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Kindle Notes & Highlights
by
Tiago Forte
Read between
September 2 - September 4, 2023
Five Key Tips for Making Organizing Easy
a few simple tips that make PARA even more effective and user-friendly. Each one requires only a onetime setup and a minute or two to implement.
TIP #1: Create an Inbox
TIP #2: Number the Folders
suggest adding the numbers 0–4 at the beginning of the titles for each of the five folders you now have. Using “0” for the inbox reminds you that its contents have not yet been
This keeps them in the right order from most to least actionable when they ar...
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Most of the time, you’ll only look in folder #1, Projects. From time to time, you’ll open up folder #2, Areas, when you want to think longer term. Folders #3 and #4, Resources and Archives, can remain safely out of sight until you need them.
TIP #3: Use a Naming Convention
like to use an informal naming convention to make this possible, such as: Emojis at the beginning of titles for project folders Capitalized titles for area folders
Uncapitalized titles for resource folders For example, these are immediately recognizable as projects (because they start with emojis): Create sponsorship package Write article on new environmental standards Plan Mexico City vacation These are clearly areas (because they are capitalized): Professional Development Financial Management Travel And these are resources (because they are uncapitalized): piano songs slide presentations video assets
TIP #4: Activate Offline Mode
TIP #5: Make Backups
Customizing Your PARA System
First, it doesn’t matter where you put a given file or note. If you find that the “filing” of items is too mentally taxing or time-consuming, don’t worry too much about it. You’ll likely be retrieving information using the search function most of the time, which means placing items into specific subfolders is a nice-to-have, not a must-have.
Second, it doesn’t matter that you have exactly four PARA categories. Believe it or not, even the four main folders described by the letters of PARA are optional.
The important principle is to separate out whatever is most actionable and timely and give it the majority of your attention, and there are countless ways to do so. Don’t feel the need to follow my prescriptions exactly—I give you permission to customize.
How to Maintain Your PARA System
recommend you do all the upkeep of your PARA system in just five minutes per week. All you need to do is follow these three easy steps: Retitle new items in your inbox Sort new items into PARA folders Update your active projects
STEP #1: Retitle New Items in Your Inbox
find that it aids future retrieval tremendously if I take a few seconds to look at each item I’ve saved and change its title or name to something more informative and clear.
Note that you likely have several inboxes you’ll need to do this for, such as: An inbox you’ve created in your Documents folder (recommended in chapter 4) An inbox for your cloud storage drive An inbox in your digital notetaking app
STEP #2: Sort New Items into PARA Folders
The second step of “processing” any new items is moving them into the app...
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STEP #3: Update Your Active Projects
Finally, take a look at your project folders and make changes to reflect what’s happened over the past week.
Always Start with the Archives The biggest misconception I see about the pivotal act of “archiving” is that you’re never going to see that information again.
Your archives represent the sum total of your life experience, a treasure trove of hard-won lessons and profound insights you’ve gained from both successes and failures alike. I guarantee it will contain useful material you can reuse and recycle in future endeavors.
How to Distinguish between Projects and Areas
Projects: A Goal with a Deadline My definition of a project is any endeavor that has: A goal that will enable you to mark it “complete” A deadline or timeframe by which you’d like it done A goal is simply “the outcome the project is trying to achieve.”
Areas of Responsibility: A Standard to Maintain over Time While projects are important, not everything is a project.
There are facets of your work and life that don’t have a clear end goal or deadline. We call them “areas of responsibility.” An area of responsibility has: A standard to be maintained An indefinite end date
Instead of a goal, an area of responsibility has a standard you’re trying to maintain.
Distinguishing Projects and Areas To put it simply: projects end, while areas continue indefinitely.
Although projects and areas are related, it’s critically important that you distinguish between them. Failing to do so is a root cause of so many frustrations and challenges.
In other words, projects and areas require completely different approaches, mindsets, and tools to be successful. Knowing which ones to use starts with identifying them correctly in the first place.
“Project people” are good at sprints.
“Area people” excel at marathons.
Once you view your life through the lens of projects and areas, it becomes very clear that you need both: sprints to ramp up something new, and marathons to sustain it.
How to Distinguish between Areas and Resources
The second-most-important distinction within PARA is between Areas and Resources (the middle letters A and R).
The key here is to realize that there is a big difference between things you are directly responsible for and things you are merely interested in. I use uppercase titles for areas and lowercase titles for resources to constantly remind myself that one is more important than the other.
Areas: The Roles You Play and the Hats You Wear
Areas are parts of our lives that require ongoing attention to uphold a certain level of quality or performance. It’s helpful to think of them as the “roles you play” or the “hats you wear” at work and in life.
Resources: Interests, Curiosities, and Passions Resources encompass the vast number of things you might be interested in, curious about, or passionate about at any given time.
The word “resources” calls to mind the utility of a piece of information. Instead of asking, “Is this interesting?” which always results in overcollecting, I ask myself, “Is this useful?”
Taking into account the importance of utility, resources can also include “assets” such as stock photos, product testimonials, code snippets, typography samples, or a “swipe file,” a common practice from the advertising industry in which copywriters keep a folder full of examples to draw from in their work.
Areas Are Private Whereas Resources Are Shareable
Areas of responsibility are inherently private. It’s no one else’s business what material you save related to your Health, Finances, Personal Growth, or Kids. For example, in my Health (area) folder, I keep blood panels, notes from doctor’s visits, medical bills, and vaccination records (all things relevant only to me personally).
