Evernote is a fantastic note-taking app that can make you more productive. Many authors regularly use this app. One of them is James Clear, the author of the best-selling book Atomic Habits.
It can help you:
- Store all your notes in one place
- Create and manage to-do lists
- Journal your thoughts in an online diary
And these are just a few things Evernote offers. In this article, you’ll see how to make the most out of this app.
This includes learning how to take make notes from an educational Youtube video to creating digital to-do lists to sketching your ideas.
The free version works just fine for most. But you can also use the paid version.
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Can you use Evernote for free?
Yes, you can use the free version of Evernote and that can help you organize your notes and save you time in the long term.
It does have a paid version too. If you take tons of notes and don’t want to miss out on anything, then the premium version does great!
But in this article, we will see how to make the most out of the free version only!
So if you’re someone who’s feeling overwhelmed with this app, then don’t worry – this article will simplify Evernote for you.
Useful Tips to Use Evernote
Today, note-taking isn’t just limited to hand-written notes.
They can be an insightful quote from a video or an abstract concept that is better explained in images than words.
Also, if you use a physical journal, storing digital content is almost impossible. Whereas a plain note-taking app limits what you can store in video or audio formats.
In Evernote, you can store whatever form of content you come across, be it a Youtube video or a sketch or even audio notes.
Let’s have a look at how you can add different note formats below.
How to add Youtube videos to Evernote and make notes from them?
Let’s imagine you watch an education video on Youtube. You learned new stuff! Now you want to note it all down so that you can refer to it in the future.
Evernote can help you do exactly that!
Follow the steps below:
- Select a note or create a new one.
- Copy the link of the Youtube video you wish to embed.
- Paste it into your new note. Evernote should automatically convert the link into an embedded video. If it doesn’t, then hover over the link and select the 3 horizontal dots that appear on the extreme right corner of the note.
- A drop-down should appear from which you should choose “Convert to Preview”. With that, Evernote will convert the link into a video format.
- Make notes below the video.
How to make sketch notes in Evernote?
As the famous saying goes – “A picture is worth a thousand words.” Some concepts are abstract. A drawing can quickly encapsulate the whole message rather than written words.
To sketch your ideas in Evernote, follow the process below:
- Click/Tap on New and select Sketch.
- A new window should pop up.
- Go ahead and draw a picture. Once you’re finished, click “Done”
Now you should see your sketch appear in the note. Go title it and start writing!
How to create To-Do Lists in Evernote?
One of the most powerful productivity hacks is squeezing out the most from your to-do lists.
Here’s how Evernote can help:
- Create a new note.
- Evernote will then offer you a list of templates. Choose the ‘To-do list’ template and you’ll have a ready-made list to start typing in!
3 Bonus Tips to Optimize your use of Evernote
By using a few simple tweaks, you can optimize the use of Evernote even more!
1. Add Tags
Adding tags makes it so much easier to access the information that you store. Many who use Evernote regularly often use this feature.
You can add a tag by going to the bottom of any note.
You’ll have an option to either create a new tag or just add it from an existing list.
2. Use Shortcuts
Let’s say you need to access a few notes daily. You can add them to the shortcuts tab.
To do that, go to the extreme right corner of the window, select the 3 horizontal dots and press add to shortcuts!
Personally, I use a pocket diary to maintain a to-do list.
One because I like to write with a pen and paper.
And two because I spend most of the time in front of a computer screen, it’s a nice change to be away from it.
However, there’s nothing wrong with using an online to-do list also. It’s just a matter of preference!
3. Use Templates
This tip is especially useful if you’re new to journaling and note-taking.
If every time you stare at a blank screen before you journal, you likely won’t develop the habit of journaling.
That’s where the templates can come in handy.
And Evernote has many of them – right from something as simple as a Daily reflection to creating a project plan!
So with just one click, you’re ready to get started.
In the premium version, you have access to more templates and can even create your own customized ones too!
But the free version is sufficient for most.
10 notebooks in your pocket – The Cool Part about Evernote
Most of us carry our smartphones with us all the time. The same cannot be said of a physical journal. With this app, you can install Evernote and carry it around anywhere you go.
What’s really cool is that you can create more than just 1 notebook. You can create 10s and 100s of them even in the free version as long as you stay under the 60 MB storage limit!
So basically you could have notebooks like:
- An Online Journal
- History Notebook
- Business Notes
…all stored in the palm of your hands, accessible anytime, without paying a dime!
On top of that, the app automatically syncs all the data you store on a cloud which makes it easy to access the notes from any device, P.C or smartphone.
Final Thoughts
Evernote is a fantastic tool that can help you organize your notes and boost your productivity! If you love taking notes and the ability to access them from the palm of your hand, I highly recommend you check it out!
Hello! It’s Rana here. On this blog, I write about productivity and self-help. I share my personal experiences and offer solutions that you can use in your life 🙂
