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A review by dichter
How to Take Smart Notes: One Simple Technique to Boost Writing, Learning and Thinking – for Students, Academics and Nonfiction Book Writers by Sönke Ahrens
3.0
Think inside the box.
Literally! This is even the title of one of the book chapters. And by "box" it refers to "Zettelkasten", a method of note-taking popularized by the prolific professor Luhmen. According to the author, this method is rapidly taking over the field of social studies. Sönke Ahrens claims that the [b:Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity|1633|Getting Things Done The Art of Stress-Free Productivity|David Allen|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1312474060l/1633._SX50_.jpg|5759], which is very successful everywhere doesn't work well in academia due to the open-ended process of academic research. Another technique that he is ranting against is "Brainstorming" (i.e. fast-paced idea generations with deferred judgment).
And while I agree that some project management techniques do not work well with open-ended processes and that GTD handles the "reference" area quite rudimentary, I disagree that brainstorming is useless and that one must think "inside the box" to generate creative ideas.
But then, I am not a researcher and have not come across the work of Prof Luhmen. As a fan of the Design Thinkg method, I found many interesting aspects on note-taking in this book, especially in regard of creating a interconnected network of "cards". I will explore it further, how using a Zettelkasten can contribute to the creative process, but overall I have found the book too narrowminded and to much "inside a box".
Literally! This is even the title of one of the book chapters. And by "box" it refers to "Zettelkasten", a method of note-taking popularized by the prolific professor Luhmen. According to the author, this method is rapidly taking over the field of social studies. Sönke Ahrens claims that the [b:Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity|1633|Getting Things Done The Art of Stress-Free Productivity|David Allen|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1312474060l/1633._SX50_.jpg|5759], which is very successful everywhere doesn't work well in academia due to the open-ended process of academic research. Another technique that he is ranting against is "Brainstorming" (i.e. fast-paced idea generations with deferred judgment).
And while I agree that some project management techniques do not work well with open-ended processes and that GTD handles the "reference" area quite rudimentary, I disagree that brainstorming is useless and that one must think "inside the box" to generate creative ideas.
But then, I am not a researcher and have not come across the work of Prof Luhmen. As a fan of the Design Thinkg method, I found many interesting aspects on note-taking in this book, especially in regard of creating a interconnected network of "cards". I will explore it further, how using a Zettelkasten can contribute to the creative process, but overall I have found the book too narrowminded and to much "inside a box".