How to build a SECOND brain for productivity

It is impossible to remember every useful piece of information or original idea we encounter with our regular brains, but what if we could build a second brain with which we could remember everything? This second brain is an environment that stores information with which we can do our best work. Unlike our normal brain, the second brain will never forget or lose information that we put into it, but rather holds it on the ready for us to recall in seconds. To do this, we must choose an app or software to house information. There are many such apps, but to do the job effectively, they must be well-organized, searchable, and able to sync between multiple devices.

To build a second brain, we must first select information. When first encountering an idea we want to put into the second brain, it is important to not put it there immediately. Instead, put it into a quick-capture page. This gives us time to mull over each piece of information to make certain it is worth remembering and also takes away the inconvenience of stopping whatever we are doing to figure out where to put it. Secondly, we must organize the information in our quick capture. An effective way of doing so is creating four main categories: projects (short-term efforts that have clear beginnings and endings), areas (long-term responsibilities we want to manage over time), resources (topics of interest from either of the other categories), and archives (inactive items from either of the three categories). To decide in which category a specific piece of information belongs, consult the following checklist: (1) In which project will this be most useful? (2) If none, which area will this be most useful? (3) If none, which resource does this belong to? (4) If none, place in archives.

0:00-1:14 Introduction
1:14-1:44 Defining the second brain
1:44-2:28 Choosing an app
2:28-3:50 Capturing information
3:50-7:32 Organizing information
7:32-8:37 Skillshare

Thanks for stopping by my channel where we focus our energy on self-improvement, productivity, and making the best possible versions of ourselves. Obviously, this is not attainable, which is kind of the point. Never stop growing and improving. Most of what we cover are personal lessons that I have learned, as I don't have the authority to speak for others, but just my personal experiences. Below we have a discord server where you can message me, there is my gear, and also my website. Thanks again for watching!

#productivity
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#personaldevelopment

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Did I forget anything?

[Brandoncannon]

one of the best explanations for a second brain I have ever heard.

[doug-austrascot]

Agree with other comments- this is a nice concise summary of some of the concepts crafted and described by Tiago Forte. Not to credit him is at the very least extremely disrespectful. I’m unimpressed.

[popcorncheese]

Just a reminder guys, notion is not end-to-end encrypted meaning employees of notion can technically see what u write, although to me its not that important since i don’t put sensitive info there like passwords and financial info.

[businessisboomin]

You're slowly making your way up my favorite productivity content creators list and I LOVE IT!
Keep it up bro and I'll try my best to stick with you in this journey.

[June-otin]

Serious question: Isn't this whole Building a Second Brain idea, and especially PARA, from Tiago Forte? Is it legal to take his stuff, give it away in a video and sell a course based on his content? I'm asking not as a criticism, but because I want to teach what I learn too, but not sure where the line is between inspiration and plagarism.

[manika]

This was by far the most enlightening video about building a second brain. Your objectivity facilitated the understanding of the method and motivation to put it into practice :) thanks

[jeandanslalune]

Excellent summary of "Building a second brain" by Tiago Forte, why didn't you credited him ?

[sophiaisabelle]

Great video as always. God bless you, Austin. Happy Holidays.

[TomerBenDavid]

You are a genius in explaining. Never seen such a good explanation. Genius.

[pierremiyamoto]

hey man... honesty, thank you, these videos are making my life really more organized, and I'm now able to come out of some dark times because of your work.

[krauch]

Great info and video. Glad the algo brought me to your channel!

[the_eerie_faerie_tales]

This is brilliant... and right up my alley.. everything in the right place 😄

[ShaheeraKhan]

Incredible content as always❤ Happy Holidays to you and your family, Austin!

[TristinaKardashian]

“ there is no way that is possible “ 😂 the level of “ YES TF IT IS “ that jumped out is exactly how I get over mine when someone doubts how much I have in it! 😂

[JoshWiniarski]

I actually really liked the pacing of this one, awesome job!

[YasarHabib]

This is great, Austin. Keep up the great work!

[olivercanion]

I am so excited to store so much information in my second brain. Also what are more examples on what to put in the area section I am slightly unsure still, thanks for the great video :)

[SableFane]

i have a personal discord server with just myself that i use for large-scale note-taking like this but this app ur showing.... might scratch that itch better

[Lobstrique]

notion IS superior! :D i've been neglecting my second brain lately but still, I absolutely agree that it is incredibly useful
I had that same conversation with a friend where I vaguely remembered a quote or a fact and found it in notion
and making conspects of books is great - you can pretty much freshen up everything important or interesting you took away from the book very quickly (love re-reading my notes on Cal Newport's books, staying away from social media is a struggle 🥲)

great video as always!! found some great tips for my second brain ❤ you are an AMAZING storyteller, i'd watch your videos even if i lost interest in self-improvement, for the pure aesthetic and the visual jokes :D

[arshiazad]

The most important thing to learn
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