Whenever I study a specific subject or engage in a learning project, no matter its breadth, especially when this learning process involves reading, I tend to go through the following steps or phases:

1. I use an outline to study. I create a new note, title it with something relevant to the learning project, and populate it with information and links produced in subsequent steps. This is the project note.
2. I perform my metalearning process.
3. I use my reading process to engage with reading materials.
4. I write literature notes, which include retrieval prompts that help me remember critical information from what I read.
5. I use my literature notes as prompts for my journaling process to explore and develop my own understanding of the main ideas from the materials I read through free and stream-of-consciousness writing. Whatever original insight arises from my journaling, I track in an index of my journals.
6. I write evergreen notes when necessary (how to convert literature notes to evergreen notes). Per my note-writing rules, I avoid writing evergreens to avoid increasing the maintenance burden of having a large number of notes. However, when it is really necessary for me to write an evergreen note based on what I read (e.g., if the literature notes help articulate a specific process in my work), I shall do so.
7. I constantly revise the tala/outline of the learning project or any others that were affected by progress in my studies and thinking. I create additional outlines when needed.

To do

• Develop this note further by adding links to how I use a reading inbox.

References

Tietze, C. (200 C.E., 24:32). Use a Short Knowledge Cycle to Keep Your Cool. Zettelkasten. https://www.zettelkasten.de/posts/knowledge-cycle-efficiently-organize-writing-projects/