How I use Zettelkasten as Indie Dev / Product Manager

EduardMe

Hi there!

I finally figured it out. I’m not an academic, I build apps. So, I wondered how I could apply Zettelkasten to my work.

I’m not just coding, I’m also receiving constructive user feedback. This is usually about bug reports and feature suggestions. However, sometimes I get flooded by emails and messages. There are more good features than time to build and every feature needs some serious thinking and planning. So, in my role I cover here is a mix of developer and product manager.

I was using Jira, a project management software to collect, manage, and plan feature ideas and bug reports. But it quickly grew to over 1000 items. It’s mostly useless now.

Then I started my Zettelkasten and I’m not opening Jira anymore.

Here is how I translate it to my work:

1. Input: Reading books and academic articles = Feedback emails
2. Capture: Literature notes on books = Feedback notes
3. File notes and link: Permanent Zettelkasten notes are the same for me, short, atomic ideas for features, clarifications, questions, interconnected where it makes sense.
4. Interim Output: Manuscript for an article or book = Feature specification document
5. Final Output: Final Draft for an article or book = Written code implementing a feature

In my process, I first capture feedback emails as notes in an inbox folder. Then the next day or so, I process my inbox and create permanent Zettelkasten notes, interconnected where it makes sense. Once clusters emerge I can take it one step further and write a specification document which I then use to build a new feature or fix a bug.

Without the Zettelkasten I would have to brainstorm and rely on my fragile memory to write that spec or worse, dig up the emails and read them again, out of context. So, naturally, I would spend much more time on this and miss important details.

I wrote a full article on this, above is the gist of it. If you want to read the full piece with screenshots, check this out: https://blog.noteplan.co/zettelkasten-for-devs/

djdrysdale

This is really interesting! I have a UX research team and I have been thinking a lot at how well a zettelkasten might work for research insights. There's some affinity between the concept of "research nuggets" (after Tomer Sharon) and the principle of atomicity; and, I think there's potentially a lot of power in being able to link those insights together to create new knowledge relevant to a product.

One thing I've been wrestling with is the extent to which things like usability testing or research that's very tightly focused on a specific product, feature, or context can be generalizable. As well, I wonder about getting a team on board with doing research this way and documenting it in a way that is consumable to others. (That's why I think a lot about the principle that you are writing for an other, even in a personal zettelkasten.)

Splattack

This is very interesting because it applies perfectly well to your needs. Nice. In the end, you're doing problem solving translated into code which isn't that far from writing an academic argument. Based on how you work on those feedback inputs and captures, that kind of organization you have is a valuable skill. I bet you're gonna become even more efficient this way you're exploring.

I liked your writing a lot. (It ended abruptly though, I wanted to keep reading).
BTW, what application are you using in your screenshots? looks really neat

EduardMe

@Splattack

I bet you're gonna become even more efficient this way you're exploring.

That's what I try to achieve. My note-taking was full of holes before that, now I know everything important is captured and I know how to find it when I need to.

I liked your writing a lot. (It ended abruptly though, I wanted to keep reading).

Thanks! Yes, I wanted to keep it short.

BTW, what application are you using in your screenshots? looks really neat

https://noteplan.co, I'm developing it for a few years and added backlinks for Zettelkasten.

EduardMe

@djdrysdale

I have a UX research team and I have been thinking a lot at how well a zettelkasten might work for research insights.

I bet it's super useful. You could collect interesting nuggets of UX insights, connected to each other where there is a similar context and develop UX ideas. I also have some notes which revolve around UX. Embedding screenshots sometimes.

As well, I wonder about getting a team on board with doing research this way and documenting it in a way that is consumable to others.

Zettelkasten started off as personal knowledge management, you would need to modify it maybe for team work. But on the other side, permanent notes added to the Zettelkasten are written in a way that another person can understand it, because this other person will be you in the future. So it's not that far fetched to use it in a team. Everyone just needs to stick to the "rules", like atomic notes, written in your own words, etc.