One of the oldest note-taking methods is making shorthand notes while listening to a presentation or reading a book or paper. Simply record important information on a sheet of paper or on notecards, divided up into sections if needed. Shorthand style uses symbols or abbreviations in order to help you record notes faster. You can develop these yourself and mix-and-match them with full-length words. You can also use a highlighter or a pen of a different color to make note of important words, passages or sections.
If you are making notes about an article or book you can make notes in the margin of the piece as you read. You can enter important information on the sides, at the top or at the bottom of the pages you are reading. You can also underline or highlight key passages as you go. At the end of a section or chapter, add a brief summary of what you have just read and, if you wish, a note about why it's important.
With e-readers such as Kindle, note-taking can be done directly on the device while you read. Most e-readers also allow you to highlight important passages. Other digital programs or applications such as Scrivener, Adobe Reader and NoteScribe let you take notes digitally and highlight important passages of books, articles or PDFs. This method can be helpful since the notes can easily be circulated to others and backed up.
If you're listening to a lecture, presentation or seminar, you may wish to record the talk so you can take notes later on using another method such as shorthand. Or you can simply record the talk and listen to it again in the future to refresh your memory. There are a number of ways to do this including using a digital recording device, an iPod or similar device, or recording it through a program installed on a laptop.