Using the PARA Method with Evernote and Things3 (BASB)

Summary

This walkthrough demonstrates the PARA method for organizing reference material within the Getting Things Done (GTD) framework. PARA stands for Projects, Areas, Resources, and Archives, creating a continuum from actionable to non-actionable information. The speaker uses digital tools like Evernote and Things to manage projects, areas, and notes, illustrating how to integrate online materials into a digital second brain. The video guides viewers through the process of saving and categorizing information, ensuring efficiency and accessibility.

Takeaways

• 📚 The PARA method stands for Projects, Areas, Resources, and Archives, and is used for organizing non-actionable information in digital notes.
• 🔍 Projects are the most actionable category, while archives are the least actionable, creating a continuum for organizing reference material.
• 🗂️ Reference material that could potentially be used for action is placed in the 'Projects' folder, while ongoing standards are maintained in the 'Areas' folder.
• 📚 Subject-specific interests, like psychology or philosophy, are categorized under 'Resources'.
• 🗄️ Completed projects or material that is no longer needed is moved to the 'Archives'.
• 💻 The speaker uses a GTD app called 'Things' for their action management and Evernote for their digital notes and knowledge management.
• 📁 In Evernote, there is an 'Inbox' for reference material, similar to the 'Inbox' in the GTD app for actions.
• 🔗 'Listen Later' and 'Watch Later' inboxes are used for saving podcasts and YouTube videos to be consumed later.
• 📝 Notebooks in Evernote are associated with projects and GTD areas, allowing for a dual system of organization.
• 🏠 An example given is organizing notes for a trip to Portugal, which includes emails and other related documents in a dedicated notebook.
• 📋 The speaker demonstrates how to save online material, like articles, into Evernote using the Web Clipper and categorizing them into the appropriate notebooks.
• 🗃️ The process of organizing includes saving material to an 'Inbox' initially and later processing it to move to the correct notebook or project folder.

Q & A

What does GTD stand for and what is its purpose?

GTD stands for 'Getting Things Done', which is a time management method designed to help individuals organize tasks and manage time effectively.

What is the PARA method and how does it relate to GTD?

The PARA method stands for Projects, Areas, Resources, and Archives. It is a system for organizing non-actionable, potentially actionable information in digital notes, which complements the GTD methodology by providing a structure for managing reference material.

What are the four categories in the PARA method and how do they differ in terms of actionability?

The four categories in the PARA method are Projects, Areas, Resources, and Archives. Projects are the most actionable, while Archives are the least actionable. Areas are for maintaining standards, and Resources are for subjects of interest.

How does the speaker organize actionable items in the GTD system?

The speaker organizes actionable items using the GTD system with an inbox, next actions, someday/maybe, and projects. Each project has corresponding notebooks in Evernote for note-taking and reference.

What is the role of 'inbox' in both the GTD and Evernote systems mentioned in the script?

In both systems, the 'inbox' serves as a collection point for incoming items that require processing. In GTD, it's for actions, while in Evernote, it's for reference material.

How does the speaker use Evernote in conjunction with the GTD system?

The speaker uses Evernote as a digital note-taking tool, or a 'second brain', to manage and organize reference material. It mirrors the structure of the GTD system with inboxes, projects, areas, and archives in Evernote notebooks.

What is the significance of 'stack' in the context of the speaker's Evernote setup?

In the speaker's Evernote setup, a 'stack' refers to a collection of notebooks associated with different projects, which helps in organizing and accessing project-related notes efficiently.

Can you provide an example of how the speaker organizes a piece of reference material in Evernote?

The speaker uses the Evernote Web Clipper to save a simplified version of an article into a corresponding notebook, such as a productivity notebook in the Resources stack, or into the inbox for later processing.

What is the process for organizing a piece of material related to an ongoing project in the speaker's system?

The speaker saves the material as a bookmark and then places it into the specific project folder in Evernote, ensuring that all project-related notes are easily accessible when working on the project.

How does the speaker handle the processing of the Evernote inbox, similar to the GTD inbox?

The speaker processes the Evernote inbox in a manner similar to the GTD inbox, by regularly reviewing and organizing the saved items into appropriate notebooks or projects.

What is the purpose of the 'someday/maybe' category in the GTD system?

