Hey there,
What if the best way to organize notes… is to stop organizing them?
Sounds counterintuitive, right? But after years of struggling with folders and tags, I found a better way, one that makes my notes actually useful.
A few years back, I had a system that should have worked: color-coded tags, neatly nested folders, the whole deal.
But here’s what actually happened: I’d spend 10 minutes staring at a blank tag field, paralyzed. Should this be #work, #ideas, or #maybe-later? Worse, when I needed something, I’d dig through folders like a kid searching for a lost Lego piece in a bin of chaos. It’s blue. No, maybe red? Wait! Did I even save it?
Then one day, I stumbled on a better way. Instead of forcing my notes into rigid categories, I started linking them contextually. It’s like how your brain naturally connects ideas. Think of it like a trail of breadcrumbs: each note points to others it relates to, creating a web of meaning instead of a static pile. Suddenly, finding things felt less like archaeology and more like following a well-marked path.
Folders are like drawers in a filing cabinet. They’re great for broad categories, but useless when an idea spans multiple places (e.g., a project note that’s both "Marketing" and "2024 Goals").
Tags help… until you have 200 of them. (RIP, my #important-but-not-urgent tag.)
Contextual links? They’re the secret sauce. Like hyperlinks in Wikipedia, they let ideas flow naturally.
How to Start Linking Ideas, Not Just Sorting Them
Forget perfection. Next time you save a note, skip the tags/folder debate. Just write.
Ask: What does this remind me of? Link to 1-2 existing notes (even loosely related ones).
Review regularly. When you revisit a note, glance at its links. That’s where the magic happens—you’ll spot patterns you never forced.
Example:
Let’s say you take a note about Deep Work. Instead of just tagging it #focus or throwing it into a “Productivity” folder, try linking it to:
Your notes on distraction-free environments
A past idea you saved on time blocking
A book summary of The One Thing (since it also emphasizes deep focus)
Now, the next time you revisit any of those notes, you’ll naturally rediscover and reinforce your thinking, without needing the perfect system upfront.
I still use tags and folders a little, but now they’re backup dancers, not the main act. The real star? Those humble links. They’ve turned my notes from a storage room into a living workspace.
Your Turn
Open one note today. Add one link to another note. No overthinking. See where it takes you.
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P.S. Ever tried linking notes? Hit reply and tell me: Did it feel clunky or click? (Pun intended.)
Want more like this? This is the first in a series on advanced note-taking. Next up: "The Power of Evergreen Notes."
Gav
