A Brain To Remember Everything You Read | My Notion Knowledge Management System

[@BetterCreating]

Hi all, big one this week! What do you think of these apps? To learn more than ever from important non-fiction books, make sure to join me on Shortform: shortform.com/bettercreating. You’ll get a 5-day free trial and a 20% discount on an annual subscription. You might have noticed: one of my favourite books on Shortform is Getting Things Done by David Allen!

[@StacyinNJ]

Finding Readwise more of a pain than its worth

[@MichaelPierce66]

Thank you for pulling this all together in one video, and not focusing solely on Notion. I’ve seen other videos about creating second brains…but they only deal with content once it’s in Notion. You’re the only one to really talk about how to get the content into Notion from the disparate places we stumble across great ideas. Thank you!

[@BetterCreating]

No worries - yes - this system is definitely best as a collection of sources being drawn into a central hub. The definition of a good Second Brain system.

[@Shmyrk]

Such an underrated channel. I’m just getting started with Second Brain, so a lot of this is jargon to me at the moment but I suspect it will become clearer as I revisit it, because it certainly is a cornerstone to helping me get started. Thank You!

[@BetterCreating]

Great to read my friend - welcome to the channel. Yea, there can be a bit of jargon, but the fundamental ideas can be an amazing shift in making life and work easier! :) cheers.

[@Shmyrk]

@@BetterCreating keep at it brother! Your quality is undeniable and your day is coming

[@MiPo3333]

Yes, I've set up a similar system to combine all the different contents I aggregate in Notion. As you say, it's so important to actually create something new (at least for ourselves) from all that information we collect.

[@justtere]

I like the idea of indicating why I am keeping the information. Review may also be a great way to revitalize a project missing something you missed.

[@BetterCreating]

Yeah totally agree - the ‘why’ but has been most useful to me since I started it - and trying to link it to a possible output from the moment your capture it, even if that doesn’t materialise. Thanks for watching! :)

[@winter_metal]

Yeaaaah my Notion man back again!!!

[@BetterCreating]

Never left my friend. :)

[@mushroomthump]

Extremely valuable information. I just set up my Readwise/notion integration for the first time this morning after being a long time standalone Notion user. Was looking for other tips on how to maximize usage and you nailed it. Instant sub looking forward to more content!

[@BetterCreating]

Ah thanks for the great feedback! Welcome to the BC community! Great to have you. :)

[@jonathanramsey]

Thanks so much! I’m a solo creator and has watched one of your videos on Notion too far back to remember why. Since you’d already convinced me to install it on my iPhone, I’m sprinting off from this video to reacquaint myself with it. Evidently, I’d never gotten to the point of integrating it or learning it well enough the first time round. I was a bit confounded by the information, but intrigued enough to dive in deeper. 😊 Cheers!

[@BetterCreating]

Great to read. - good luck with your set up - loads more on the playlists to help here I hope.

[@kencarpenter9741]

Thank you for this! I've been struggling with a way to retain and ultimately use the information that I consume. Your system is wonderful, and I like how you explain everything. Hitting subscribe right now!

[@tomgogal]

Some very good ideas for knowledge gathering and creating a second brain.

[@BetterCreating]

Thanks Tom!

[@hanbaltussen2165]

Looks formidable but also rather complex

[@BetterCreating]

Yes it’s definitely a little complex to build it out in one go - but this is a good example of what you can do to automate and focus where you collect, store and reuse info. I’d always say just use what works for you - but hope it’s some good inspiration! :)

[@shreyapatil1]

There should be a super like button for this video…so useful

[@BetterCreating]

Haha - love it! Thanks for watching !

[@shah_riar_._]

I'm glad I found this channel! ^_^

[@BetterCreating]

Me too! Welcome!

[@janaue]

Thank you so much for the Airr recommendation. 👍 I was really struggling to save the notes, especially outside during dog walking. 😏

[@GetQuirked]

Stoked to start this process! Thanks!

[@BetterCreating]

Enjoy! It’s pretty cool!

[@PedroFernandezRuiz]

Just in time to start my day!

[@BetterCreating]

Morning!!

[@allanbrackens9808]

this sounds great! I can't wait to try it.

[@BetterCreating]

Thanks for watching - enjoy!

[@imtiyazahmed3357]

Hello, Readwise is costly but its feature to scan physical book is awesome. Are there any more such alternatives?