The 'someday/maybe' category in the GTD system is for tasks or projects that are not currently actionable but might be considered for action in the future.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Introduction to the PARA Method for Reference Material Organization

The speaker introduces a walkthrough of their method for organizing reference material using the Getting Things Done (GTD) methodology, focusing on the PARA method learned from Thiago Forte. PARA stands for Projects, Areas, Resources, and Archives, creating a continuum for organizing non-actionable information in digital notes. Projects are the most actionable, while archives are the least. The speaker plans to demonstrate how to use this system with examples from their browser and GTD app, Things, and Evernote as their knowledge management tool.

🗂️ Explaining the PARA Method and its Application in GTD

The speaker elaborates on the PARA method, explaining that it is used for organizing reference material that may or may not lead to action. Projects are the most actionable and are placed in the 'projects' folder, while 'areas' are for maintaining standards. 'Resources' are for subjects of interest, and 'archives' are for completed projects or materials that are no longer needed. The speaker provides a visual demonstration using their GTD app, Things, and Evernote, showing how they organize their digital notes with similar structures, including an inbox for reference material and separate notebooks for different projects and areas.

🏠 Using PARA in Practice: The Portugal Trip Example

As a practical example, the speaker discusses planning a trip to Portugal, showing how they use Evernote notebooks corresponding to their GTD projects. They mention a notebook for the Portugal trip containing emails and related materials. The speaker also explains how they process their Evernote inbox, similar to the GTD inbox, and how they save materials using the Evernote Web Clipper, assigning them to the appropriate notebooks or the inbox for later processing.

Keywords

💡GTD

GTD stands for 'Getting Things Done,' a time management method developed by David Allen. It's a system designed to help individuals organize their tasks and projects by categorizing them into actionable items and reference materials. In the video, GTD is the overarching framework within which the PARA method is applied, showing how to integrate the organization of digital notes with the GTD system.

💡PARA method

The PARA method is a system for organizing non-actionable, potentially actionable information in digital notes. It stands for Projects, Areas, Resources, and Archives. The method is highlighted in the video as a way to categorize reference material, with 'Projects' being the most actionable and 'Archives' being the least. The video demonstrates how to use the PARA method in conjunction with a GTD system.

💡Projects

In the context of the video, 'Projects' refers to a category within the PARA method where actionable items are stored. These are tasks or goals that require multiple steps to complete and are part of the GTD system. The video mentions a project related to planning a trip to Portugal, which has its own dedicated notebook in Evernote for organizing related notes and materials.

💡Areas

'Areas' in the PARA method are categories related to ongoing life or work aspects that require maintenance or attention, but are not necessarily projects with a defined endpoint. In the video, the speaker mentions 'dating' and 'health' as examples of areas, each with its own notebook in Evernote for managing related information.

💡Resources

Resources in the PARA method are subjects of interest that do not directly relate to current projects or areas but are stored for potential future use. The video provides an example of a 'productivity' notebook, which is part of the resources category, where general information on productivity is saved for reference.

💡Archives

Archives in the PARA method are for storing completed projects or information that is no longer actively needed but should be kept for potential future reference. The video script mentions moving finished projects to the archives, illustrating the process of decluttering and maintaining an organized system.

💡Evernote

Evernote is a digital note-taking app used by the speaker as their 'second brain' for knowledge management. It is where the PARA method is implemented, with different notebooks created for projects, areas, resources, and archives. The video demonstrates how to use Evernote's features, such as the Web Clipper, to organize online material into the appropriate notebooks.

💡Inbox

In the video, the term 'Inbox' is used in two contexts: as part of the GTD system for actions that need to be processed, and within Evernote as a default notebook for storing incoming reference material that has yet to be categorized. The video shows how the speaker processes both types of inboxes as part of their organization routine.

💡Knowledge Management

Knowledge management, as discussed in the video, refers to the process of capturing, organizing, and making available the information and expertise that individuals and organizations need to function effectively. The PARA method and the use of Evernote are presented as tools for personal knowledge management, helping the speaker to organize and retrieve information efficiently.

💡Web Clipper

The Web Clipper is a feature of Evernote that allows users to save web content directly to their Evernote notebooks. In the video, the speaker uses the Web Clipper to save an article on productivity to a specific notebook within the Resources category, demonstrating how to organize digital notes effectively.

💡Stack

In the context of Evernote, as mentioned in the video, a 'Stack' is a collection of notebooks. The speaker refers to a 'Productivity Stack' which contains notebooks related to different aspects of productivity, showing how notebooks can be grouped for easier access and organization.

Highlights

Introduction to the PARA method for organizing reference material in GTD, learned from Thiago Forte.

PARA stands for Projects, Areas, Resources, and Archives, with a continuum from most to least actionable.

Projects are the most actionable category, while archives are the least actionable.

