Understand Zettelkasten Essentials

Edmund · July 30

It starts with a clear plan. The Harada Method [1] shows you how to turn your goal into concrete steps. Instead of getting stuck at the initial stage, your goal is systematically broken down into 64 specific actions.

This turns your idea into an actionable plan with daily habits:

Structure your goal (1 central goal).
Reduce complexity (8 supporting pillars).
Define actionable steps (8x8 specific actions).

Reference
[1] Harada, Takashi, and Norman Bodek. The Harada Method the Spirit of Self-Reliance. PCS Press, 2012.

GeoEng51 · July 30

@Edmund I like that chart! Haven't seen it before, but clearly it has high potential.

harr · July 31

Interesting idea to use Shohei Ohtani's version of Harada's Open Window 64 chart in this way. The chart makes sense to me as a mnemonic device that uses a 9x9 grid for loci.

Personally, I prefer the version in Harada's book. It merges the nine center boxes into one.

Here's how the chart would look as a simple HTML table, that can be directly included in a Markdown file. I think it works well, even without custom styling.

Read Luhmann's basic principle	Understand the second brain idea	See how it differs from filing	Learn fleeting notes	Learn literature notes	Learn permanent notes	Capture an idea while reading	Process fleeting notes same day	Convert one into a permanent note
Watch a beginner explainer	CORE CONCEPT & HISTORY	Read Ahrens chapters 1–2	Write one of each type	NOTE TYPES	Understand atomicity	File it into your system	BASIC WORKFLOW	Link it to an existing note
Write your own goal for using it	Sketch how it differs from a wiki	Explain it in one paragraph	Learn structure notes/MOCs	Compare the three side by side	Build an example set of three	Review your inbox weekly	Run one full cycle end to end	Time yourself on one pass
Learn what a link is for	Add your first two-way link	Create a simple index note	UNDERSTAND Zettelkasten ESSENTIALS			Choose a tool, e.g. Obsidian	Install and set up your vault	Learn basic markdown syntax
Try one structure note or MOC	LINKING & STRUCTURE	Avoid tag-only organizing				Set up one simple template	TOOL BASICS	Learn a few keyboard shortcuts
Explore the backlinks panel	Link five existing notes together	Check the graph view once				Explore the backlink panel	Try exactly one plugin	Back up your vault once
Learn one idea per note	Practice writing clear titles	Write ideas in your own words	Set a daily capture habit	Schedule a weekly review	Revisit old notes monthly	Do not over-organize too early	Do not just collect quotes	Do not skip linking notes
Avoid copy-pasting quotes	WRITING ATOMIC NOTES	Add context for future you	Track how your note count grows	REVIEWS & HABITS	Reflect on what is working	Do not perfect the system first	AVOIDING PITFALLS	Do not leave notes isolated
Keep each note short	Revise one note after a week	Write ten practice notes	Adjust your workflow as needed	Note small milestones	Keep a short learning journal	Do not hoard tools or plugins	Do not compare to experts yet	Just start writing notes

Edmund · July 31

@harr said:
Interesting idea to use Shohei Ohtani's version of Harada's Open Window 64 chart in this way. The chart makes sense to me as a mnemonic device that uses a 9x9 grid for loci.

Personally, I prefer the version in Harada's book. It merges the nine center boxes into one.

Here's how the chart would look as a simple HTML table, that can be directly included in a Markdown file. I think it works well, even without custom styling.

Great idea to use HTML. It's also easy to add links to relevant web pages:

Read Luhmann's basic principle	Understand the second brain idea	See how it differs from filing	Learn fleeting notes	Learn literature notes	Learn permanent notes	Capture an idea while reading	Process fleeting notes same day	Convert one into a permanent note
Watch a beginner explainer	CORE CONCEPT & HISTORY	Read Ahrens chapters 1–2	Write one of each type	NOTE TYPES	Understand atomicity	File it into your system	BASIC WORKFLOW	Link it to an existing note
Write your own goal for using it	Sketch how it differs from a wiki	Explain it in one paragraph	Learn structure notes/MOCs	Compare the three side by side	Build an example set of three	Review your inbox weekly	Run one full cycle end to end	Time yourself on one pass
Learn what a link is for	Add your first two-way link	Create a simple index note	UNDERSTAND ZETTELKASTEN ESSENTIALS			Choose a tool, e.g. Obsidian	Install and set up your vault	Learn basic markdown syntax
Try one structure note or MOC	LINKING & STRUCTURE	Avoid tag-only organizing				Set up one simple template	TOOL BASICS	Learn a few keyboard shortcuts
Explore the backlinks panel	Link five existing notes together	Check the graph view once				Explore the backlink panel	Try exactly one plugin	Back up your vault once
Learn one idea per note	Practice writing clear titles	Write ideas in your own words	Set a daily capture habit	Schedule a weekly review	Revisit old notes monthly	Do not over-organize too early	Do not just collect quotes	Do not skip linking notes
Avoid copy-pasting quotes	WRITING ATOMIC NOTES	Add context for future you	Track how your note count grows	REVIEWS & HABITS	Reflect on what is working	Do not perfect the system first	AVOIDING PITFALLS	Do not leave notes isolated
Keep each note short	Revise one note after a week	Write ten practice notes	Adjust your workflow as needed	Note small milestones	Keep a short learning journal	Do not hoard tools or plugins	Do not compare to experts yet	Just start writing notes

My first idea was to use MS Excel for Harada's Open Window 64 chart. However, HTML could enhance collaborative work within the forum.

