How to Take Good Notes by Dave Smith

We all remember the days of taking notes in grade school. If you had the best notes, you had plenty of friends come exam time. Even in colleges, companies have capitalized on the idea on good notes. Many companies offer full sets of notes for difficult classes--at a price, of course. As we get older, many of us realize that notes aren't just for students and studying, while good notes can make a huge difference in an exam, they can also impact your performance in a meeting or presentation. Knowing your topic, your audience and your facts is important in showing your dedication and professionalism.
Notes can come into play in your everyday work and personal life. Did your boss run by and add another thing to your "to-do" list? Write it down. Does your "regular" customer love to be greeted with their favorite appetizer? Take note. Are you constantly buying "Happy Belated Birthday" cards for friends and family? Use a note!

Luckily, as technology evolves, so does the way we operate. Now, there are plenty of ways to turn your mental reminder filled brain into an organized, note taking machine.
Notepad - The old-fashioned notepad always does the trick. If you're used to taking notes on normal paper or a notepad, try adding in colored pens and highlighters. Separating ideas and highlighting important notes is very important on a notepad, or else it can look like a novel of hand written confusion.
Sticky Notes - Sticky notes are another great tool for keeping reminders, but they offer the exact opposite problem as a notepad does; they're brightly colored pops of information, which can get overwhelming and confusing. Sticky notes are great for small notes and reminders, but if you are taking information at a meeting, use them as sidenotes or headers.
Smart pens and tablets - The newest technology for written notes is the smart pen or tablet. This is similar to writing your notes with pen and paper but some will record your handwriting and send it to a program for later use. Some smart pens have audio recording capabilities and the newest technology translates written and spoken information into typed.
Voicenotes - Voicenotes are a great technology for note takers, and one without pen and paper! A voicenote is an audio note you can leave for yourself that is translated to a .WAV file. Itellas, a call spoofing company offers voicenotes that can be delivered to your e-mail address, which is great for when you're at home or at lunch and remember something for work. You won't need to carry a reminder in, or even e-mail yourself, but you will have your information waiting for you when you arrive.

About the Author

About the Author: Dave Smith is a Marketing Associate at Itellas, a leading provider of caller ID spoofing services. For more information about call spoofing, please visit www.itellas.com.