Every so often, I come across something that makes a certain facet of life feel like it goes from darkness to light. Occasionally it’s something large (bordering on epiphany), but most times it’s something smaller.
Even smaller things, though, can seem big when a certain problem is solved or a new way of looking at something presents itself.
This week, I had one of those moments.
The Problem
When e-book readers became common, I bought a Kindle Fire. I love being able to highlight passages and make notes about what I’m reading. It comes in especially handy when reading something for research. My problem has been having research in two places.
I’m a fan of Evernote — so much so that I made a page and video dedicated to using Evernote as a writer. (While the content is a bit outdated, the concepts remain the same.) I keep all my writing research in Evernote. Well…almost all my research in Evernote.
With highlighted sections and notes in my Kindle, I thought the only way to view them was on my Kindle.
My Productivity Method
My productivity method is pretty simple:
- Do the things I want to do before other things (i.e. wake up and write before my day job tasks).
- Never have a long to-do list (because I’ll feel overwhelmed and do nothing at all).
- Say “Nope!” to a lot of things so that I can focus on the things that matter most to me.
- Turn off all sounds and vibrations on my smart phone — and only interact with it when I’m ready to see what’s come in through email and other channels.
- Don’t watch much television.
Evernote, the calendar on my phone, and reminders are the only electronic devices I use. Of those, Evernote is the one most important for writing…with Kindle highlights and notes coming in second.
And Then Along Came Prometheus
For quite some time, I’ve wondered if there was an easy way to get the marked information from my Kindle into Evernote. (Apparently not enough to go to Google and type “Kindle notes to Evernote, which would have showed me this Michael Hyatt blog entry from 2011 explaining the process.)
I didn’t stumble upon the link, though…I listened to this video on Wednesday, which contains mention of the tip at the 29:10 mark.
Easily Pleased
It was only a handful of days ago that I had Evernote open and my Kindle Fire at my side, looking for some specific research. The bit I looked for was on my Kindle, and I had to transfer the information into a manuscript by hand.
Knowing that was the last time I’ll ever do that in my life made me a very happy person!
I am getting farther and farther behind in technology. Fortunately I have grandchildren now who will be able to get me back up to speed.
Paul,
I definitely find myself seeing new technology and thinking, “This is kind of like that last ‘next big thing’ that was a “big thing” for a year or so until it was jettisoned for something essentially the same, but with the ability to say, “I am on the next new wave, people!” As for Evernote, though…I’m definitely a fan. I think it can become easy for some to dump everything into it and fill it with things they will never check out, but for holding research and ideas that can be accessed anywhere, I love that aspect of Evernote.
It will be interesting to see how much technology changes as your grandchildren get older. It’s so strange to know that some people view smartphone technology as just common, where it still seems like something beyond sci-fi to me when I think about it all.