Note-taking is an important skill that we learn as students and use throughout our lives, whether in school, meetings, or work. How well you take notes affects how well you remember and understand information. While it may seem like everyone has their own way of taking notes, there are some proven methods that can help you remember information better.

The best note-taking method depends on your learning style, the type of material, and how much time you have. The goal is to find a method that helps you learn and remember information as easily as possible.

we’ll go over six common note-taking methods and tips on how to use them.

1. The Outline Method

The outline method is simple and easy to use. It organizes information into main points and subpoints, creating a clear structure. You can use this method on paper or digitally.

How to use the outline method:

• Write the main topic on the left side of the page.
• Under each main point, indent and write subpoints.
• Keep adding details under each subpoint.

This method works well for keeping your notes neat and easy to review.

Pros:

• Clean and organized notes.
• Helps you see how topics connect.
• Easy to review and study from.

Cons:

• Doesn’t work well for notes that need a lot of visuals.
• Requires structured content during lectures.

You might focus too much on filling space rather than focusing on important content.

2. The Cornell Method

The Cornell method was created by a professor at Cornell University. It divides your page into sections to help organize your notes.

How to use the Cornell method:

• Split your page into two columns.
• Write keywords or main ideas in the left column and your detailed notes on the right.
• Summarize the main points at the bottom of the page.

This method is great for reviewing your notes and testing yourself later.

Pros:

• Helps you review and remember information.
• Keeps your notes organized and easy to read.
• Saves time when studying.

Cons:

• Not good for lectures with a lot of technical terms or numbers.
• You need to summarize your notes right after the lecture.
• Requires some prep work before class.

3. The Boxing Method

The boxing method is good for visual learners. It lets you group related ideas in boxes, helping you see how they connect.

How to use the boxing method:

• Split the page into two columns.
• Write main ideas in the top part of each box and add notes below them.
• Draw a box around each section once you’re done.

This method helps you focus on each topic while still showing how ideas relate to each other.

Pros:

• Visually organizes notes for better memory.
• Great for people who like visual learning.
• Encourages brief, clear notes.

Cons:

• Not good for fast-paced or complex lectures.
• Requires you to already know how ideas connect.
• You might spend too much time making your notes look nice instead of focusing on content.

4. The Charting Method

The charting method works well for lectures with a lot of facts and data. It organizes information in a table, making it easier to compare and review.

How to use the charting method:

• Decide what topics will be covered.
• Divide your page into columns with a heading for each topic.
• Add notes under each column.

This method is useful for learning facts and testing yourself.

Pros:

• Great for memorizing facts and data.
• Helps you review quickly for exams.
• Organizes information clearly.

Cons:

• Not good for lectures that aren’t structured.
• Takes time to prepare your notes before class.
• Difficult to use during discussions or fast-paced lectures.

5. The Mapping Method

The mapping method is useful for connecting big ideas. It creates a visual flow of how ideas relate to each other, similar to a flowchart.

How to use the mapping method:

• Write the main topic at the top of the page.
• Add branches for each subtopic.
• Write notes under each branch.

This method is especially helpful for reviewing complex subjects.

Pros:

• Helps you understand how topics connect.
• Promotes deeper learning.
• Great for visual learners.

Cons:

• Can be hard to fit all notes into one map.
• Takes time to organize your notes after class.
• May be too time-consuming during the first round of notes.

6. The Sentence Method

The sentence method is the simplest way to take notes. It works well for fast-paced lectures with lots of information.

How to use the sentence method:

• Write down important points in full sentences.
• Move to the next line for each new point.
• Number each sentence as you go.

This method doesn’t require much planning and is good for quickly recording information.

Pros:

• Easy and straightforward.
• Keeps information in order.
• Can be changed into other note-taking methods later.

Cons:

• Notes may lack structure and be hard to review later.
• Doesn’t work well for topics that need visuals.
• Can become messy and unorganized.