[@markbeckett3317]

I really enjoy your videos... and am currently wrestling with both hardware (type ipad ) and just, if not more importantly software to gather and organize information from my various interest areas into an easily (logical) retrievable information database. I know that I really want to keep as much as I can off the cloud and on my own computer. I think that this is very to start out with and increasingly important as time goes by. I enjoy that fact you talk about coordinating different apps to support one another. The information is dizzying and I , quite honestly, will have to listen to it several times. Are these apps you refer to all mac compatible/preferable ? Loved the quote "You have to build it to thoroughly understand it" it is a must for me. Thanks for the video Mark

[@BetterCreating]

Ah thanks Mark. Sure: it’s very much an overview video so there is likely a lot to digest for someone new to it all! Yeah - a tricky question: I feel - if you do decide to use Notion as your hub - that laptop/desktop first is essential to do proper edits. Check out obsidian and Evernote too- they may offer no cloud based storage - not sure. But for me - Notion’s customisation is fab. Good luck!

[@toddgilligan]

Sounds interesting. I think this is a common problem, but I'm going to need a deep dive on your process if I'm to understand it for implementation, maybe a little bit more deep and explanation will be enough

[@BetterCreating]

Yeah it's a good system. I'll aim to make another video on this later in the year around my new 2022 Notion set-up. But yeah, just check out Readwise and their guides and you should quite quickly see how to use it and then export to Evernote / Roam / Notion as you wish. Thanks for watching

[@toddgilligan]

@@BetterCreating Cool, will do, great videos, keep up the good work!

[@BetterCreating]

Cheers Todd!

[@marierejoiceinjesus3846]

It’s way to hard to get my data into Readwise. And I’ll need to start using like 5 new apps to make it easier.

[@BetterCreating]

Fair enough. It’s definitely take some setting up! Now mine is integrated I don’t think about it and it’s awesome!

[@marierejoiceinjesus3846]

@@BetterCreating I am trying to find out how I can make it work for me because you cannot find anything else like it (as far as I know). I signed up for a subscription anyway. I just wish there was a simple way to sync PDF notes. I see they are working on a RSS reader, which is nice. I did away with all subscriptions, but I will make an exception for this!

[@markbeckett3317]

Is Notion cloud based; or stand alone? I don't want to collect all my information over time and have it stored precariously in the cloud Thanks Mark

[@leonfmr]

HI thanks for sharing Does highlighting in Readwise work with ebooks in PDF and epub formats? (the ones I don't have in kindle), also, if you handwrite your notes with an iPad or other device could this work with Notion too? Thanks!

[@timfederwitz]

I bought your new 2022 complete life OS and am loving it! I just signed up for Readwise and did the first sync. In this video, it looks as though you are saying/experimenting with using the "Readwise" auto-synched Notion database as your "Knowledge Bank". Do I have this right?? Meaning, you were looking at moving things from your personal "Second Brain" DB to the "Readwise" DB? If this is indeed what you were doing, does the content you add to the Readwise DB auto-sync back up to Readwise?? I am also wondering: Couldn't you simply move the Readwise page/DB into the "My Life OS" and then also link it as a live view in the "Knowledge Bank" view? I suppose moving it is not a hard requirement, but I would think the synching should still work and I just like to keep my sidebar organized. I'm still very new to Notion and still trying to understand much of this and the inner workings of Notion. Thanks for all the amazing content! Keep it up!

[@BetterCreating]

Yes - You basically need to set up the readwise integration - when you do that it creates a new database in Notion - then you would need to transform that Readwise database into your new Knowldege Bank - recreating all the links and views of it into template pages etc. it’s quite a lot of work but the only way to have a readwise integration linked into your system. If you have existing content - you can send this to the new readwise-created Notion database - but this will not sync back the other way to your readwise account. Hope that makes sense!

[@cameronnaylor4046]

Not a lot of options for Android here :/

[@BetterCreating]

No, I’m afraid I’m very much a mac user! So these are an example of what I use. majority however are universal online web applications (Notion, Shortform, Kindle, Readwise etc )

[@dfxdfx5368]

Do I have to pay if I get the readwise extension? How do I connect it with notion?

