How to Take Notes That Help You Remember More

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Ever flip through your notes and think, “Did I black out while writing this? Who was holding the pen—me or a sleep-deprived raccoon?” Been there, pal. Taking notes is supposed to help, right? But let’s be straight: just jotting stuff down doesn’t mean your brain’s actually gonna give a damn later. There’s a weird little magic trick to making notes that actually stick—and you don’t need perfect handwriting or fancy pens to pull it off.

Here’s the wild part: you can totally learn to take notes that aren’t just organized for show, but actually sneak into your memory and hang around. Sounds fake, but I swear it works. Grab your coffee (or whatever’s keeping you upright), and let’s get into it—even if your desk looks like a tornado’s been through.

Doesn’t matter if you’re drowning in bio homework, barely surviving college lectures, or just trying to look smart at work meetings—these tips actually slap. Real talk, we’re talking brain hacks, note tricks, and advice you’ll use before you even finish reading this.

So, uh, Why Even Bother With Notes?

If you want to fake being organized or just find your stuff later without having a meltdown, you gotta make them make sense.

Here’s what happens when you actually do notes right:

• - Your brain pretends to care and pays attention (for once).
• - You end up with a cheat code you wrote yourself, so it’s not total gibberish.
• - You don’t have to dig through a forest of nonsense the night before the exam (or that soul-crushing work meeting).

Look, I went to college with this girl, Tolu. She wrote down every single word the professor mumbled. Like, she literally had a Harry Potter-length novel for every chapter. Come exam week? She was drowning. Meanwhile, I’m over here doodling, tossing in random highlights, breaking stuff into chunks—and my grades loved me for it. Plus, I actually slept.

STEP 1: Don’t Even Touch That Pen Yet

Here’s the secret: top-shelf notes start before you even write a word.

1. What’s The Point?

Ask yourself: Am I taking these for a quiz? Work project? Do I need to memorize dates or actually get what’s going on? If you don’t know your goal, congrats, you’re just writing “blah blah blah” for no reason.

2. Pick Your Weapon of Choice

• - Pen & paper? Killer for memory—plus, you get to doodle.
• - Laptop or tablet? Fast, searchable, and less hand cramps.
• - Combo deal. Sometimes I jot by hand, then type ‘em up later when I can read my own chicken scratch.

If you’re writing by hand, go wild—big headings, colors, whatever. Typing? Use bold, italics, space things out. 

3. Get a Sneak Peek

Review your textbook or slides in advance. Even five minutes helps. You’ll spot what matters and won’t get blindsided by some weird term the prof throws out.

STEP 2: Find Your Note-Taking Vibe

No magic formula here—just try a few, see what doesn’t suck.

1. Cornell Notes

If you’re Type A, you’ll love this. Split your page: keywords on the left, notes on the right, summary at the bottom. Boom—built-in review tool.

2. Mind Maps

For my visual peeps or when things get messy. Start in the center, branch out with arrows, colors, whatever. No full sentences—just keywords and wild lines everywhere. Your brain eats this stuff up.

3. Plain Ol’ Outline

If your class or book actually makes sense, just do bullets and indent. Main idea, sub-point, details. Nothing fancy, but works like a charm.

4. The Chart Move

If you’re comparing stuff (dates, people, whatever), make a table. Suddenly, stuff that was fuzzy is crystal clear.

STEP 3: Make Your Notes Not Suck (aka Rememberable)

Step one: write notes. Step two: actually make ‘em stick.

1. Kill The Fluff

Full sentences? Save it for your essays. Notes should be short and sweet. “Water boils 100°C”—done. Don’t write a novel here.

2. Get Artsy (Kind Of)

Color works, trust me. Highlight, doodle, draw arrows, whatever. In bio, I’d slap a leaf next to every plant fact. Never forgot them.

3. Spaced Repetition (aka Don’t Be A Crammer)

Brains are lazy. Review your notes: right after class, a few days later, then a week or so after. Each time, you remember more. It’s like sorcery, but it’s just science.

STEP 4: Actually Learn From Your Notes

Pretty notes are cute. Learning is hotter. Here’s how to do it.

1. Summarize In Your Own Words

Right after class, spend 5-10 minutes rewriting your notes in regular-people English (or whatever language you think in). 

2. Teach A Human (Or Your Dog)

Honestly—if you can clarify your notes to your friend, your cat, or even the heap of laundry you keep neglecting, you’re in a good place.. That’s the Feynman move. 

3. Flashcards, Baby  

Alright, let’s be real—flashcards are ancient, yeah, but they still absolutely crush it. Rip the key facts from your notes and slap ’em on some cards. Doesn’t matter if you’re team paper or you’re glued to your phone—apps like Anki and Quizlet? Total game-changers. Spaced repetition feels like witchcraft, but it works. Let the tech do its thing. No one’s judging.

4. Notes + Real Questions = Brain Power  

Studying for a test? Don’t just sit there staring at your notes like they’ll download the info straight into your head. Dig up some old test questions, or make up your own—whatever works. See if you can actually answer them using your notes. If you can’t, well, your notes aren’t doing their job, are they?

Step 5: Ways to Absolutely Bomb Note-Taking  

We’ve all screwed this up, don’t pretend you haven’t:

• ❌ Writing a novel instead of notes. 
• ❌ Never looking at your notes again. You just wasted an hour for… what, exactly?  
• ❌ Handwriting that looks like you let a raccoon loose with a pen. If you can’t read it, it’s useless.  
• ❌ Spending twenty minutes picking the right pastel highlighter and zero minutes on actual info. Cute, but… where’s the learning?

Step 6: Stick With It (Even When It Sucks)  

Note-taking isn’t a superpower—it’s just a habit. The more you do it, the less it sucks. Find a system that works and stick to it across all your classes, so your brain doesn’t short-circuit trying to remember what the heck you did last time.

Keep your stuff together. Pens, highlighters, laptop charger—whatever. Don’t make “getting ready” an Olympic event.

And yo, reward yourself. Survive a study session? Treat yourself to chocolate, or scroll TikTok guilt-free for five minutes. Nobody’s gonna call the productivity police.

Conclusion

Notes aren’t just busywork—they’re your shortcut to actually remembering stuff, saving your sanity, and not failing spectacularly. The catch? They’ve gotta make sense to you. Don’t care if they’re color-coded or look like a squirrel attacked your notebook, as long as you can read and use ’em later.

Try the Cornell Method, mind maps, bullet points—whatever doesn’t make you want to throw your notebook out the window. Doodle, highlight, scribble—just make sure you look at them again.

Real talk? Don’t just “take notes.” Take notes that help you get the material. Do that, and you’ll actually ace your exams—and hey, maybe you’ll even enjoy learning for once.

✅ What’s Next? Pick a method, try it out in your next class, and check back in a week. Bet you’ll be shook at how much you actually remember.