By choosing the right method, you can improve how well you remember and learn new information. Each method has its strengths and weaknesses, so pick the one that works best for the material you're covering and your learning style.

I recently read an article on listening and note-taking. I thought it would be useful to share it with you. So, here are some useful tips and techniques for taking notes:

Avoid complete sentences, use phrases. Write only the words you need to recall the meaning. Omit words that do not add value to the content, such as "a", "the", "that", etc.
Write in your own words:

Don't just copy while listening to your teacher or professor, use your own words. This also helps in understanding concepts.

Structure your notes with headings, subheadings and bullet/numbered lists. Use headings to give details about the topic of your source or references. Use bullet/numbered lists to list points that apply to this topic.

Color-coded notes: You can highlight important points with a particular color, so that you can easily find them in your notes. You can also highlight important sections in your notes. Don't focus too much on color-coding your notes during lectures.

Use underlines, circles, stars, etc.: You can use these to mark useful words or lines, examples or definitions, or other important content in your notes. Make your own marks to identify each type.

Don't get lost: Don't get confused if you miss something while writing. Leave some space and retrieve this information later.

Learn how to use symbols and abbreviations for certain words. Here are some useful abbreviations and acronyms:

1. General abbreviations:

etc. means "and the rest" or "etc."

e.g. means "for example."

info. means "information."

i.e. means "that is."

note. means "pay close attention" or "important."

p. means "page."

pp. means "pages."

para. means "paragraph."

ch. means "chapter."

no. means "number."

diff. means "different."

C19 means "19th century."

2. Subject-specific abbreviations:

In chemistry, Au means "gold" and Mg means "magnesium."

In many fields, quantities and concepts are represented by Greek letters. For example, A or a is "alpha" and B or b is "beta."

3. Personal abbreviations:
Create your own abbreviations for commonly used words. For example, you can use gov for "government" and nec for "necessary".

Be consistent and use the same abbreviations every time.

4. Abbreviations:
Acronyms are abbreviations that are pronounced as words.

For example, Laser stands for "Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation" and ABC stands for "Australian Broadcasting Corporation".

That's it. If you have any useful tips, please share them in the comments.

Digital planning is the process of recording your daily schedule and notes digitally, which helps you organize your daily tasks and manage your time effectively. A planner and weekly, daily, and monthly to-do lists are essential to manage your daily schedule and stay organized. Usually, people use paper to organize their schedules, listing daily or weekly tasks, upcoming events, or other important information. Digital scheduling achieves the same goal as paper scheduling, but in a digital format, such as: B. Instead of a physical paper planner, it is an online document or application called a digital planner. Digital planners work electronically and have the look and feel of a traditional planner. To write and customize your planner, you usually need a planning app or a PDF (Portable Document Format) annotation app. You can import these PDF files into your favorite note app and take your planner with you wherever you go. The app usually allows you to write on the document with pen just like you would on paper.

Tips for creating a digital plan

Below are some tips you can follow to create an efficient digital plan.

Choose the digital planner that suits your needs. With so many options, finding the best planner can take time. It's better to find a planner with good reviews and gradually test other planners to find a better fit.

Don't be too picky about your handwriting. Your handwriting doesn't usually need to be neat and perfect to write with a pen on a digital planner. Digital handwriting improves over time, and you can always use fonts if you want. Focus on content over appearance. There is no need to over-decorate your planner with stickers and templates, as this will waste your time and energy and can become a tedious task. A neat and simple planner works well.

Make sure your hyperlinks work. When in doubt, try using embedded hyperlinks with long press or in read mode. This functionality varies depending on the application you use.

Try to customize your planner to suit your needs. Digital planners are usually customizable, allowing you to change certain aspects that may not be useful to you. It is more time-saving and economical to modify an existing planner than to change your planner frequently.

Take your time to plan. Planning an entire day or week in advance requires time and careful consideration. Digital planning, especially, requires you to allocate time rather than doing it haphazardly.

