Knowledge Basing
Something that took me a long time to learn:
You don’t need special software, skills, or systems to build knowledge.
Many will tell you ‘build a second brain’, and proceed to describe how to hoard information. You don’t need a second brain, you just need to use the one you have.
Instead of wasting time with Notion, databases, cloud services, Microsoft Word or Google Docs or other fancy tools, do this:
1: Get a text editor. Doesn’t matter which one. Then, create a folder called ‘Notes’.
2: Whenever you encounter an interesting topic you’re curious about or have a thought about, *create a text file in that Notes folder*. Call it something relevant; curious about stocks? Name it ‘stocks.txt’. I use Markdown, but you don’t have to.
3: Here’s the important part: in that text file, start entering questions you have. Ideas. Anything you’ve learned. Each time you think of something about stocks, open stocks.txt and enter it. Learned something about health? Create health.txt and enter it there.
4: Over time, you’ll build up a library of knowledge, all contained in plain text files--small, portable, and future proof. Things you’ve learned, questions you’ve asked, ideas you want to explore. No database needed, no special software, nothing to learn.
I’ve done this for years. I end up reviewing these topic files almost daily, searching, adding, updating.
That's my 'second brain'.