I was looking for a note. Just one.
Something about networked thinking.
I knew I’d saved it months ago, buried somewhere deep in my digital vault.
But when I searched?
Nothing.
Clicking through folders, switching apps, endless scrolling.
Frustration kicked in. That gnawing feeling: I know it’s here… but where?
That’s when it hit me.
My notes weren’t a system.
They were a junkyard.
Book highlights? Forgotten in PDFs.
Ideas? Scattered across apps.
Structure? A labyrinth even past-me wouldn’t understand.
I’d been hoarding information instead of cultivating knowledge.
That was the moment I knew something had to change.
❌ The Note-Taking Trap
For the longest time, I thought this mess was normal.
Then I discovered Maggie Appleton’s idea of digital gardening.
It hit me like lightning.
Most note-taking is just seed collecting.
Raw ideas tossed into a box, never planted. Never revisited.
But a digital garden is different.
It’s alive.
You plant, water, revisit, and grow.
And that shift from storage to growth completely transformed how I think.
✅ The Digital Garden System
I spent a weekend rebuilding everything from scratch.
And came out with a system that finally felt like a creative partner.
Here’s the three-stage framework I use now:
🌱 Seedlings
Raw captures. Fleeting thoughts. Unprocessed highlights.
🌿 Saplings
Notes I’ve rewritten, linked to at least two others, and added context.
🌲 Evergreens
Fully developed insights. Revisited. Ready to publish, share, or teach.
Inspired by Andy Matuschak’s evergreen notes concept but layered with my own evolution of the idea.
The shift was simple.
I stopped asking, “Where do I file this?”
And started asking, “How does this connect to what I already know?”
That one question changed everything.
💡 It’s Not About Tools. It’s About Thinking
I built this system in Obsidian.
But it works just as well in Notion, Capacities, or even with sticky notes on a wall.
The key isn’t your app.
It’s your approach:
Focus on growth, not organization.
Prioritize connections over categories.
Revisit old ideas regularly.
Build momentum, not perfection.
My notes don’t just store ideas anymore.
They evolve with me.
They think with me.
Try This Today
If your notes feel like chaos, start here:
Choose your “home” app. Just one.
Create a 3-stage system (Seedling → Sapling → Evergreen)
Pick one note. Refine it. Connect it. Grow it.
Your past note-taking habits don’t define you.
The next note you shape is what matters most.
What’s Your First Move?
What’s one small change you could make this week to turn your notes into a living system?
Hit reply—I’d love to hear what shift you’re making.
Next week: “Write Smarter, Not Harder: How PKM Fuels Creative Output.”
It’s the most important mindset shift I’ve made as a creator. You won’t want to miss it.
Until next time,
Gav
