#note taking reference

This isn’t a fun or interesting fact but, I take a lot of notes. 

I take notes in class for university. 

I annotate the books I read because I know no chill. 

I take notes during meetings because how in the world do people remember stuff? 

I take notes about my book, create maps, timelines and random facts upon random facts. 

I take a lot of notes. Both out of necessity and just, really enjoying note taking.  

Just look at this school notes from a couple of months ago! 

I love note taking. 

So, as someone who had tried many different note taking methods and you know, goes to university with lots of different people, here are some random things I’ve noticed: 

1.- There are two kinds of people where it comes to note taking, typing or writing. This can also depend on the class and the teacher, but usually people who type are the kind of people who take note of EVERYTHING. Every word the teacher, team leader, whoever says, goes onto paper. 

Personally, this method does not work for me, but I know a lot of people do this in the moment and then later read them and creates diagrams and stuff. I can get behind that, I just never have time for this later on. 

People who do paper notes tend to be more picky with what they write because they don’t have time to get it all down, thereby they will be paying closer attention to get the right stuff down. They still might need to tidy it up later, depends on how neat they’re handwriting is. 

2.- Everybody’s note taking method will change when they are taking notes for other people. Perhaps you make it more neat, perhaps things you already knew and wouldn’t otherwise write down get written down. 

When I’m taking notes for other people I will color code everything. Because my notes are digital I have unlimited colours, so every single number in a practical exercise can be traced through colour. 

My best friend in uni will write everything down where usually she only takes note of what she cared about and my other friend will tidy up there hand writing. 

It’s like when people act different with a camera on them, same principle. 

3.- Some people use art in their note taking. As a kid I did this a lot, next to almost every word I’d have a picture, I claimed it helped me remember. But really it was probably because doodling helps me pay attention and I’m used to getting in trouble for it as a kid. But I know people who do this to make there notes more visible because that’s their prefered study method. 

4.- Some people like to keep all their notes in one place, they’ll do this by using post-its and having all the writing inside the textbook, or writing on a printed out version of the PowerPoints. 

Other people do the opposite, they’ll have a notebook for theory, a notebook for exercises and the book. Having it all together just makes it too overwhelming. 

I love how different our brains can be. It’s amazing. 

5.- Another reason hand written notes are sometimes preferred over digital can be readability. So, reading printed word can sometimes be difficult, I can’t keep track of what sentence I’m on, the letters get mixed up and I have no visual recollection of what the page looked like after. I rarely struggle with my own hand writing. 

I know this is random and specific, but for these kind of oddly specific details are what really sells characters. 

6.- Once you get to your last year in university, you don’t care about how professional or unprofessional you look. I have no problem covering my laptop with kitten stickers, I have no trouble doing an exam with my dragon pen. The first year of uni it felt like everybody was trying to look “normal” or “professional”, but each passing year we gives less cares and have more fun with our time here. So don’t bother to hide your character’s creativity, take notes on pink paper with purple ink and cute pen. 

Do perhaps keep in mind that professors won’t let you hand that in. We’re talking notes not homework. 

 EXTRA: Not exactly about note-taking, but about perception. If you take beautiful notes and your sat somewhere professors can see you, expect them to take note. I’ve had plenty of teachers ask me about my methods, ask me what I do with it at the end of the year and make comments in class about how I must be extremely appreciated by my classmates when they miss class. 

I also asked for notes often by classmates. 

So if you’re making a character who is very academically inclined, might be worth noting. Also, I treat my notes a bit like an art. They take a lot of time and effort and I know from experience, if you share notes, they will get everywhere and to everyone so I tend not to share. Unless with my very close classmates I usually just explain what was given in typed text. 

I’m not saying everyone is like this, but I know a good few people who are protective of there notes. So if your character spends a long time taking very high effort notes, it’s worth noting they may not be open to sharing. But I mean, you’ll know your character better than me. 

As usual,  check out my book, stories I’ve written plus other social medias: here.

I’m thinking of doing a whole por on University and academic life, but at the same time I know Spanish Universities work kinda strangely in comparison to other countries and I don’t want to confuse people. But what would you guys like?