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176 points davnicwil | 7 comments | | HN request time: 0.001s | source | bottom

Hey HN! Like most here regular meetings have always been a big part of my work.

Over the years I've learned the value of active note taking in these meetings. Meaning: not minutes, not transcriptions or AI summaries, but me using my brain to actively pull out the key points in short form bullet-like notes, as the meeting is going on, as I'm talking and listening (and probably typing with one hand). This could be agenda points to cover, any interesting sidebars raised, insights gotten to in a discussion, actions agreed to (and a way to track whether they got done next time!).

It's both useful just to track what's going on in all these different meetings week to week (at one point I was doing about a dozen 1-1s per week, and it just becomes impossible to hold it in RAM) but also really valuable over time when you can look back and see the full history of a particular meeting, what was discussed when, how themes and structure are changing, is the meetings effective, etc.

Anyway, I've tried a bunch of different tools for taking these notes over the years. All the obvious ones you've probably used too. And I've always just been not quite satisfied with the experience. They work, obviously (it's just text based notes at the end of the day) but nothing is first-class for this usecase.

So, I decided to build the tool I've always felt I want to use, specifically for regular 1-1s and other types of regular meetings. I've been using it myself and with friends for a while already now, and I think it's got to that point where I actually prefer to reach for it over other general purpose note taking tools now, and I want to share it more widely.

There's a free tier so you can use it right away, in fact without even signing up.

If you've also been wanting a better system to manage your notes for regular meetings, give it a go and let me know what you think!

1. gppmad ◴[] No.46201845[source]
Thanks for sharing it! What are the advantages of using the tool instead opening a simple google docs?
replies(1): >>46202061 #
2. davnicwil ◴[] No.46202061[source]
I've put this in more words on the about page [0] but in my mind it all about the structure being first class for the regular meeting note use case, rather than a general document.

That means

- meetings notes are structured as entries, new entry in 1 click, with a template, with responsive structure

- easy to see who wrote what, everyone gets their own section

- first class action tracking and management of actions in one place

- distraction-free editor optimised for one-hand typing with only minimal formatting necessary to make notes tidy

- easier to search and navigate through history of notes

I think this applies for google docs but also other 'general' note taking tools and editors.

[0] https://withdocket.com/about

replies(1): >>46202172 #
3. edmundsauto ◴[] No.46202172[source]
This reads a lot like a feature list to me. I don't understand the benefit from entries versus just an h1 tag. You can even collapse those down, and then docs will write you an index. Might be helpful to focus on the value prop more. It looks cool, but as a recovering GTD junkie, it looks more like a distraction than a core part of my everyday work.
replies(2): >>46202344 #>>46202548 #
4. davnicwil ◴[] No.46202344{3}[source]
I just realised I never dropped the link in above (doh) but I think my about page [0] does a much better job explaining than I can reproduce here.

But to get directly to your point, I just think entries give better structure than a sort of 'open doc' self-regulated-formatting type system with headers etc. You get an 'entity' that can be tagged with date&time, searched, displayed in a cluster of sections with responsive layout, etc. That's actually one of the precise things I'm trying to improve upon from my own experience with using general note taking tools for meeting notes. But I concede it could just be subjective opinion.

This might be a stretch but if you are at all up for it I would absolutely love to quiz you further on this though on a call or via email. I may have misunderstood. davnicwil at gmail, if you'd be up for it :-)

[0] https://withdocket.com/about

replies(1): >>46207827 #
5. mannanj ◴[] No.46202548{3}[source]
As a former GTD Junkie and recovering productivity-a-halic myself, what did you settle on and how do GTD or not-do GTD today?
replies(1): >>46251706 #
6. doomerhunter ◴[] No.46207827{4}[source]
I'd say the most important part is to have a low-friction tool that fits within an individual's workflow. I like their tool, but i do agree on my side that a Notion with collapsible toggles works better for me, right now (alongside a nice cmd+k to teleport to the right pages)
7. edmundsauto ◴[] No.46251706{4}[source]
I totally gave up on any system. I trust my brain to remember the important things and don’t beat myself up when I forget. I was recently adhd diagnosed at age 46 so I might try something like atomic habits now that I know what’s going on. YMMV.