When I first started to use Evernote I thought that it was a simple way to record notes - was I ever wrong!
Evernote has done a fantastic job of providing a ubiquitous platform for storing, organising and accessing information - the information you need to get things done (I've specifically chosen the last three words).
Some years ago, I read a great book by David Allen called "Getting Things Done". The concepts in David's book just rang true to me and I implemented some of the advice in my work and private life. But over the years, I started to drift away from these foundational practices as things got busy and a bit chaotic (circa 2009 GFC and other big life moments).
Recently I downloaded an eBook from the Kindle store called "Getting Things Done must read Summaries" by David Allen for my adult son so he could learn the basics of GTD. I read it too and it kindled (pun intended) a desire in me to see what solutions were around in the marketplace that would help me to pull together a GTD solution using today's technology. I found another eBook from the Kindle store called "Evernote: The unofficial guide to capturing everything and getting things done." by Daniel E. Gold. Now you can see where Evernote is coming into the fray...
One of the underpinning tenets of GTD is that you need a system (system means a set of processes, not necessarily a computer or application) to handle all of the things in your life. Your work life, your personal life. You need to handle what things to address now, what to file/store, what to get rid of. By handling all of the calls on your time, and having a system on which you can rely, you free up your brain (both conscious and sub-conscious) to "flow like water".
Evernote runs just about everywhere - Windows, Mac, Android (Smartphone & tablet), iPhone & iPad, Blackberry (does anyone still use these?) and using a browser. On Linux you can use an open source solution called Nixnote (used to be known as Nevernote).
OK, so it runs in a lot of places - that's good. But what do you do with it? You store notes, files, pretty much anything that you can store on a computer. Notes are stored in Notebooks. Notebooks can be grouped in Stacks. A note can have any number of tags (that you define). When you install Evernote on Windows it has nifty integration features like browser add-ins that allow you to clip information on web pages. There are several ways in which you can clip information on a web page; the URL, the whole page, a selection and the auto-select option.
Evernote also provides hooks in Outlook and in the right-click menu on files under the "Send to" option.
One feature I find particularly impressive is when you add an image as a note. I've purchased a portable scanner so that I can scan items like receipts, warranties and other documents. I then upload the image to Evernote as a new note - give it a title and tags. But the clever stuff is that Evernote has automatically OCR'd the image and I can find the image based on its content.
Oh, did I say that Evernote is free?
I have chosen the premium edition (which provides some extra functionality and storage). It's very cost-effective when you consider the benefits I am deriving from it.
