A visual summary of Tiago Forte's Building a Second Brain
Every now and then I find myself reorganising all the media and documents that accumulate so quickly. No matter what system I try, time and again, chaos ensues—but I'm hopeful these lessons will do the trick.
And there's a plain reason: The method incorporates life's ever-changing nature. It seems to avoid the exact hurdles that other systems have, at least in theory. For example, whenever I try building a Zettelkasten, I get overwhelmed by the effort of producing permanent notes. Here, that friction is minimised from the start. Everything is messy, yet organised. Everything lives, but only the worthwhile parts mature and branch out.
There are but a few, simple principles that bring structure without interfering. Nothing demands extra effort, and the method stays out of the way of what really counts: the work that needs doing. It's designed to move things forward. Projects can quickly be dropped and revisited in a deliberate, organised fashion. So, if you're unsure about how to organise your life, frequently find yourself stuck, overwhelmed, or afraid of losing track, you might want to check out Tiago's system.
I had to rush this sketch a bit, but I'm still happy with the result, and it has already proved useful. Once again, I learned a lot, not only about the book, but sketch-noting, too. Lessons just stick a lot better if you engage the material actively. Which is exactly what you do when you turn scribbles like this...
...into first drafts like here...
...and then the end result (at the top of the page).
As Tiago repeatedly highlights: Verum ipsum factum (G. Vico). We only truly know what we ourselves create.
