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As I get older, I sometimes need a second brain.  Evernote is that second brain.  I’ve been an Evernote user for about 5 years.  Actually, that’s not true.  I had Evernote downloaded on one of my phones for quite some time but didn’t really get into it in a big way until I was introduced to all that it could really do a couple of years ago by Lindsey Holmes, an Evernote guru if I ever saw one.

Now one of you asked me the other day what I do with it and how I do that.   Here is my brief braindump on Evernote.

1. To Do List – At the beginning of the week, I like to dump out everything that I can think of and just put it into a big list.  That may be some partial implementation of David Allen’s GTD.  So, I create a note that has checkboxes and as I go through the week, I check these things off.  Of course, I tend to schedule the big things in my calendar and prioritize items a bit later.

2. Podcast – When I podcast, more often than not, it is on the go.  So, I tend to record the podcast audio draft into an Evernote note.  I may re-record later.  But there are times when the audio is just good enough and the idea is good enough and I keep it there.  I can download the audio later and do whatever editing I need in post-production.

 

evernote 3. Brainstorm – I dump thoughts into a notebook and share it with another colleague or co-worker.  Currently, I am working on a business idea with a family member.  We have shared the thoughts in the notebook from the name of the idea to pictures or anything that we can think of.

 

4. Clip Articles – I have installed the Evernote Web Clipper on my browsers, Safari and Chrome.  I have also found a few ways to do this with my iPad Safari browser.  I can then save articles to specific notebooks as I browse.  I am able to then quickly search these articles via keywords whenever I am ready to put together a mailing campaign, a newsletter or any other use.  I may not always go back to read all the articles but I do glimpse them periodically.  There is also a Safari extension that now, in real time, brings up “related notes” that I have saved.  This serves as a quick reminder of what I have read in the past.  Again, I may not read the article again but reminders are helpful.

 

5. Go Green – I purchased a Scansnap S1300 last year.  This connects right to my Evernote and allows me to simply press one button to scan documents to my notebooks.  Receipts, bills, statements, paystubs, w-2’s, pictures, magazine articles that I rip out of magazines….these are all things that I pop right into the scanner to store in my outsourced brain, Evernote.

 

I’m sure I use it for a lot more than these 5 things.  But, essentially, its my go-to app for memory in any form.  I hope this helps.

 

What is your go to application?  If you DO use Evernote, how do you use it?

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