I spend most of my work time on my laptop, and (let’s be honest), a lot of my personal time too. Writing is my game. But I’ve also always wanted—and needed—another go-to thing.

Being stuck in front of the screen all the time taps me out. At various times, I’ve been obsessed with gardening, and cardmaking. I’ve tackled crochet (with minimal success) and lately watercolor painting.

Basically, I want to make something every day. So, when I stumbled accross this course Drawing the Everyday Every Day with Kate Bingaman-Burt on CreativeLive, I thought this could be what I’ve been searching for. It’s not a long course, only 11 lessons all under 6 to 8 minutes each, but it’s a gem.

If you’ve never taken a drawing class, or if you’re drawing talents lie more in the realm of doodling, then you’ll love this class. I’m a big fan of Austin Kleon so this idea of a daily art project really appealed to me.

In Drawing the Everyday, Bingaman-Burt gives you the confidence to make drawing a part of your daily process, whatever that might be. She shows you how and where to find inspiration, explains the basic tools you need to get started, and demos a 20 minute drawing session.

Her style is simple, whimsical line art, with no sketching or erasing. Just straight pen to paper. After taking the course, you should have more than enough ideas to get started.

I’ve got a couple of notebooks going now, and I’ve done drawings of craft beer, glasses, contents of my purse, books, and a granola bar, among other things. While it was hard at first to live with the mistakes (and not crossing out to start over), I look forward to drawing in my notebook now.

Rules for drawing every day

From the course, here are some rules for drawing every day:

1. Draw what you see around you: on your desk, in your purse, your books, receipts, garbage, things you buy, things you throw away, what you eat for lunch.

2. Use a good quality pen and paper, like Faber-Castel PITT artist pen, and smooth, mixed media paper in a good weight. Bingaman-Burt likes Moleskine notebooks.

3. Don’t erase or aim for perfection. Embrace spelling mistakes and mistakes in general.

4. Draw all the type. Words can be images too. Don’t be afraid to break words in funny places.

5. Add your own comments or captions or labels. Tell a story.

6. Drawings don’t have to be exact or accurate representations. Leave things out, add things in.

7. Draw for 20 to 30 minutes. Draw quickly.

8. Draw every day. Forget Facebook at lunch. Take 20 minutes and do a drawing instead.

9. Date your drawings.

10. Use square notebooks if you plan on scanning your work for posting to Instagram.

11. Look for themes in your drawings and make collections: your books, your food, your houseplants, your makeup.

If you draw everyday, what do you draw?

PS: Drawing the Everyday is an online class available at CreativeLive. This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links. 

I usually start my day (like right now) by drawing a complete blank. I know I have to write something…so I rename all the folders in my Google drive. Then I make cup of tea. Then I stare at the wall, the stack of notebooks on my desk, the pile of yellow sheets taking over every horizontal surface in my office (tip, don’t by legal pads).

I’ve got lots of ideas, but by the time I sit down to put them all in order, all I’ve got to work with is white noise and a fuzzy picture.  Nothing’s in focus and I don’t know where to start.

I need a plan.

Hence, this post. I wanted to research a strategy for that critical first hour of the workday, mostly so I don’t blow it by running a virus scan or alphabetizing the bookcase.

If you’ve ever had tons to do but get nothing done, this one’s for you too.

By the way, I’ve written about focus before, and using Pomodoros to get more done. But, in practice, I’ve found that I need some kind of pre-work routine, a warmup. Otherwise I can’t even decide which task to tackle first.

First, focus vs productivity

Finding focus before starting your day is about more than setting some goals, creating to-do list, and praying for divine intervention to make it all happen. In fact, task based  are really a discussion about productivity, says Shane Parrish.

Search “productivity hacks” and you’ll see the focus is on getting more done, being more efficient, and using better tools, like Pomodoro and Evernote.

In reality, the only hope in hell you have of getting something done is learning the skill of keeping your focus on the task you are performing.

Concentration, the ability to focus and do deep work…is essential.

So instead of tips for being more productive, how about a process that helps you find your focus at the beginning of your day.

Step 1. Warm up your body (warm up your brain)

You’ve probably heard this one before but it’s worth repeating.

Don’t head to your desk right away. Go for a walk, go for a work out–anything to get your body moving.

Or, failing that, you could do this:

Why? Because cross pattern movements get both left and right brain firing, which helps you think!

Each hemisphere has sensory and motor control of the opposite side of the body. Therefore moving both sides of the body at once in a rhythmical fashion will facilitate brain integration. (Sequencewiz.org)

Here’s what you can do:

• Cross lateral movement: crawling, running, climbing stairs
• Crossing the midline: touching left elbow to right knee
• Mismatched movement: pat head and rub tummy

Sounds fun, right? So, before you put your brain to work, do two minutes of crazy jumping jacks.

