>[!trailhead]- trailhead → *last updated [[2026-07-27]]* >- *difficulty*: 🟡 moderate difficulty; this trail is tended-to, but may be unclear. >- *elevation change*: ➡️ minimal change; this trail is generally level and clear-cut. >- *summary*: managing the data of your life, including reference material, projects, and events, via notetaking and other systems. >- *last major overhaul*: [[2026-07-26]] ^b81837 >[!directory]- >![[4. knowledge management and infostructures.base]] i use “personal knowledge management” as a placeholder to describe the amorphous practice of collecting, maintaining, and interacting with the data of your life over time. this phrase lacks the scope and infatuation i want to communicate – see [[{4.2} the limitations of pkm language]] – but is the closest popularized term for what i mean. ## core components of pkm the data we have about ourselves generally falls into three categories: things to do, things to reference, and things that have happened or will happen. almost every popular framework can be summarized into these buckets, and like-items are generally grouped together by broad areas or domains of your life. >[!info]+ org structures ![[{4.1b1} comparison of common pkm organizational structures#^a9c841]] (*see [[{4.1b1} comparison of common pkm organizational structures]]*) ### notes → catchall term for data the place we store these “things” are generally referred to as **notes**. [[{4.1} a note is any artifact containing some point of data]]; in some systems notes are files or documents, in others they might be database entries or outlined bullets. #### atomicity to easily re-use and re-contextualize ideas and data, [[{4.1a} atomic notes]] is a popular approach wherein one note (file, data point) articulates a single thing. that scope is usefully subjective: if a thought, event, idea, question, task is worth revisiting on its own, turn it into an atomic note; otherwise add it to an existing note or your daily note. don’t overthink – see [[{4.1a1} when does something become an atomic note]]. >[!info]- atomic notes are not the only approach >many people prefer long-form running notes. some people prefer writing full essays as their notes. i predominantly use atomic notes, so that’s what my writing is based on. ### component 1: time-based entries notes that are connected to a specific date / time. this includes meetings, appointments, phone calls, changelogs, and any fleeting thoughts, ideas, or reflections. you might see this part of a system called a calendar, journal, diary, log, etc. almost all of my notes start as time-based entries, but fleshed out ideas and thoughts might become reference or project notes during my review process. i.e: i default to new items being time-based entries in my `journal` until i develop them into more durable notes. ### component 2: reference-based entries things that you will revisit, reread, reuse, expand on, think about, look for over time. what people usually think of when they think of “notes”. typically includes at least [[{4.1c} how to take notes from sources|source notes]], [[{4.1a} atomic notes|atomic notes]] based on those source notes, and other “nouns” like people, locations, recipes, templates, attachments, etc. %% nouns, verbs, and timestamps. + annotations? %% ### component 3: action-based entries projects, efforts, objectives, to-dos, etc. all fall under the umbrella of open loops that require your active attention. these are usually: 1. the least likely to follow the atomicity standard, and 2. the highest-friction element of someone’s pkm system because they require the most consistent upkeep. a lot of people see “project management” as necessarily separate from pkm, but our responsibilities are constantly responding to *things that happen* and generating *things to reference* – all of these components are intertwined. i like to think of time-based entries as a reflection of my present, reference-based entries as a catalogue of my past, and action-based entries as an idea of what to expect in the future. **however**, i still manage my actual [[{4.4b} next actions in gtd|next actions]] outside of my vault in [[workflowy]] using the [[{4.4} what is the getting things done methodology|gtd method]]. project *notes* live in my `binder`; see [[{0.3} how i use obsidian]] and [[{0.3b} how i manage projects and tasks]]. ### organizing your notes and data there are really only a few unique ways to organize information; see [[{4.1b} how to organize notes]]. i generally organize time-based entries chronologically, reference-based entries by “space” (e.g, taxonomy, hierarchy, [[{4.1a2} indexing notes with folgezettel|folgezettel]]), and action items by “contexts” (usually a tag). #### popular organization frameworks - [[{4.1b1a} nick milo's ACE organization framework]] and [[{4.1b1a1} nick milo's STIR framework]] - [[{4.1b1b} tiago forte's PARA framework]] - [[{4.1b1c} august bradley's PPV organization framework]] - [[{4.1b1d} johnny decimal system]] - [[{4.1b1e} steph ango's vault structure]] ### pkm software [[{4.1b2a} obsidian is a local-first notetaking app]] and is my preference. see some others in [[{4.1b2a1a} pkm software comparison]]. ## pkm for learning and development of course one major purpose of pkm is to learn new things and develop new ideas – the more literalized *knowledge management*. like organizational frameworks, most popular process frameworks can be distilled: `input` → `processing` → `output` you find data that makes you feel / think / wonder something; you analyze / contextualize / synthesize that data to figure out what it means to you; and then you do something with / about / because of that data and this process. >[!note]- navel-gazing about pkm theory >i think a lot about [[1. identity and knowing yourself thru time]] and how a strong sense-of-self requires us to make sense of our “timeline”: how we got where we are, a clear perspective of our present moment, and an understanding of our options as we move forward in life. i see pkm through a similar lens: > >`past` → `present` → `future` >`reference` → `calendar` → `projects` >`input` → `processing` → `output` ### part 1: input you take in or realize some information. books, videos, podcasts; dreams, desires, goals; travel, events, celebrations – there are infinite things we experience, consume, and ponder. put the important and curious ones somewhere. since input is so vast, it might be scattered across your bookmarks and saved content and inbox. periodic reviews to process or prune content is essential. ### part 2: processing articulate the meaning of the information *to you*. sometimes the information is ephemeral – you’re unlikely to revisit or need it later, despite it feeling important when you saved or wrote it. sometimes it’s worth expanding upon and adding to your permanent system storage – meaning it might become an [[{4.1a} atomic notes|atomic note]], etc. … ### part 3: output some users – academics, content creators, authors – have a clearly defined output that they’re trying to generate. but if you’re not a researcher, writer, developer, or other info-heavy professional / hobbyist, it may be unclear to what end you’re doing this work. … >[!note]- *original index* >[[2026-07-26 v1 knowledge management and life infostructures index]]