Running note — Nr. 118

You should create a running note when you're doing lots of thinking.

• You should keep a running note when your activity involves lots of thinking. I like to use Apple Notes. I’ll write down the questions I have in my head.

• For example, when you're learning something new. This week, I learned how to make TicTacToe in my programming exercise. I open a running note to break the problems into smaller pieces. I wrote, “How to detect the winner in TicTacToe?” “How to alternate between O and X?”

• This way, I can unload the information from my brain, it frees up my prefrontal cortex. So, I can use my brain power to solve the problem instead of holding the information.

• The running note will look like a FAQ document at the end of the day. There’s a question, and there’s an answer. It helps me to think clearly.

• Designers can benefit from running doc as well. When you design an interaction, you must make many decisions. So it’s helpful to write your temporary decision and then assess it.

• For example, I am designing a calendar interface this week. I was contemplating whether or not users can change the block’s color on the calendar. After considering a few things, I wrote, “Users can’t change the calendar block color for now.” At least not for this first version; it is not critical. I’d rather invest the energy in the other critical parts of delivering user value.

• This can prevent us from procrastinating as well.

• You can ignore grammar and mechanics when writing a running note. For example, I write something like this: “When users click block - - show the dialog - - user can edit file name?” I find dashes are helpful to split different parts of my thinking.

• Step 0: Choose your note-taking app.

• Step 1: Write down the question or statement in bold. When unsure what decision to make, starting with a question is useful. Or write down assumptions in a statement format. Keep this short. Think of this like your heading.

• Step 2: Elaborate. Under the bolded statement or questions, write down your thinking.

• Step 3: Clean up. It's helpful to quickly summarize your decision so you can move on to the next problem. The clean-looking note is also appetizing.

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PS. Substack is boring. I missed my old blog.