(If you don’t work from home, you’ll be the most popular kid at the office.)

Step 2. Warm up with some writing

Now that your left and right brain are playing pong, time to warm up with some writing.

I’m not talking about writing that to-do list (yet). I’m talking about 20 to 30 minutes of “free form whatever comes to mind” writing. Call it journaling if you want. Or if you can’t stand that word, say you’re “jotting down a few thoughts”.

And use a pen and paper, rather than your laptop. Natalie Goldberg, in Writing down the Bones, says:

First, consider the pen you write with. It should be a fast-writing pen because your thoughts are always much faster than your hand. You don’t want to slow up your hand even more with a slow pen.

You don’t have to love writing, or be any good at it. Fiction writers have been flogging this technique for years. Julia Cameron, creator of the Artist’s Way and morning pages says:

good writing is not the point. Think of your pages like a whisk broom. You stick the broom into all the corners of your consciousness. If you do this first thing in the morning, you are laying out your track for the day. Pages tell you of your priorities. With the pages in place first thing, you are much less likely to fall in with others’ agendas. Your day is your own to spend. You’ve claimed it. If you wait to write pages at night, you are reviewing a day that has already happened and that you are powerless to change. (The Miracle of Morning Pages)

Still wondering what the heck to write about?

From the Five Minute Journal (yes, it’s a thing), write three things about What would make today great.

Or, try these prompts from my fave writing teacher, Lois Peterson, and author of 101 Writing Exercises to Get you Started and Keep you Going:

Write about:

• Nine uses for a barrel, other than holding liquids
• Seven uses for a pingpong ball in a library
• Two places you wish you could go
• Six things you’d be doing if you weren’t writing this list

Step 3. Create a distraction free zone

The enemy of concentration is interruption. Give yourself half a chance at success by turning off email, internet, mobile phone notifications.

Hang a do not disturb sign, wear a sticky note, or plug into some headphones or earbuds to discourage drive by chatting.

“Yeah right,” you’re thinking.  “There’s no way I can get away with that at work.”

Maybe, maybe not. But I’m willing to bet you can carve out some time first thing by skipping the morning gaggle in the coffee room.

Or, you could just hide.

Okay, NOW do your to-do list

You’ve warmed up, you’ve beat back the Hoard, now use the final minutes of your hour to craft your to-do list.

Keep in mind that most people have way more items on that list than they’ll ever get through in one day anyway, so CHOOSE WISELY.

I hope my plan for focus strikes a chord. And if you’ve got a better way, I’d love to hear.

 

I’ve got a new problem. Now that I’m reading more critically,  how do I keep track of all the info I’m stuffing into my noggin?

While I’m a note taker and a notebook addict in general, I don’t have a consistent system for organizing shiny new learning.

Have you ever read a book passage that you’re certain could one day be applicable to your life? But, between your shopping list, work to-dos, and your aunt’s upcoming birthday, the passage quickly fades from your memory causing you to draw a blank when you really need to reference it. Source: Zapier

Time for a refresher course on taking notes. One of these seven techniques is bound to suit your style.

1. Outline Method

• Create main topics with bullets below each topic
• Leave white space between topics for your own thoughts, analysis, reflections, summary, thought provoking questions
• Draw a box around your own thoughts so they stand out
• Highlight the box to make it stand out further; try colored highlights to signify different things such as questions, ideas, cross-references

[bctt tweet="Note taking tip: Draw a box around your own thoughts so they stand out"]

2. Cornell Method

• Invented by (you guessed it) Cornell University
• Divide the page into three sections:
  • Left margin is for questions, keywords, main points
  • Note taking section is about 75% of page and used for note taking, using the outline method, main topics with bullets
  • Bottom 2 inches of the page is summary of the basic points on the page
• Review your notes by covering the note taking section with your hand or folding the page over.
• Recite. Based on the cues, keywords and main points in the margin, try to recite the note. If you can’t, it means you may have left out a main point.
• Reflect on what you’ve learned and add any cross references from other notes to the margin

3. Mind Mapping

• Write down main ideas rather than bullet points or sentences
• Connect ideas with boxes, arrows, and circles
• Not as much a study aid as the other two methods above but designed to improve or stimulate your understanding of the material as you are reading it.
• More difficult to share with others. Meant to jog your own memory
• Combine with outline or Cornell method by using the arrows to make connections after note taking.

