Notion organises my work and life
Notion is an app to help organise your life and work. It’s available as desktop software, a web app, and mobile app – syncing across each one.
So if you add something while working in Notion on your laptop and you also have downloaded the Notion app on your mobile, it will update in both places.
In addition, there’s a handy Notion ‘Web Clipper’ that works with your browser allowing you to ‘clip’ web pages and store the web page information in Notion. There’s a web clipper extension for Chrome, Safari, and Firefox.[https://www.notion.so/web-clipper]Does Notion replace tools I already use? Not necessarily, but it will allow you to create a central dashboard for everything you’re working on or interested in. It will save endless time. No more searching for that image for a new project that popped up, or a link to an article needed for research, or that email thread that contained vital information. Also, similar to ‘canned’ emails you can create in an email programme, Notion allows you to create personalised templates that you can access with one click. Notion works like to-do lists, reminder apps, contact software, spreadsheets and project boards all in one – yet you can build it out according to your own style of working. It can be used for anything from complex linked databases to simple to-do lists. Is it similar to Excel? Excel has enormous functionality, but it is mind-numbingly boring and complex to use and learn. Sorry Microsoft, it just is. And after 36 years, it’s the same as it ever was… 😴.Notion functions like a spreadsheet programme yet gives optional ‘views’. So instead of dreary columns & rows, a sheet can be turned into a gallery, list, kanban board, calendar, and now a timeline too. Notion can also be organised into pages, like Google Docs, or into databases like Excel or Sheets, or a combination of both pages and databases. And here’s a mind-blower – every entry in a Notion database can be a page of its own.That’s right. No wrapped text entry hiding the good stuff. You can click a database entry to open up a full card or info, or another click will open it as a full page. This is a game changer for visual learnersI typed the slash key, then began to type ‘image’As a visual learner myself, Notion is the first programme that has allowed me to build around my own style of working and learning. And it’s fast to use, with a simple drag and drop block system, or by using key commands to quickly call up different types of blocks, such as text, images, or entire databases. With the ability to add images, use colours, icons, columns, and see or hide content at the click of a button, it behaves like nothing I’ve tested or used before. It’s the first ‘productivity’ tool that makes sense to my brain. It doesn’t force me into a set system that makes sense for most people. Instead, Notion lets me create templates that suit my own workflow.
