# Building a Second Brain  ## Metadata - Author: Tiago Forte - Full Title: Building a Second Brain - Category: #knowledge-management #organization ## Highlights - Unlike modern readers, who follow the flow of a narrative from beginning to end, early modern Englishmen read in fits and starts and jumped from book to book. They broke texts into fragments and assembled them into new patterns by transcribing them in different sections of their notebooks. Then they reread the copies and rearranged the patterns while adding more excerpts. Reading and writing were therefore inseparable activities. ([Location 259](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=259)) - This digital commonplace book is what I call a Second Brain. Think of it as the combination of a study notebook, a personal journal, and a sketchbook for new ideas. ([Location 281](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=281)) - For modern, professional notetaking, a note is a “knowledge building block”—a discrete unit of information interpreted through your unique perspective and stored outside your head. ([Location 311](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=311)) - There are four essential capabilities that we can rely on a Second Brain to perform for us: Making our ideas concrete. Revealing new associations between ideas. Incubating our ideas over time. Sharpening our unique perspectives. ([Location 443](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=443)) - Those stages are remembering, connecting, and creating. ([Location 537](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=537)) - Introducing The CODE Method: The Four Steps to Remembering What Matters To guide you in the process of creating your own Second Brain, I’ve developed a simple, intuitive four-part method called “CODE”—Capture; Organize; Distill; Express. ([Location 562](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=562)) - The solution is to keep only what resonates in a trusted place that you control, and to leave the rest aside. ([Location 587](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=587)) - The best way to organize your notes is to organize for action, according to the active projects you are working on right now. Consider new information in terms of its utility, asking, “How is this going to help me move forward one of my current projects?” ([Location 603](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=603)) - distill your notes down to their essence. ([Location 616](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=616)) - Every time you take a note, ask yourself, “How can I make this as useful as possible for my future self?” That question will lead you to annotate the words and phrases that explain why you saved a note, what you were thinking, and what exactly caught your attention. Your notes will be useless if you can’t decipher them in the future, or if they’re so long that you don’t even try. Think of yourself not just as a taker of notes, but as a giver of notes—you are giving your future self the gift of knowledge that is easy to find and understand. ([Location 624](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=624)) - Information isn’t a luxury—it is the very basis of our survival. ([Location 690](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=690)) - If you ignore that inner voice of intuition, over time it will slowly quiet down and fade away. If you practice listening to what it is telling you, the inner voice will grow stronger. ([Location 941](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=941)) - First, you are much more likely to remember information you’ve written down in your own words. ([Location 998](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=998)) - Thinking doesn’t just produce writing; writing also enriches thinking. ([Location 1006](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=1006)) - PARA,I which stands for the four main categories of information in our lives: Projects, Areas, Resources, and Archives. ([Location 1145](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=1145)) - My mentor advised me to “move quickly and touch lightly” instead. To look for the path of least resistance and make progress in short steps. I want to give the same advice to you: don’t make organizing your Second Brain into yet another heavy obligation. Ask yourself: “What is the smallest, easiest step I can take that moves me in the right direction?” ([Location 1396](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=1396)) - A creative endeavor begins with an act of divergence. You open the space of possibilities and consider as many options as possible. ([Location 2228](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=2228)) - How do you create a Hemingway Bridge? Instead of burning through every last ounce of energy at the end of a work session, reserve the last few minutes to write down some of the following kinds of things in your digital notes: Write down ideas for next steps: At the end of a work session, write down what you think the next steps could be for the next one. Write down the current status: This could include your current biggest challenge, most important open question, or future roadblocks you expect. Write down any details you have in mind that are likely to be forgotten once you step away: Such as details about the characters in your story, the pitfalls of the event you’re planning, or the subtle considerations of the product you’re designing. Write out your intention for the next work session: Set an intention for what you plan on tackling next, the problem you intend to solve, or a certain milestone you want to reach. ([Location 2330](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=2330)) - The three habits most important to your Second Brain include: Project Checklists: Ensure you start and finish your projects in a consistent way, making use of past work. Weekly and Monthly Reviews: Periodically review your work and life and decide if you want to change anything. Noticing Habits: Notice small opportunities to edit, highlight, or move notes to make them more discoverable for your future self. ([Location 2509](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=2509)) - Capture my current thinking on the project. Review folders (or tags) that might contain relevant notes. Search for related terms across all folders. Move (or tag) relevant notes to the project folder. Create an outline of collected notes and plan the project. ([Location 2540](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=2540)) - Mark project as complete in task manager or project management app. Cross out the associated project goal and move to “Completed” section. Review Intermediate Packets and move them to other folders. Move project to archives across all platforms. If project is becoming inactive: add a current status note to the project folder before archiving. ([Location 2600](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09LVVN9L3&location=2600))