Commonplace journaling
A new method (to me) caught my interest. Recently I searched and came upon a ton of videos on commonplace journaling and how to retain what you actually learn. A common occurrence turns out for many people; like me, is accumulating so much passing by information and not knowing what to do with it or just never utilizing it.
I've written similar posts about this before, but now a new methodology on the 'how-to'.
This is just an articulation on the quick summary of notes I gathered and some ways this method can be implemented.
What is a commonplace book?
A place to keep favorite quotes, poems, summaries, anything interesting that you want to log and retain.
This method is new to me. But not new in general. This is actually quite an old method!
How can I implement this?
I have used many notebooks and could likely tell you little information from them. The problem? Turns out I am essentially using my notebooks as "computer notes" so quite literally I am mostly word-for-wording what I learn and that's it. That is as far as my notes go. Here lies the problem. I came across a video and it was lovely! She literally touches on the pain points I mentioned previously and offered a good way to navigate and fix the issue!
So, from all the gathered information - here is the final concept:
Pick a source of information. This is where you choose the content you want to absorb. From a book, podcast, article, course. ect.
The important part now is to actually study the material. Break it down in a scratch notepad. Just make sure to note the lesson, page number, time stamp, ect. per note taking session on each scratch paper. What I would call a slightly organized step.
Now, there's a couple steps to take from here. We can transfer the notes into our commonplace book, extracting all the important information in verbatim and breaking the content down into our own words and logging it. This helps the 'processing' portion of the content. So, now it's easier to observe and actively apply it or quickly reference for memory. To quick reference the material we can follow the Locke method to add an index at the back of the book!
Or - another method is the active use of index cards and filing that information. I didn't dwell too long on this concept. So, I cannot relay too much but if I where to follow this method I would just apply the same steps as the journaling entries and organize by content material (ex: herbal, homeopathy) and/or segment by resource material (ex: quotes, summaries).
Also worth mentioning here: When you are borrowing a book or one you can't notate in yourself. You can take the commonplace book you have and write a series of 'page #' and annotation content along side of it. Such as highlights, favorite parts, side commentary, rebuttals on the content... basically any form of content you would annotate in the book itself, just on a page your journal instead.
PLUS Something that was mentioned in the video I spoke lightly on above, when there is information you need frequently or want to actively apply many times over - don't just notate it anywhere in the journal. Place it as a sticky note or entry on the front opening of the book. This makes it quick to access and rapidly use so now it can't get lost in the 'noise'.
Conclusions
By actively using scratch paper first and then placing in the commonplace book, a small structure can be given and more focus on the content can hold it's place. This seems like it especially works when note-taking from multiple content sources. This way all the important information is right where it needs to be. Processed and broken down. Then, easily navigated with an index. Now, we must apply this information.
This is an overview of what I learned and sequenced together to follow a new method. Insh'Allah I can implement this new systems and see how it works for active recall. May this post be a benefit for you too, Insh'Allah.