Learning
How I Take Notes for Technical Books
A small system that prioritizes recall over highlighting, and writing over collecting.
The problem
For a long time I highlighted a lot and remembered almost nothing. Highlighting feels like learning. It is not.
The rule I follow now
Write more than you highlight. Every chapter ends with a short paragraph in my own words, and a handful of recall questions I could not answer without looking back.
The setup
- Plain markdown files, one per book.
- A section per chapter with:
- Three sentences summarising the main idea.
- Any derivation I want to be able to reproduce.
- Five recall prompts.
- A weekly review pass.
Why it works for me
It separates encountering an idea from owning it. Owning it is what makes it show up later, when I need it.