As a coach, trainer and blogger, I need to read a lot to refresh my knowledge and apply it in my daily life. Every month, I read two to four books in various areas.
In the past, I didn’t take notes. After finishing a book, I would then move on to another one. When there came a time that I wanted to retrieve something, I could identify the books, but I could hardly recall the pages.
I realised I needed to find a note-taking method for books. At first, I opted for the most straightforward approach. I created a page in Notion and jotted notes whenever necessary. Occasionally, I even typed the entire paragraphs onto the page. However, after just a week, I found myself giving up on this method.
Jotting down notes may seem straightforward at first. In theory, it should lead to a nearly ready book summary upon finishing a book. But this method can be quite draining. Whenever you come across something interesting, you have to pause, open your note-taking media, and write down notes. These interruptions can disrupt the enjoyment of reading. Moreover, even if you complete the summary, there’s a chance that you may not need it in the foreseeable future. Taking comprehensive notes while reading requires significant time and effort, yet the notes don’t guarantee a worthwhile return. Personally, I found this method to be unsustainable.
While exploring alternative note-taking methods, I came across Cal Newport’s Corner Marking Method. This method is simple – all you need is a pencil. Rather than jotting down notes, he marks the remarkable passages directly in the margins of the corresponding pages. He then draws a clear line across the corner of the page. He doesn’t rely on comprehensive summaries. Instead, he revisits the books as needed, flips the pages and find those corner marks.
I was fascinated by the Corner Marking Method but reluctant to draw on my books. Cal suggests buying multiple copies of the same book for different purposes. This suggestion, however, is too expensive. Therefore, I refined his method to suit my preference. Instead of marking with a pencil, I use transparent sticky notes. Since sticky notes are exposed outside the edge of the book, they also become corner marks.
Corner Marking Method with Sticky Notes
The only drawback is when you lack sticky notes – the method doesn’t work without them. This is the minimum setup cost of my Corner Marking Method. But you can easily overcome it in comparison to marking the books or jotting notes. Last December, I travelled to Osaka with my books. When I was on the aeroplane, I realised I had forgotten to bring the transparent sticky notes. I then substituted them with non-transparent sticky notes. When I landed, I went to a grocery store, bought several packs of transparent sticky notes, and replaced those marked during the flight.
Earlier this year, I had a book presentation. After I selected a book, I reviewed all the sticky notes I had placed on the book. In just 10 minutes, I reviewed and copied all the necessary information to a Notion page. Since the content has been pre-processed using the Corner Marking Method, I could easily recall the ideas. This enhanced the efficiency and effectiveness of my presentation preparation.
The Corner Marking Method is a simple yet effective technique. The sticky notes are now all over my books. I’m pleased with this method. I don’t have to sit down and jot notes, feeling unsure whether I’d use the summaries in future. With this method, all I need is a pack of sticky notes. Whenever I pick up a book, I can quickly retrieve the ideas by flipping through the sticky notes.
Sticky notes everywhere