following three types:
1. Fleeting notes
2. Literature notes
3. Permanent notes

The actual flow of accumulating notes is as follows:
・When you learn something from reading, write down what you learned in your own words in a fleeting note, keeping each point to within three lines.
・Once you finish reading, write the bibliographic information, such as the title and author, on the front of a literature note, and write a simple summary of the book's content on the back.
・Divide small boxes into a 'main' box and a 'literature' box, and store the fleeting notes in the main box and the literature notes in the literature box, respectively.
・Repeat this process, and once you have accumulated a certain amount of notes, review the fleeting and literature notes, think about whether you can connect what you have learned to create something of new value, and write down those new ideas in permanent notes.
・For permanent notes, assign clear numbers to make it easy to distinguish each note and to reference or cite them later, and file them in the main box along with the related fleeting notes.

By doing this, you can accumulate what you have learned from books in your own words and efficiently elevate your thoughts, discoveries, and ideas into persuasive writing.

Bonus

What is interesting is how the developer, Niklas Luhmann himself, took notes and how he actually stored them.

You can see what that method was like in the video below.

It seems he used index cards the size of Kyoto University-style cards.

This video is easy to understand regarding the Zettelkasten method.

Conclusion

The good thing about Zettelkasten is that your own original ideas accumulate naturally.

Because you take notes in your own words, the notes develop their own unique logic.

These do not just remain 'little flashes of inspiration' but grow into big ideas, so if you want to write, you can easily write enough for several books.

Moreover, since not only the ideas but also the supporting data are contained within the notes, the tedious task of searching for sources when outputting is reduced.

When you want to get new ideas, you no longer need to brainstorm or groan in frustration.

If you want to write down ideas or text, you just need to look at your notes, and you will never have to face a blank page again.

This is a recommended book for business people in jobs where planning ability is valued, and for creators who need ideas.