Comment by major505
6 months ago
I used a lot of Todo and Note taking APP over the years.
My last and the one that ended up working more for me was Microsoft TODO because it was simple and synced with my phone, and actually worked seamless with IOs Reminder app. I sticked with it for a lot of time, but in the end, after a hell week, most my tasks where red with due dates long passed. It just added to my stress seeing all that red.
Today I just carry a small notebook and a pen I like in my back pocket. If I have to do something I start with a task like
- do something.
After done
+ do something
Every start of day, I just grab some coffee, sit for 5 min and go through the last day, what I done, what I could not finish, and create a new todo list for the day.
I also now just carry the notebook for quick notes. Notebook for temporary stuff. If is something more permanent stuff that I need to remember, I just add an entry in my OneNote. If is a event, in goes to my outlook Calendar.
OneNote is hardly ideal, I used to run my life on Notion, but it works well enough, but there where some problems.
* Too much cluter. I did not use 1/3 of what it could do
* I run out of space, and I did not wanted another monthly payment to get premium stuff
* The search in One is reasonable, and does the job
* I can draw in my tablet, for simple diagrams
* Tt syncs with my phone independent if I'm using Android of IOs without me have to think much about it
* is already included in my Office 365 family plan.
* works offline, different from Notion.
My only grip is OneNote don't have a Linux desktop app, just wrappers for the web app, and pasting code on it is a fucking disaster. Other than that, it does the job.
The only thing now that would make me switch is Obsidian, but the IOs app is a fucking disaster. you cannot open vaults outside the Obsidian folder, and I was using git to sync it, but IOs dont have a good free Git app that can sync folders anywhere I want it.
Also, having to sync manually and solving merge conflits for my notes is kinda a pain in the ass.
I am right now on Apple Reminders, which has its advantages, but I've also used OmniFocus a lot, as well as org-mode. And I switch between them from time to time.
Org-mode could be perfect, but sync and mobile apps are PITA. Reminders are good, but limited. However, they are well integrated with calendar. OmniFocus is somehow in between, has own scripting engine, complex, limited at some places, but will surely get it done.
As much as I am with the idea of writing, bringing the pen and notebook with you me all the time get old pretty soon. And, such are the details of modern life, a lot of information arrives per mail or links. Also, no meaningful context can be saved with task. What would happen is that I would have to maintain 2 system - short written tasks and digital information storage for them, and somehow link between them.
But why I commented here: indeed, in the end the system itself does not matter that much. The regular review, in GTD terms, does. Cleaning up junk tasks, plan the day, process the inbox - it can be done with anything.
and just a quick resume: What I find that independent of your note taking system, what really makes the different is that 5 min I told, that I sit and process what was done in the previous day. The discipline to rethink your day, apply again what it works, and do a little different what it did not worked, thats whats really makes the different.