interpretation of the Zettlekasten method

What is a zettlekasten? “Zettelkasten” is a German word that means “note box” — which sociology legend Niklas Luhmann used to become an extremely productive scholar.

The notes are traditionally numbered hierarchically, so that new notes may be inserted at the appropriate place, and contain metadata to allow the note-taker to associate notes with each other. For example, notes may contain tags that describe key aspects of the note, and they may reference other notes. However, in a digital garden the numbering, metadata, format and structure of the notes is subject to variation depending on the personal method employed.

The 5 most common types of notes I place here;

• Evergreens: Evergreen notes are written and organized to evolve, contribute, and accumulate over time, across projects. - Andy Matuschak
• Budding: Seedlings that are becoming more connected and might eventually become their own evergreens, or connected to existing ones.
• Seedling: The beginnings of an idea or complete thought, usually with a reference with where it comes from if I can disclose it.
• Literature Notes: My interpretation of the notes I take from books, podcasts, and articles. Normally, it’s a re-written version of a highlight I took somewhere. When it’s from a book, you’ll find it on my bookshelf