Update 2020-10-27: If you’re new to the whole Zettelkasten thing, check out our Introduction to the Zettelkasten Method!

With today’s post on how many Zettelkästen you should have, I have started to collect posts specifically made to get started with the method.

The overview now contains a dedicated section on that.

So far we have:

• How many Zettelkästen should I have? The answer is, most likely, only one for the duration of your life. But there are exceptions to this rule.
• Don’t use categories. Use tags instead.
• “What should my first note be?” – it doesn’t matter. Just get started.
• Set links between notes. Full-text search on its own provides not enough information. Connections will do, especially in the long run.
• “When should I start a new note?”
  • Also read “Trust the process”, an essay.
• You have to interpret your sources and then rely on your own thoughts henceforth to get the maximum benefit. Collecting information does not increase your knowledge.
• Use outlines to start with the first draft of your writing project.
• Then ease into writing by adding Zettel notes to the outline, pasting their contents in.

Please tell us in the comments what you always wanted to know, where you struggle, or what you think a beginner should know.