As a freelancer, it often feels like you are doing the work of an entire team. The problem is, there’s just one of you, and you only have the power of one brain and one set of hands to work with.
So imagine how much more productive you would be if you had access to an infinite storage system. If whenever you encountered a brilliant piece of information or an idea, you could squirrel it away, only to have it surface exactly when you need it – wherever you are.
That is the promise of having a ‘Second Brain’, or an ‘External Brain’ in the productivity world.
Tiago Forte’s popular – and super expensive – online course called Building a Second Brain has helped to popularise and spread these ideas, far and wide, in recent years.
Now, finally, those who don’t have over £1,000 to splash can learn about a Second Brain too via his new book, which breaks down the system.
So is this relevant to freelancers?
Definitely!
I’ve been using something resembling a second brain for a couple of years now and there are many reasons freelancers can benefit – from enhancing your workflow to getting more done, and staying organised.
Table of contents:
What is a Second Brain?
A second brain is just a note-taking system. By taking notes, you can get ideas and unfinished thoughts out of your head.
This frees up your brain for thinking, rather than having to remember everything.
There is also a mental cost whenever you switch tasks or try to resume a project that you’ve started. Our brains waste energy trying to work out where we are with it, or trying to remember where the information that we need is.
With the second brain in place, you can reduce the friction of moving between tasks, and have a trusted resource that contains your best thinking. You can store and organise notes and ideas in an easy-to-access way.
As a freelancer or any kind of knowledge worker, the benefits of this are really huge.
Using the second brain to stay organised
The major benefit is simply how much more organised you can be.
Once you get into the habit of taking notes, knowing that you will find them when you need them in the future, you’ll never be that person searching frantically for scraps of paper or who forgets things on client calls.
You will simply enter them into your system and they will be a quick search away.
Using the second brain to manage your freelance projects
You can also use your second brain to manage your freelance projects. For example, I do all of my project management within my app of choice, Roam Research. This is a great way to keep things organised, and in one system that I can access from anywhere.
By keeping my projects and to-do lists updated there, I’m able to switch projects easily and effectively. I can instantly see where I’m up to and what needs doing next.
Which really helps to reduce the mental friction behind getting started on a new project or returning to a project you’re already working on. Freelancers spin a lot of plates and work on multiple projects so this really helps.
You can reuse and recycle old work
A second brain is also fantastic for reusing and repurposing your old work.
As freelancers, not everything we do needs to be 100% original. For example, if you are a web designer, the fundamental structure of a lot of your websites may actually be the same. You might be able to reuse the same wireframes, or design inspiration, on multiple projects.
Having a second brain means you can keep these pieces of information in a place where you know where they are coming from and they are easy to access.
Get more out of your experiences
The great thing is once you start feeling confident that your notes actually will be useful it feels very powerful and changes how you approach the world.
As Thiago Forte says in the book:
“As you begin to capture your ideas consistently, you’re likely to experience a new sense of excitement about the information flowing all around you. You’ll start to pay closer attention to the books you read, the conversations you have, and the interviews you listen to, knowing that any interesting idea you encounter can be reliably saved and utilized.”
This is powerful. I found this particularly relevant when it comes to reading business books.
Suddenly reading feels like an incredible usage of your time because the amazing ideas and perspectives that you encounter are not just going in one ear and out of the other.
They’re being saved in a space for you to use them and create with them. I wrote about this in an article about why I love reading with Kindles.
What are the best options for note-taking?
There are a number of note-taking apps out there and they all have different benefits and pitfalls to them. What works for one person won’t work for another, so it’s worth finding your own favourite.
If you’re just getting started, using the inbuilt note-taking app on your devices is probably the best idea. If you’re in the Apple ecosystem, for example, Apple Notes is an increasingly robust and well-integrated note-taking solution. You don’t want to overcomplicate things or you’ll quickly give up.
Once you start getting more into it, however, you might want to look at something like Notion, which is very customisable or even Roam Research, which is my favourite.
I use Roam to manage my entire freelance business, and I have developed a really effective workflow for making the most out of the app. You can find out more about it in my upcoming course, which explains exactly how to use it as a freelancer to be more productive and organised.
But it doesn’t matter which app you use, you just need to find the one that you will stick with and enjoy using.
I recommend giving the book a read to find out more, but remember that as a freelancer, you can really benefit from adding this kind of structure and habit to your day-to-day work.
Do More Everyday With Roam Research
If you’re interested in more about Roam Research for freelancers, you can check out my new course – Do More Everyday with Roam Research – which is launching soon!
You can lock in access right now at a reduced pre-launch price.
→ This is the only Roam Research course that I’ve seen, which caters specifically to freelancers and solopreneurs, so take a look at that if you’re interested!
Related articles:
Is the Voice in Your Head Holding You Back?
How to Stop Procrastinating Once and For All
Roam Research: a Game-Changer for Freelancers and Solopreneurs
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