Issue #16: How I Use Notion to Systematize Learning
Plus a Notion template for personal learning!
Last January I wrote about meditating on a 2023 curriculum — a fresh alternative to new year’s resolutions, asking what we’d like to learn and what journey we might consciously lean into over the upcoming year.
Admittedly, when I wrote that I only had some vague ideas of what my 2023 curriculum would be. I thought it would be all about authorship and all things books and writing. 2023 would be the year that I finally started my own writing projects,1 carving out my identity as a creative in my own right, not just limited to my client work or reduced to a LinkedIn resume entry.
2023 had other things in store for my curriculum. And while I could not have perfectly predicted or mapped it out last January, I did find myself leaning into the new paths of inquiry and interests with love and vigor.
Looking back, my 2023 curriculum included:
Acquainting with my spirituality, and finding identity with nature-based practices. This included confronting my relationship with Abrahamic religion and sifting through the many ways one can identify and articulate their belief system.
A crash-course in book proposals for memoir. Book proposals for nonfiction are my sweet spot and comfort zone. But memoir is a whole other animal, and not as straightforward when architecting a book pitch and marketing plan — still so rewarding to put that all together for a client!
Yoga teacher training with Y7. This was probably the most formal of curriculums I engaged, as an actual student in an accredited program, alongside so many other peers. An intense and demanding June and July, where every ounce of free time was devoted to mat time, reading, homework, and sequencing.
All things fertility and trying-to-conceive. IYKYK. It was a rollercoaster of a time, seesawing between brute action (testing! supplements! doctor appointments!) and surrendering to the moment.
Mapping the future of the agency. In an age of AI, scrappy creative, and a not-so-optimistic outlook on the economy, my team and I have been turning our minds towards re-thinking what the modern agency looks like, from its offerings and how we support our clients, to alternate streams of revenue and internal projects.
Piano lessons: I was never quite gifted with musical talent, but with a piano sitting in our home and lessons easily accessible, it’s been fun to get out of my comfort zone in a low-pressure way.
Notion as a playground for exploration: I’ve been fully on Notion for a while now for work. But the spring of 2023 brought a breakthrough in my Notion literacy, and I (gleefully and almost obsessively) up-leveled every aspect of how I was using this app — both professionally and personally. If you don’t have your own Notion workspace that’s just for you to organize your life and plot out your personal projects, I can’t recommend it enough.
What an unfolding, and I feel like ever since my brain has been firing in all sorts of new directions. It’s still happening and I love it — being in a mode of constant learning and integrating.
Your turn: What curriculums did 2023 have in store for you? What new deep dives do you feel are coming up next? Leave a comment 👇🏼
In this time of deep learning and listening, it can all be a little overwhelming. Integrating the lessons and takeaways of a book or a course takes time, which is why I’ve loved discovering new systems for more active learning. Notion has been the MVP here, and over the past year I’ve been tinkering with how I set up my Notion spaces and databases to keep what I’m learning top of mind and easily accessible. These are the sorts of things I’ll go back to again and again, as I’m ready to take what I’m studying to the next level.
Here’s a quick tour of my Notion set-up for all things learning — from formal coursework and one-off workshops, to book notes and more DIY curriculums.
Note: My walkthrough does assume some general familiarity with Notion! If you’re new to the app, check out
and for more detailed Notion deep-dives, onboarding, and tips.I’m forever tinkering with it and improving upon my Notion spaces.2 Would love to hear any other tips that have personally helped you systematize your learning to the next level!
If this approach to curriculum-building is intriguing to you, I created a quick template that you can add to your own Notion space!
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