To Take Your Career to the Next Level, Write Notes

You work hard to acquire information; make sure you remember it

Photo: Author

It was only yesterday when I needed to make a minor decision I had been stuck on for a week. The situation didn’t require a friend or advisor’s advice, precious time I’d prefer to save for something of greater gravity. Instead, I consulted a set of notes I’d taken on making decisions, which took me only a few seconds to find. It wasn’t buried in some notebook somewhere — it was in my Zettelkasten.

I was consoled by some quotes I’d written down over two years ago; to consider what I’d do with the opportunity cost, to keep as many options open as possible, and to know that I’d probably be happy either way. It became a lot easier to know what to do next; an email to ask for more information, a pre-decision on which option to go with, and leverage for negotiating.

In the past few weeks, I’ve turned to my notes for marketing ideas and examples, for writing a draft about paper and quality, and to write up and release this piece — one of my recent favorites — on faking it till you make it. I didn’t have to find a book, or search for a lost link — both tasks costing great frustration and time. On the contrary, the experience felt smooth, seamless, and fun. It was like night and day from writing just a few years…