4. Indexing

• Create an index of what you read at the beginning of a book. See Shane Parrish and Maria Popova
• Add signifiers or a key to index items to help you remember and cross reference other works. Example: tag items as Quotes, Ideas, Research
• Fast and easy to do, and ideal if your brain likes working in analog, old school formats
• Index is at the front of the book for all time

5. Note cards

• Another analog system (yay!)
• Write, underline, and mark up books with notes in book (as in Index method) and fold up the corner of the page. See Ryan Halliday and Commonplace Book
• Transfer all the notes on the marked pages to note cards after the book is finished.
• Capture a single quote or idea per card, and be sure to include the book and page or source references
• Allows you to organize by topic very easily
• Options include transferring notes into Evernote or Google Docs doc, and using stickies or colored flags instead of folding pages

TIP Copying by hand or typing increases retention over to cut and paste from Kindle. Wait a few days to a week before transferring the notes to process the information better and improve retention even more (power up)

5. Sketchnoting

• Also known as visual note taking
• Instead of capturing ideas in the order presented (either by listening to a lecture or reading), use simple drawings and doodles to place different ideas next to one another
• Helps you see the connections between ideas
• Start in the middle of the page with the main topic
• Branch out adding subtopics around the main idea (sounds a bit like mind mapping but with more pictures)
• Difficult to start doing if you don’t like doodling; you may default to words instead of pictures. Practice!
• Make a visual reference library of easy to draw icons and images. See Sacha Hua and Mike Rohde
• You don’t have to be an artist to take visual notes!
• Remember there’s no pressure to make it pretty or good

6. Highlighting in an app for Kindle, iPad or tablet

• Digital strategy!
• Notes are all available and searchable on the app which can be a huge timesaver.
• Making annotations and highlights with keyboard or mouse can be more finicky than old school pencil.
• Use coloured highlights to differentiate types of notes (this capability depends on the app):
  • Pink – Ideas and words I want to explore further
  • Yellow – Memorable passages I want to remember for later
  • Orange – Books I want to add to my reading list
• Instructions for taking notes on Kindle, some apps for Android and Windows, and apps for iPhone and iPad

7. Evernote for note storage

• Evernote app for Windows and Mac (free and premium versions)
• Store notes in Evernote using any of the above methods
• Use Evernote handwriting recognition to translate a handwritten note into text
• Email notes created elsewhere into your Evernote folders using the free Evernote email address
• Organize and tag notes consistently for fast search and retrieval. The key is to have an Evernote system for this. If you don’t, you’ll end up with a big digital mess. Michael Hyatt has an epic system for organizing in Evernote.

Final note taking tips

• Develop a consistent shorthand
• Develop a reference for sketchnote objects icons
• Capture sources as you go, don’t rely on memory
• Identify the most important material
• Review notes later

More resources

How taking notes improves reading – interview with Shane Parrish

Using Evernote – 4 ways to improvie note taking

Adding notes to Kindle

Sketchnote tutorials

To recap: your system should help you summarize information and organize by topic and/or by source so that you can easily find stuff.

This goes for digital systems as well as analog. Just becuase something is digital and “searchable” doesn’t mean it’s easier to use. Eg. take a look at your desktop, documents folder or Google Drive. These catch-all places get messy real fast.

Did I miss something? Share all your note taking hacks in the comments below.

 

 

This week, here are five things you need to know:

1. I read the story of the Billy bookcase from IKEA. We have no less than six in our house. Did you know the same Swedish factory has been making mostly Billy bookcases since 1978? IKEA founder, Ingvar Kamprad, was 17 when he started the company and the innovation of the flat-packed furniture was his. While the look of Billy hasn’t changed over the years, how it gets made has. Sometimes innovation isn’t always the one big idea but ongoing small ideas, tweaks and refinements.

2. My son just got his driver’s license, so I was especially interested to learn that UPS drivers only turn right (mostly). Apparently, there’s good reason—scientific evidence and all that. Turning left across traffic is dangerous! Turning right is not only safer but saves fuel (if you’ve optimized your route correctly). I’ve floated the idea.

3. Chris Guillebeau writes about side hustling, personal projects that make you money on top of your regular job. If you are trying to get out of a rut, a side hustle may be the answer. But what to choose!? Chris Guillebeau has turned side hustling into an art.  He wrote Born for This and runs a website about side hustles. Every day you can listen to a short seven minute podcast about people doing everything from writing fish tank reviews to selling homemade gin kits.

4. I’ve been reading more about E. B. White and found this piece why he wrote Charlotte’s Web. He  also favoured the essay, and wrote the other half of the classic Elements of Style. I especially love White’s introduction in that little book, a tribute to founding author William Strunk Jr.

5. This excellent video from Ira Glass on the creative process is worth bookmarking, sharing, and re-watching regularly.

That’s all!

What have you been reading?

Are you a lazy reader? I confess I am—and I love, LOVE, reading. When I dive into a book, I neglect of my family. My husband knows me well enough to forget about communicating with me on any meaningful level for a day or so until the book’s done.

