ANY Book Notes > No Book Notes

I have been a reader of books for a long time. I started with comics (Raj Comics and others popular with Indian kids who were born in the 80's) and was always interested in trivia books for some reason. We don't know how we are wired!

Anyways, I was really into non-fiction even when the term was not cool. I came to fiction really late, and I think I haven't arrived even now. I would read mostly motivation books, and also some memory improvement books over the years. Those books have been sold as scrap now, so I have a hard time recollecting what I was really into in those days. 

I tried rather lazily several "systems" for keeping notes of books that I have read. I tried keeping those index cards, making proper notebooks for book notes. I succeeded in making notes for some books, but nothing really stuck.

One of the modest successes I have had recently is the use of Google Notes and Notion software on my phone and making notes of books I listen to while taking a walk. It is an easy system, I just type short notes as I walk. I make minor formatting thingies like chapters, bullets as I go, and emojis sometimes. Nothing fancy.

It works! I have been amazed at the simplicity of the system. One thing I have realized a while ago was that if I didn't make some sort of notes from a book, it was hard for me to come up with even a brief summary of the main ideas of the book. I couldn't remember any trivial fact or insight I had learned from a book if I didn't make notes. I know, basic shit. Took me a while. I know.

Here is a screenshot of Notion of my notes from a recent book I read recently. You can see that the notes aren't too detailed. But hey, better than nothing! As I heard one of my all-time favorite teachers, Eben Pagan, say in one of his courses (I can't remember which one): "The smallest pencil is more effective than the best memory." 

  

So there is my "system." I hope to keep refining it, of course. But one thing I will do definitely is not quit on making notes from my books. It is almost a total waste of time if I don't take some sort of notes from a book.