deft/notes/2020-06-05--08-51-28Z--zettelkasten_how_one_german_scholar_was_so_freakishly_productive.org

:PROPERTIES:
:ID:       6b88927e-90ab-44c3-ae86-169e7704c480
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#+TITLE: Zettelkasten -- How One German Scholar Was So Freakishly Productive
#+Author: Yann Esposito
#+Date: [2020-06-05]

tags :: [[id:5579f7b0-3b00-4751-9211-9b9381481954][org-mode]] [[id:af26ee30-6392-40e3-bc26-a7e887947293][note taking]] [[id:e0d4b962-b16e-499e-9c69-bdb196793e68][org-roam]] [[id:5e257538-beca-40de-8b8f-0733d241c96a][zettelkasten]] 
source :: https://writingcooperative.com/zettelkasten-how-one-german-scholar-was-so-freakishly-productive-997e4e0ca125

* The Zettelkasten principles


1. *The principle of atomicity*: The term was coined by Christian Tietze.
   It means that each note should contain one idea and one idea only.
   This makes it possible to link ideas with a laser focus.
2. *The principle of autonomy*: Each note should be autonomous, meaning it
   should be self-contained and comprehensible on its own.
   This allows notes to be moved, processed, separated, and concatenated
   independently of its neighbors.
   It also ensures that notes remain useful even if the original source of
   information disappears.
3. *Always link your notes*: Whenever you add a note, make sure to link it to
   already existing notes.
   Avoid notes that are disconnected from other notes.
   As Luhmann himself put it, “each note is just an element that derives its
   quality from the network of links in the system.
   A note that is not connected to the network will be lost, will be forgotten
   by the Zettelkasten” (original in German).
4. *Explain why you’re linking notes*: Whenever you are connecting two notes by
   a link, make sure to briefly explain why you are linking them.
   Otherwise, years down the road when you revisit your notes, you may have no
   idea why you connected them.
5. *Use your own words*: Don’t copy and paste.
   If you come across an interesting idea and want to add it to your
   Zettelkasten, you must express that idea with your own words, in a way that
   you’ll be sure to understand years later.
   Don’t turn your Zettelkasten into a dump of copy-and-pasted information.
6. *Keep references*: Always add references to your notes so that you know where
   you got an idea from.
   This prevents plagiarism and makes it easy for you to revisit the original
   source later on.
7. *Add your own thoughts to the Zettelkasten*: If you have thoughts of your
   own, add them to the Zettelkasten as notes while keeping in mind the
   principle of atomicity, autonomy, and the need for linking.
8. *Don’t worry about structure*: Don’t worry about putting notes in neat
   folders or into unique preconceived categories.
   As Schmidt put it, in a Zettelkasten “there are no privileged positions”
   and “there is no top and no bottom.”
   The organization develops organically.
9. *Add connection notes*: As you begin to see connections among seemingly
   random notes, create connection notes, that is, specific notes whose
   purpose is to link together other notes and explain their relationship.
10. *Add outline notes*: As ideas begin to coalesce into themes, create outline
    notes.
    An outline note is a note that simply contains a sequence of links to other
    notes, putting those other notes into a particular order to create a story,
    narrative, or argument.
11. *Never delete*: Don’t delete old notes.
    Instead, link to new notes that explain what’s wrong with the old ones.
    In that way, your Zettelkasten will reflect how your thinking has evolved
    over time, which will prevent hindsight bias.
    Moreover, if you don’t delete, you might revisit old ideas that may turn
    out to be correct after all.
12. *Add notes without fear*: You can never have too much information in your
    Zettelkasten.
    At worst, you’ll add notes that won’t be of immediate use.
    But adding more notes will never break your Zettelkasten or interfere with
    its proper operation.
    Remember, Luhmann had 90,000 notes in his Zettelkasten!