[@BetterCreating]

You can have it for a free trial: usually you can find a code from some one like Ali Abdaal for 3-months - but yea, then you have to pay. I wasn’t sure about paying to start with but it’s such a powerful tool for me, and positive investment in my learning, I’m ok to pay it. You connect Notion on the Readwise website as mentioned in the vid. It’s an export function in readwise.

[@martyn_b_jones]

Am I imaging this (I did watch this great vid late at night), but can you import from Books/Kindle into Readwise & Notion and it will also show the page number of the highlight? I've imported from Books to Readwise but the ordering seems a bit random which then means its random in Notion too?

[@BetterCreating]

Thanks for watching. Yeah - hard to know on that one. Mine seem to go in in order - but it might be that if you add new quotes they then turn up above or below the previous batch each time you sync the export from Readwise into Notion. I'd ask Readwise support about it - the system is still in BETA anyway i think. Good luck! I'm loving this Readwise set up!

[@maki9876]

Wouldn't this result in plagiarism in a way?

[@BetterCreating]

How do you mean? What would be the plagiarism bit? Of course - I’m suggesting this is a way to capture references and then use them to inform work: how one chooses to do that should have integrity etc :)

[@ModMonk3y]

O____o 3k views and only 14 comments >.> what?

[@BetterCreating]

Just need that algorithm to do it’s thing!! Doing what I can :)

[@ModMonk3y]

@@BetterCreating going to binge watch your videos looking for a detailed overview of notion to help :) much love your content is amazing keep on the grind friend

[@martensandstrom7343]

Notion seems to be too complicated for me at least

[@BetterCreating]

This is an advanced approach! Keep it simple and it’s fab :)

[@billburns2289]

Now that Readwise “Reader” is out, how have you simplified the toolset/workflow? The Command browser seems unnecessary now if you use the readwise platform, based on my very initial test of both.

[@BetterCreating]

Yes indeed - I’m likely just switching to Readwise reader from Command now. Great for highlighting saved Twitter threads too

[@marknicholson5508]

Gosh, do you need a third brain to remember all the apps you use for your second brain?

[@BetterCreating]

Haha - I stopped at 5 Brains and just gave up remembering things.

[@Kelson01]

This is a hidden gem of a KZbin video and it's the most useful video I've watched so far this year. Excellent!

[@BetterCreating]

Love this - thanks for the great feedback and welcome to the channel! :)

[@lisatseatsura7832]

very useful

[@BetterCreating]

Thanks for watching :)

[@boy_peeps]

My new favorite productivity channel. Your videos are a joy to watch. Packed full of very useful information. Thank you!

[@BetterCreating]

I’ll take it! Thanks. :) thanks for the comment - always means a lot and keeps me creating. 👍

[@KingKevin108]

Oh wow this looks a bit overwhelming but really interesting. Maybe I do need to get into Notion after all.

[@BetterCreating]

It’s great! But yes - needs a bit of knowledge on Notion first!

[@Rob.S_1]

Hi Simon, I only discovered your channel recently but I’m a big fan. I used your link to get a trial of Short Form and am looking at using Readwise with to integrate it with Notion as you have in this video. Do you have an affiliate link for Readwise at all? Thank you

[@BetterCreating]

Thanks Rob - no affiliate link for Readwise, but thanks for asking! Good news is that I believe Shortform now integrates directly with Readwise too. :)

[@Rob.S_1]

@@BetterCreating Yes looks like they have it direct through the app which is good. Keep up the great work!

[@jamieotoole2092]

Thanks for the video Simon. Is there a way to save content with tags straight away across different mediums other than chrome ? or do you just tag everything once it's loaded in notion?

[@BetterCreating]

No worries! This is the only tool I’ve found so far that does it. Bardeen could also do it I think but also a chrome extension. Let’s see!

[@jamieotoole2092]

@@BetterCreating Thanks Simon. I am looking to sync the auto created readwise pages with my new knowledge bank, there doesn't seem to be an option (like linking new pages) other than 2 manually move? Cheers!

[@Henthrad]

So, a digital-age version of Luhmann's Zettelkasten, right?

[@BetterCreating]

Boom

[@DandA604]

Sponsored post! Congrats. 😁🙏🏼

[@BetterCreating]

Thanks - enjoying these new collaborations! This one was a no-brainer as Shortform is awesome! :)

[@wtalkie]

You are underrated

[@BetterCreating]

Thanks! Let’s spread the word! :)