To solve complex problems, combine brainpower.

The only way to connect our messy minds is to stop thinking in silos and start linking our thinking.

Together with our past selves, we can solve challenges.

Prefer tweets? See my essay in the thread.

“Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while.” —Steve Jobs

Hidden in millions of note-taking systems, there are solutions to complex problems. But, few ideas get out—trapped in unconnected piles of notes.

What can we do about it?

To turn our notes into insight, we need to link them.

However, most note-taking systems are hierarchical; they cut up knowledge into documents, tucked away in folders. Fine for isolated projects, difficult to connect with other materials.

The antidote to complex problems is networked thinking. By loosely organizing snippets of text and connecting them any chance you get, patterns and solutions start to emerge.

Ditch your old systems and replace them with a networked thinking tool; Roam Research, Obsidian, or RemNote. They make linking notes effortless and useful, showing you exactly how your notes are linked up and where clusters emerge.

Then, ditch your old way of thinking; nothing exists in a silo anymore.

The atomic unit of knowledge is not a document; it’s a short note—a paragraph—with a single idea. Easy as that.

The scary thing about networked thinking is that there’s no structure to look at.

Notes in folders create an illusion of value whereas a few clusters of notes may look like muck. The reverse is true.

In the messiness, you’ll find the insights to solve complex problems..