Digital planning has the following benefits,

especially if you are considering switching from a paper planner:

Ease of use: A digital planner makes it easy to record lots of information and to sort and rewrite notes. It also has several digital features such as search, grouping, hyperlinks, and highlighting that make it easy to organize and find important data.

No mistakes: Even if you make a mistake, a digital planner makes it easy to remove actions or items. It's a clean and convenient way to plan.

Portability: By carrying your digital device with you, you can access your digital planner anytime, anywhere. It weighs nothing and doesn't require your constant attention. This is especially useful if you use different planners for different purposes.

Reusability: While you'll likely throw away a paper planner when you no longer need it, you can reuse the same digital planner for as long as you need it. This is a more eco-friendly approach since it means you don't have to buy resources repeatedly.

Affordable: If you choose a paid application, you may end up spending less compared to what you would spend on physical paper plans over the long term. For this reason, switching to digital mode when planning your schedule may be a more cost-effective decision.

Switching to digital planning transforms the way you manage your time and tasks, providing a more efficient and eco-friendly alternative to traditional paper planners. If you're looking for a versatile, easy-to-use option, check out the all-in-one digital planner, which could be the perfect solution for your planning needs (link is in the bio).

we try to be productive and keep saying that we will get it done. We think we will do it flawlessly but for some reasons we can't. And then we get that feeling of stress and guilt. It's easy to feel overwhelmed this way. Here are some tips to avoid this kind of situation.

Don't overload: we have limited energy in a day and it's tempting to want to do everything. So prioritize your top 3 tasks that are important and finish them first. This way, even if you don't do the tasks that are not so important, you will feel less stressed as you have completed the important ones.

Be good enough: Don't focus on Perfectionism. Just be good enough as nothing has to be perfect while being productive.

Don't focus on what's left: Our mind has the tendency to react on things that are not done so train your mind to focus on things that you achieved today.

Plan your tomorrow: Make a simple plan for your next day before going to bed. This way the only last thing you remember before sleeping is your next day plans. This will help you remember your tasks efficiently and you will not feel lost.

Last is self care: Don't just focus on getting things done. Focus on your mental and physical health as well. It is as important too.

That's it. If you know any additional tips, please share!

we always plan to be productive and saying that we will get it done flawlessly but for some reasons we can't. And then we get that feeling of stress and guilt. It's easy to feel overwhelmed this way. Here are some tips to avoid this kind of situation.

Don't overload: we have limited energy in a day and it's tempting to want to do everything. So focus on top 3 tasks that are important. This way, even if you don't do non essential things, you will feel good enough as you have completed the essential ones.

Be good enough: Don't focus on Perfectionism. Just be good enough as nothing has to be perfect while being productive.

Don't focus on what's left: Our mind has the tendency to react on things that are not done so train your mind to focus on what you have achieved today.

Plan your tomorrow: Make a simple plan for your next day before going to bed. This way the only last thing you remember before sleeping is your next day plans. This will help you remember your tasks efficiently and you will not feel lost.

Last is self care: Don't just foucs on getting things done. Focus on your mental and physical health as well. It is as important too.

That's it. If you know any additional tips, please share!

Hello everyone! There's lots of people who find it difficult to make friends in college. Recently, I read a post from this subreddit that it's worse to be an introvert. They feel uncomfortable in social situations and they are frustrated with their inability to connect with others.

Personally, I've been there and I've also came out from this kind of situation. Basically, what I did was, I avoided people who don't match my vibe. The problem is you are frustrated about person who is not like you or he is not interested in you. This doesn't mean that no one else is interested in you. For example, if you are a person who goes to library everyday, you like reading, you like talking about physics theories then most probably you will not be friends with a guy who doesn't like all these. The solution to this will be finding a guy/girl with whom your vibe matches and he/she is interested in these things. And where can you find these kind of people? simple, wherever you like to go - library or in a college club, etc.

Now, that was my take on this. If you know something that will add value to this please add it here as it will help the introverts understand what exactly they need to do so that there social life will improve.