Reference material that could potentially be used for action is placed in the Projects folder.

Material related to standards to be maintained goes in the Areas folder.

Subjects of interest like psychology, philosophy, math, etc., are categorized under Resources.

Completed projects and material to be discarded are moved to the Archives.

Demonstration of the PARA system using the GTD app 'Things' and Evernote for digital notes.

Evernote has similarities with the GTD system, such as an inbox for reference material.

Explanation of the 'Someday Maybe' and 'Stack' features in Evernote for organizing notes.

Correspondence between GTD projects and Evernote notebooks for managing notes related to projects.

Example of organizing an article on productivity using Evernote Web Clipper and saving it to a notebook.

Default notebook for saving material that doesn't have an immediate categorization.

Processing the Evernote inbox similar to processing the GTD inbox for organization.

Example of saving a tour of a flat in Portugal to the corresponding project folder in Evernote.

Using notebooks to easily access and work on project-related material when needed.

Transcripts

I'm going to share a little walkthrough

of how I organize my reference material

in GTD so we're looking at this branch

of the GTD tree and I want to show you

specifically the para method which is

something I learned from Thiago Forte

which is very GTD esque but it's a

system for organizing non-actionable

potentially actionable information in

digital notes so let's talk a little bit

about the para method

um para stands for projects areas

resources and archives

and the whole idea is that projects are

the most actionable

category of organization and archives

are the least actionable and so there's

a Continuum here

where when you get a piece of reference

material

that that isn't an action in and of

itself it's something that could

potentially be used for Action you put

in the projects folder

and then if it's something that has to

do with standards to be maintained you

put in the areas folder and if it's a

subject of Interest like psychology

philosophy math whatever just things

that you're interested in you put them

in your resources and then whenever

there's stuff that you just don't want

to throw away that you're done with like

for instance if we finish a project you

move it to archives

so I'm going to show you what this looks

like and I've also left some tabs open

in my browser so I can use them as

examples for how I would organize them

in a para system

and I'll start by going to my GTD app

which I use things so this is just

standard GTD there's an inbox here

there's the next actions they call them

anytime there's someday maybe all my

projects are on the left hand side I'm

not sure if you're familiar with this

hat but this is my personal favorite and

then all my areas are over here

and then for my digital notes my my

knowledge management or my second brain

I use Evernote so this is Evernote to

the right you'll notice some

similarities so there's an inbox which

is the same as as just an in basket but

for reference material as opposed to

actions

and then there's these two listen later

and watch later inboxes so this is if

somebody sends me a podcast that I I'm

going to listen to later I'll put it

here or a YouTube video I'll put it here

and then you have para so projects areas

resources and archives you can ignore

these this is just stuff that I need to

organize there's also someday maybe here

um and a stack is just a collection of

notebooks I don't know if you're

familiar with Evernote so I apologize if

this is just very basic but each of

these are notebooks

that are associated with projects and

you'll notice it's not one to one but

there's projects here in my GTD system

that have corresponding notebooks in my

Evernote so for instance I'm planning a

trip to Portugal and so I have like a

bunch of emails and stuff related to the

trip and I have a little notebook here

I'm also renting out my house so I had

to like apply for uh rental agreements

and things like that so these are all my

notes associated with my Portugal trip

and here I don't really have that many

actions remaining but you can see how I

I can work between these two places to

achieve the outcome of the trip

this actually should be

Raider

so let's uh

let's let's come back to areas

um

the same the same thing happens here so

it's not perfectly one-to-one because

I'm not always updating them but

basically I have areas I have like you

know there's a dating area there's a

health area I have notebooks associated

with each GTD area in Evernote now what

does this look like when I'm organizing

material online so let's say this

article is something that I wanna

save into my digital notes

I use the Evernote Web Clipper which can

take a simplified article and then I

will save it to a corresponding notebook

and in this case this isn't associated

with a specific project this is just

general productivity

so I have a productivity notebook in my

resources

stack so I'll just save it there

often if I don't really know where it's

going to go I'll also just save it to

the inbox that that's usually the

default notebook and then later I'll

process my Evernote inbox just like how

I'll process my my things inbox my GTD

inbox so let's just do that for now

let me do one more example

um so this is uh somebody sent me a tour

of their their flat in in Portugal I

want to say this to my

uh my folder related to my Portugal trip

I'll save it as a bookmark in this case

and then I'll do the Portugal project

folder I'll save it there

and now when I'm working on that project

trying to decide on a place to live

all I have to do is is open

this uh this notebook