Information is useful if it's re-usable
Making information useful: usability, encoding, and management
Not all information is useful: it needs to be filtered, processed, and managed to become valuable.
Usability, encoding, and effective organization are the keys to transforming raw information into reusable knowledge
More information is always good... right?
Wrong
If it were true, we'd all become obsessive TikTok scrollers.
We live in the era of information overload:
A situation in which you receive too much information at one time and cannot think about it clearly.
Cambridge Dictionary
So, what can we do?
Information alone is useless
I have a friend who watches animal documentaries while studying, working, and even cooking. If learning worked like a transfer of matter, this person would be the ultimate expert in animal biology.
But, of course, that's not the case.
Why?
Because information needs to be processed and integrated into our knowledge for it to gain value.
But: there is a way to make information useful
Information does not behave like material goods... but almost.
A hammer is useful if:
You need it
You know how to use it
You own it, meaning you may use it
When it comes to information, I’ve outlined related concepts1:
Usability
Encoding
Management
A usable information is information that will serve a purpose or fulfill a need.
Encoding represents the transfer of information from the knowledge universe into personal knowledge.
Information management consists of two steps and involves integrating information into the personal knowledge archive:
Storage
Retrieval
Usability
It depends on the person, their interests, their job, and their prior knowledge.
You may think: "Of course! I am not an idiot, I can skip this paragraph!"
HOLD ON
I know you know which topics interest you and which ones don't.
But do you know which ones are actually useful to you?
Take child pedagogy: it’s fascinating and may make you a better parent someday.
But if you’re an 18-year-old exploring career options, is it really the right time to dive into it and take 100 detailed notes?
(TRUE STORY)
This is the Collector's Fallacy, and trust me, it's a mistake that many fall into.
The core problem is thinking that everything may be useful at some point.
It may be true, but hoarding too much information clutters up the management process.
You need to focus on which information is usable now.
Encoding
Not all information sticks. For example, can you recall:
What your neighbor wore on Thanksgiving?
The title of the last YouTube video you watched?
The first word of this post?
Probably not, because your brain didn’t think it was worth remembering.
I’ll intentionally skip the details because there’s a lot to cover, and I’ll approach it pragmatically: encoding is tied to our openness, with the brain functioning through selective absorption.
The best way to optimize encoding is (no surprise) to study an interesting topic, something the brain will accept without resistance.
Openness helps encoding, but it’s not enough. The way information is presented matters too. For example, a lecture2 facilitates encoding more than a scientific paper.
This aspect can be resolved by consuming the topic in different formats (audio, video, text), which exposes us to different presentations of the same information. One format may be encoded more easily, or the different perspectives will enhance the overall encoding.
This is what happens when we open many browser tabs and discover new forums or youtubers. It’s what Tiago Forte refers to as divergent thinking.
Moreover, encoding also depends on how we treat the information within personal knowledge.
Encoding works best when we actively engage with information: linking it to other ideas, reinterpreting it, or applying it.
One final point: is not an immediate process.
For example, to internalize a mathematical theorem, one usually needs to understand the statement, grasp the proof, and apply it in an example; which may take hours or days.
Management
Once information becomes part of your personal knowledge base, it must be managed to ensure it is not lost and can be retrieved when needed.
Storage
To avoid losing information, it must be stored, which consists of two phases:
Materializing
Archiving
By "materializing," I mean the information must be transformed into something that can be archived.
If you decide to archive it in biological memory (i.e., to remember it), the information is not materialized.
Let’s say you’re learning a new recipe:
Encoding -> Understand the steps and visualize how to prepare the dish.
Storage -> Write it down (materialize) and put the notebook in the drawer (archiviation).
The type of archive primarily depends on encoding, materialization (which depends on encoding), and the volume of information.
For instance, the advantage of digital archives is that volume is not an issue, but it’s important to understand which software to use.
Retrieval
The truly challenging phase of information management is making the (materialized) information retrievable.
This means organizing the archive in a way that maximizes the likelihood of finding the information you need.
For example, in a notebook notes are arranged chronologically, which can help track the professor’s reasoning, but becomes a challenge when trying to locate a specific topic later, as it often requires starting from the first page and flipping through. On the other hand, organizing notes by topic make it harder to decide where to begin studying.
Essentially, the main drawback of physical notes is their rigidity: they can only support one form of organization at a time.
Digital notes, on the other hand, leverage metadata and tools like folders or file properties to enable multiple organizational structures simultaneously.
Poor management doesn’t just make information hard to find, it effectively buries it, undoing all your hard work in previous steps!
This happens when, digitally, a file is named in a way that doesn’t reflect its content. This is one example of a 'Zombie note,' as Nick Milo refers to them.
Information is useful if is re-usable
When the aspects discussed so far function properly, information becomes re-usable.
Now the big statement:
Information is only useful when it is re-usable
Why?
Because information, in and of itself, has no value and remains valueless even when archived.
It gains value when it is used after storage, i.e., when:
A situation demands that knowledge (usability)
We find the information (well managed)
We understand it and apply it (encoded)
Notice that if even one of the above steps fails, the information is not reusable!
Now, how can we solve the problem of information overload?
(Here I will be brief, but I will delve deeper in future posts)
Choosing the Right Sources
Refining your sources starts with clarity.
Create a list of your interests, then identify the usability criteria.
(No need to overthink it, keep your objectives in mind as you explore)
Then, seek out sources that align with these criteria.
Each source should provide information that aligns with your list of interests and chosen criteria.
Encode seriously
Listening to a podcast isn’t encoding, reading a book isn’t encoding, watching Netflix isn’t encoding...
You need to get your hands dirty to encode seriously
Take notes, write down why you liked it, and reflect on what you’ve learned.
Don’t be an average TikTok scroller!
Focus on management
Because schools enforce only one method (notebooks and chronological storage), we fail to recognize it as an aspect that deserves attention.
Fortunately, this can be learned online. Here are some useful links:
Productive Setups (Notion)
Nick Milo (Obsidian)
Tiago Forte (Building a Second Brain)
Unfortunately, the best teacher is time and trial and error.
Indeed, since encoding and materialization heavily depend on the individual, one must test different archiving methods and various software.
Don't worry, you’ve already taken the most important step: realizing that information must be managed.
And by the way, you're subscribed to the right newsletter ;D
Last word on my Content Diet
This section features media I've consumed and consider to have high usability value for those who share my interests (see the about page).
Use this as an opportunity to experiment with new management strategies and see what works best for you.
These concepts are derived from the learning process, typically divided into three steps: encoding, storage, and retrieval.