Have you ever experienced that while taking a shower or riding a bike, some good thoughts come to your mind, but suddenly, those thoughts completely vanish from your mind, and no matter how hard you try, you can’t recall them? Until now, you have consumed a lot of information from the internet, but when it comes time to use it in real life, a lot of that information slips from your mind. So, how would it be if you had a second brain that captures all these things for you, keeps them organized, and provides them to you immediately when needed?

American author and productivity advisor David Allen wrote in his book “Getting Things Done” that “Your mind is for having ideas, not holding them.” According to research, your brain has to deal with up to 34GB of information daily, including YouTube videos, newspapers, shorts, articles, WhatsApp statuses, reels, etc. It is a bit difficult for the human brain to manage this variety of information. This is why, after consuming a lot of content, you feel tired and cannot think clearly. Therefore, the author has created a four-step system to build a second brain, which he calls CODE.

This is essentially an acronym where CODE stands for Capture, Organize, Distill, and Express. During the Industrial Revolution of the 19th century, scientists, philosophers, writers, and many intellectuals kept a personal commonplace book to understand this rapidly changing world. It was used to compile knowledge on a personal level. They noted down new ideas, sketches, life lessons, and any information that interested them. You just need to make that system digital. You can do this offline in a notebook, but considering today’s information sources and future accessibility, you should maintain this thing digitally.

So that the information you have collected can be useful to you years later. The first letter in the acronym “CODE” is C, which stands for “Capture.” When you close a Nintendo game, a message displays saying, “Anything unsaved will be lost.” This is a profound message; let me explain how. Naval Ravikant once tweeted that “Inspiration is perishable, act on it immediately.”

Whenever you get a new idea, write it down. If you come across a useful website, bookmark it. Add good videos to your personal playlist. Capture everything that resonates with you. By transferring information from your mind to paper, your mind remains free, allowing you to work with deep focus and higher-level thinking comfortably. The best example of this is 14-time Grammy Award winner and American singer Taylor Swift, who is expected to contribute $5 billion to the American economy with her world tour. She captures her lyrics and rhymes on her phone.

To capture your thoughts, you can also use Evernote, Microsoft OneNote, Notion, Apple Notes, or any digital note-taking app. Personally, I use Notion and Apple Notes, and I use Read wise to periodically revise that data. The next letter of the second brain is O, which stands for Organize. After gathering information, you don’t need to become a digital junk dealer. Something is only useful if it is easily accessible when needed. You may have all the knowledge in the world, but if it isn’t organized and accessible, it’s of no use.

The author suggests the “PARA method” to keep information organized. As a child, you created folders for games, movies, photos, and songs on your computer, but rather than organizing folders by topic, it’s better to organize them based on functionality. First, create four folders: Projects, Areas, Resources, and Archives. You can create these folders in your note-taking app, browser, and computer. All your content will fit into these four folders. In the PARA method, the first folder is for Projects, where you store things with a clear endpoint.

For example, if you have to complete an assignment, it’s a project. If you have to file an tax return for this year, that’s a project. If you need to launch your website in two months, that’s a project. Whenever you find any data related to these projects, store it here. For instance, I wanted to summarize this book, so I created a folder called “Building a Second Brain Summary,” where I captured all related information.

The next folder is for Areas. This includes all your long-term goals and never-ending responsibilities, like personal finances, home maintenance, legal documents, medical records, etc. Place all relevant thoughts, links, documents, etc., in this Areas section. The third folder is for Resources, which works like your personal library.

This folder includes everything you’re interested in or might find useful in the future, such as communication skills, hiking, business tips, best places to travel, habit building, etc. This folder will contain all your videos, audio clips, and PDFs that could be useful to you later. And the last folder is for Archives, where you store everything that doesn’t fit into the previous three categories. You can understand this entire PARA method by comparing it to a kitchen.

From a hut to a five-star hotel, all kitchens are organized for efficiency. Projects are the meals you are currently cooking. Areas are your refrigerator, which holds essential, never-ending items. Resources are your kitchen cabinets, which contain items you need once a day. And Archives are your top kitchen shelves, where you store things you use only once or twice a year. Applying this concept to your digital space will significantly enhance your day-to-day productivity.

And you’ll be able to easily create any product of your choice. Now, let’s return to Code, where the third letter is D, which means Distill. You didn’t waste your time. Distillation means summarizing the things you have captured, so they can be useful for your future. You need to extract the essence of the information you have organized, i.e., identify what actually matters. Just like Einstein distilled his theory of relativity into a single equation, E=mc².

Similarly, you need to condense the lessons you have learned in your own words so you don’t have to read everything later. The last letter, E, stands for Express. Your brain may be a repository of knowledge, but if you can’t create anything from it, then it’s all worthless. At this stage, you turn what you have learned into reality. Your mind should be a factory, not a warehouse. The raw materials put into it should be used to create something.

And this blog is also a part of my expression. I have captured, organized, distilled, and finally converted my learnings into a video to express them to you. American neuroscientist Nancy Andreas says that intellectual people are adept at finding connections between things. They connect different dots. Just like my thought process is formed from the connection of many small pieces of information that I share daily with my private community.

There are many things that might amaze you, but some posts may not appeal to you. But I don’t mind because dots connect this way. Thoughts form like this. Those private community posts are the raw material of my thought process and habits. Make sure to check them out once.

Now, if I summarize this entire book in a few words, Tiago Forte says, “Don’t burden your mind by trying to remember too much information.” Keep a small diary and a pen, or use a note-taking app to capture your thoughts. Improvement and innovation don’t happen accidentally. There is a robust system behind them that is often invisible to ordinary people. And the second brain is a part of that robust system. No matter what field you are in, you should create your own second brain. It will work like a backup version of your primary brain.

As you continue to use the second brain, your mindset, self-awareness, and focus will grow. You will feel more skilled and capable of handling any situation comfortably with emotional control. Organize your life by organizing your thoughts. Thank you.