How to write things down

A technique for note-taking

Writing things down is good.

There will be things that you want to remember, say and ask about, and taking the trouble to write them down will help ensure that in the right moment, you actually do.

Notes and sentences

There is a particular way of writing things down that can make them much more effective.

First write them as short notes.

Then write them again, putting them into complete sentences.

There is real power and value in doing this. When you look at a note you have just quickly scribbled down, in your mind it will represent a fully-formed thought - and you will think that you have written a useful note.

Later, when you need to express the thought properly in a real live situation, you will discover that the precise thought eludes you, and you will struggle to express it in any satisfactory way; it will come out broken and weak.

Instead if you then also write it out as a full sentence, you’ll have that in your mind and on paper too.

Quite likely, that exact sentence won’t be the exact one you need when the time comes - but it will be far easier to shift from that to another fluent expression of the idea that it will be to make it come to life from short notes.

Yes, it takes a lot longer to do it this way, but the first time you need to reach for a sentence, and find it there ready to hand - whether in your mind or on the page - you will be grateful.

Writing things down like this is a form of practice, rehearsal that makes you good at it.