Organization is key with notes, and the more organized you are the better the chances you'll actually remember that information. The basic idea of notes is to keep them short, but have enough triggers in the keywords to jumpstart your memory when you look at them again:

• Stick to keywords and very short sentences.

• Write out your notes in your own words (not verbatim from a teacher or colleague). One exception to this is when you hear a good turn of phrase that helps you remember the the note, or if you're writing out a direct quote.

• Adjust the note-taking style to fit both your needs and the speakers.

Really, you only want to write down what matters. Notes are tricky, because you want to keep things simple, and get down only the amount of information needed to help you recall it later. If you're not already using one, a text expander can also make the process of typing out notes a lot quicker by letting you instantly type our forms, bibliography info, and more.