Summary of The FUN and EFFICIENT note-taking system I use in my PhD

00:00:00 - 00:15:00

In this YouTube video, Morgan shares the note-taking system she uses in her PhD program, which is based on the Zettelkasten method. She walks through how the system works and shares four core principles to keep in mind when using it: that everything is knowledge, that thought is the basic unit of knowledge, that everything is interconnected, and that the power of the system comes from the connections between thoughts.

• 00:00:00 Morgan shares that she began her doctoral program by looking for a better note-taking system than the one she used in her undergraduate program. She found the Zettelkasten method, which is a system that allows for the storage of thoughts in paragraphs, and began using it. She shares four core principles to keep in mind when using the system: that everything is knowledge, that thought is the basic unit of knowledge, that everything is interconnected, and that the power of the system comes from the connections between thoughts. She walks through using the system for herself, starting with the first step of taking all the time possible to write.
• 00:05:00 The author of the video takes notes while reading, using a system that includes sticky notes and markdown files. When referencing sources, Obsidian lets you connect between notes and creates links.
• 00:10:00 The author of this YouTube video provides a system for note-taking which he calls "obsidian." This system allows for the easy creation of connections between ideas, which makes it easier to remember and write about concepts. The author suggests that, in order to be effective students need to be autonomous thinkers, and that this is inhibited by the grading system in school. He argues that, by using obsidian, students can more easily connect ideas and make connections between different concepts.
• 00:15:00 This YouTube video is a tutorial on how to use a note-taking system called Zettelkasten. Zettelkasten is a method of taking notes that is different from traditional notebooks because the more notes you take, the more connections between those notes, and the easier it is to come up with ideas for writing projects. The video also includes a fifth principle, which is to trust the system.