ZettelDistraction · July 31

Incidentally, aside from YAML properties or however one writes digital Zettln, the HTML form is an example of a structure note, in @Sascha's sense.

Sascha · August 1

@ZettelDistraction said:
Incidentally, aside from YAML properties or however one writes digital Zettln, the HTML form is an example of a structure note, in @Sascha's sense.

Exactly.

harr · August 1

@Edmund said:
My first idea was to use MS Excel for Harada's Open Window 64 chart. However, HTML could enhance collaborative work within the forum.

I like HTML in my personal notes for similar reasons. The content is accessible by full-text search. The links are accessible for backlink search and command line tools. Version control is much easier, because it's just text. And the files are smaller.

In Obsidian I enjoy tinkering with CSS. This is how the chart looks like in my zettelkasten. The colors are inspired by the Harada/Bodek book:

PS: Nice workaround with the <small> tags! It makes the chart much more readible in the forum.

Andy · August 1

@harr, I've been impressed by your custom CSS examples that I've seen in the forum. I would love to see more whenever it's relevant.

ZettelDistraction · August 1

The CSS is good. The links are missing.

harr · August 1

@Andy said:
@harr, I've been impressed by your custom CSS examples that I've seen in the forum. I would love to see more whenever it's relevant.

Thanks!

@ZettelDistraction said:
The CSS is good. The links are missing.

Thanks! The links are formatted as normal text. In my local system are discoverable on mouse-over. I find it easier to read.

tomp · August 1

@harr said:

@Edmund said:

I like HTML in my personal notes for similar reasons. The content is accessible by full-text search. The links are accessible for backlink search and command line tools. Version control is much easier, because it's just text. And the files are smaller.

In Obsidian I enjoy tinkering with CSS. This is how the chart looks like in my zettelkasten. The colors are inspired by the Harada/Bodek book:

PS: Nice workaround with the <small> tags! It makes the chart much more readible in the forum.

I wouldn't do it that way. I would create a mind map instead, and put a link to it into the card. I would also serialize the mind map into an indented list and put that into the card. For each main branch of the mind map/list, I would create a child card. For each one of these cards' branches I cared enough about I would create another child card for it.

I don't see much value in being able to search for individual box labels. If I can remember enough to search, I already know what it says well enough. If not, I can't run a search anyway. Better just to navigate to the parent card and look at the graphic.

Here is a quick stab at a mind map.

I'm not too clear about the purpose of this chart. Is it advice to newcomers, recommendations for daily practice, preaching about workflow, something else? It doesn't seem to represent an atomic idea.

harr · August 1

@tomp said:
I'm not too clear about the purpose of this chart. Is it advice to newcomers, recommendations for daily practice, preaching about workflow, something else?

I read it as a teaching tool. It works for me, because it provides a fixed spatial layout with a simple gestalt. As a teacher I can point at stuff. As a student I can check off progress.

But I also understand the confusion, because other sources describe that chart type as a creativity tool.

BTW, I learned that the chart type in @Edmund's initial post is older than Harada's method.

Apparently it was developed in 1979 by Yasuo Matsumura and marketed under the name "Mandala Chart". It seems that the name is registered (in Japan?). At least that's how I understand the website https://mandalachart.jp with the help of Google Translate. They even have an "official" app.

There are many templates available online for Mandala Charts. Some use other names like "Lotus blossom".

Apparently the famous Japanese baseball player Shohei Ohtani filled out such a Mandala Chart while he was still in high-school. I haven't checked it myself, but the biopic Beyond the Dream supposedly features it.

I don't know if Harada developed a similar chart independently, or if he had been familiar with the Mandala Chart.

The differences are subtle. One unfolds a smaller 3x3 chart into a larger 9x9 chart, the other collects 64 specific actions. Not sure if the difference really matters for practical applications. Maybe this is just a legal thing, where the same idea is sold with a small twist under a different name.

I don't know if this chart is the final answer for making sense of zettelkasten, but I appreciate the idea. It's also an example where artificial constraints (fixed grid vs organic branching) can increase creativity.

Edmund · August 1

@harr said: It's also an example where artificial constraints (fixed grid vs organic branching) can increase creativity.

Yes, that's the main reason why I chose this chart type.

Otherwise, I would have chosen my preferred concept map ;-)

ZettelDistraction · August 1

@harr said:

@ZettelDistraction said:
The CSS is good. The links are missing.

Thanks! The links are formatted as normal text. In my local system are discoverable on mouse-over. I find it easier to read.

No mouse-over on my end. I see it was a jpeg.

tomp · August 1

@harr said:
I don't know if this chart is the final answer for making sense of zettelkasten, but I appreciate the idea. It's also an example where artificial constraints (fixed grid vs organic branching) can increase creativity.

I don't see that at all. The grid boxes one in with no room to put anything new. The mind map invites extending and adding to the ideas. Other branching formats should do the same.

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