# Building a Second Brain ![rw-book-cover](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71-C-CsboJL._SY160.jpg) ## Metadata - Author: [[Tiago Forte]] - Full Title: Building a Second Brain - Category: #books ## Highlights - Perhaps you were having a conversation and couldn’t remember a fact that would have convincingly supported your point of view. ([Location 45](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=45)) - Note: This has been the story of my life! - So much of the time we are “information hoarders,” stockpiling endless amounts of well-intentioned content that only ends up increasing our anxiety. ([Location 53](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=53)) - To be able to make use of information we value, we need a way to package it up and send it through time to our future self. ([Location 60](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=60)) - Turn work “off” and relax, knowing you have a trusted system keeping track of all the details. ([Location 74](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=74)) - Your mind is for having ideas, not holding them. —David Allen, author of Getting Things Done ([Location 111](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=111)) - We extend beyond our limits, not by revving our brains like a machine or bulking them up like a muscle—but by strewing our world with rich materials, and by weaving them into our thoughts. —Annie Murphy Paul, author of The Extended Mind ([Location 229](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=229)) - Your professional success and quality of life depend directly on your ability to manage information effectively. ([Location 234](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=234)) - Information Overload has become Information Exhaustion, taxing our mental resources and leaving us constantly anxious that we’re forgetting something. ([Location 239](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=239)) - Every minute we spend trying to mentally juggle all the stuff we have to do leaves less time for more meaningful pursuits like cooking, self-care, hobbies, resting, and spending time with loved ones. ([Location 253](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=253)) - Unlike modern readers, who follow the flow of a narrative from beginning to end, early modern Englishmen read in fits and starts and jumped from book to book. They broke texts into fragments and assembled them into new patterns by transcribing them in different sections of their notebooks. Then they reread the copies and rearranged the patterns while adding more excerpts. Reading and writing were therefore inseparable activities. They belonged to a continuous effort to make sense of things, for the world was full of signs: you could read your way through it; and by keeping an account of your readings, you made a book of your own, one stamped with your personality. ([Location 266](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=266)) - we are surrounded by knowledge, yet starving for wisdom. ([Location 362](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=362)) - There are four essential capabilities that we can rely on a Second Brain to perform for us: Making our ideas concrete. Revealing new associations between ideas. Incubating our ideas over time. Sharpening our unique perspectives. ([Location 457](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=457)) - “Creative people are better at recognizing relationships, making associations and connections.”3 By keeping diverse kinds of material in one place, we facilitate this connectivity and increase the likelihood that we’ll notice an unusual association. ([Location 483](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=483)) - Advocating for a particular point of view isn’t just a matter of sparkling charisma or irresistible charm. It takes supporting material. ([Location 514](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=514)) - To guide you in the process of creating your own Second Brain, I’ve developed a simple, intuitive four-part method called “CODE”—Capture; Organize; Distill; Express. ([Location 584](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=584)) - By training ourselves to notice when something resonates with us, we can improve not only our ability to take better notes, but also our understanding of ourselves and what makes us tick. ([Location 614](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=614)) - Adopting the habit of knowledge capture has immediate benefits for our mental health and peace of mind. We can let go of the fear that our memory will fail us at a crucial moment. ([Location 616](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=616)) - The best way to organize your notes is to organize for action, according to the active projects you are working on right now. Consider new information in terms of its utility, asking, “How is this going to help me move forward one of my current projects?” ([Location 627](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=627)) - Your notes will be useless if you can’t decipher them in the future, or if they’re so long that you don’t even try. Think of yourself not just as a taker of notes, but as a giver of notes—you are giving your future self the gift of knowledge that is easy to find and understand. ([Location 651](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=651)) - Note: I often find myself highlighting a passage or a paragraph or a sentence but hardly ever end up writing a note about why I highlighted it. I’m not sure why. I know, I need to think about it a bit.. - personal knowledge management exists to support taking action—anything else is a distraction. ([Location 658](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=658)) - Information becomes knowledge—personal, embodied, verified—only when we put it to use. ([Location 665](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=665)) - Talent needs to be channeled and developed in order to become something more than a momentary spark. ([Location 756](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B09MDNDYYF&location=756))