But as much as I love books, somewhere between university and now I stopped reading critically. Like many people dealing with information overload, I consume as much as I can as fast as I can.

Shane Parrish, who writes the excellent blog Farnam Street, makes the case against a steady diet of blog posts and news bytes. His blog is about reading deeply on a wide range of topics, and presenting ideas that lead to meaningful understanding. Basically, how to be a better thinker through reading.

Here’s what he says:

Blog posts are not enough to generate the deep fluency you need to truly understand or get better at something….

This goes just as well for book reviews, abstracts, cliff’s notes, and a good deal of short-form journalism.

This is a hard message for some who want a shortcut. They want the “gist” and the “high level takeaways”, without doing the work or eating any of the broccoli. They think that’s all it takes: Check out a 5-minute read, and instantly their decision making and understanding of the world will improve right-quick. Most blogs, of course, encourage this kind of shallowness. Because it makes you feel that the whole thing is pretty easy.

Here’s the problem: The world is more complex than that. It doesn’t actually work this way. The nuanced detail behind every “high level takeaway” gives you the context needed to use it in the real world. The exceptions, the edge cases, and the contradictions.

Two types of reading

Parrish (with help from Mortimer Adler in How to Read a Book), says there are two types of reading. Reading for information (or entertainment), and reading for understanding.

Reading for information is what you’re doing right now. Reading, or most likely skimming, the page for the key points. You’re trying to get the facts quickly. And that’s good! Skimming is an essential type of reading that gives you a sense of where the author is going, orients you to the content, and helps you decide if you want to read more. It’s only a problem if that’s all you do…scan and skim.

Reading for understanding is what you do to increase your knowledge. The content is more dense, and probably (but not always) comes in the form of a book. To really understand, you have to be an active reader.

Active reading begins with marking up your book with notes; underlining passages, words you don’t know, questions you have for the author. I used to read this way in university (I called it studying), but I very rarely do it now in day to day reading.

Caution, advanced training: How to read a book for understanding

So how do you read a book anyway? According to Parrish’s reading system, here’s what you do:

(Read the full skinny here)

1. Mark up the text. Yes, if it’s a physical book that means write IN THE BOOK. (some of you may be horrified by this idea, I know.) Underline things, make notes in the margins, and summarize each chapter. Become a Master of Marginalia like these guys: Mark Twain, Charles Darwin
   By the way, my dad has read non-fiction  this is the way for years. I can still find books and magazines in the house that are flagged with bits of paper (before yellow stickies), handwritten notes, and summaries taped to the front cover.
2. When you’ve finished the book, set it aside for a week. No, you’re not done yet.
3. Re-read all your notes cover to cover. Add more notes, questions, cross references to other works, and transcribe everything into a notebook or front-of-the-book summary you can easily access later.
4. If it’s a really good book, read the best parts again, or the whole thing if you like. You’ll have a different perspective the second time through, which will help cement your understanding.

Are you kidding me? That’s takes too much time!

Reading for understanding sounds like a ton of work! Who has the time for that?

I’m not going to get into where to find the time to read. You all know the answer, so do what works for you.

And, I agree that you can’t do this for everything you read, but you can start to be choosy about the subjects that matter to you, and then step up your game for some real learning.

Some final tips for reading that makes you smarter

Because I’m on a learning curve of my own, trying to break out of a creative and professional rut, I’ve started reading this way again.

• Make sure you’ve got a balanced diet of informational and idea books. Don’t confine yourself to blog posts or newspapers. Read widely and deeply.
• Actively read by underlining important passages, making notes in the margins, summarizing  key points at the beginning of each chapter.
• Ask these questions about a book:
  • What is it about
  • What are the key details
  • Is it true? Are the facts fairly presented? Are there any holes?
  • So what? What’s the significance?
• Commit to uncovering what you don’t know. Don’t skim over the tough words and concepts.
• Transcribe your notes from the book and decide on a simple system to keep track of them. Trust me, you won’t remember the important details no matter how much you convince yourself you can. Parrish uses Evernote and so do I, but a basic notebook will do, or a fancy reading journal.

As an experiment, I created this reading summary page you can print out. Stick it in a binder, or fold in half and slip inside the front cover.

Download a free reading journal printable.

More Links

Books that Changed My Life — From Farnam Street, and what an interesting question! Which books have changed your life?

How to read a book — Summary of Adler from The Art of Manliness

Podcast interview with another great curator of ideas, Maria Popova of Brain Pickings — Scroll down for timestamps from the audio

A Year in Marginalia: Sam Anderson — a peek into someone else’s notes

How do you read and keep track of what you read? What books have made an impact on you? Let me know.