For this post I want to focus on an app that works with Evernote that I am finding myself using on a daily basis and is probably one of my favorite apps on my iPhone because I actually use it every single day. It has not lost its luster after a few days.The name of the app is vJournal for Evernote. There is a free version and a $.99 version. I have the dollar version, but try out the free one first to see how you like it.
It is a very simple app. It looks like a yellow notepad where you can type in journal entries. You can add checklists and pictures if you need to. That is pretty much all. However, this is like carrying around a little notepad like I used to do all the time.
The app creates a notebook for you in your Evernote called My Journal. When you send off your journal notes it will send it off to this folder.When you open up your folder you will see all of your notes as is typical in Evernote. The title is a timestamp of the when the journal entry was submitted.
What I like to do is at least once a week go through the notes and sort them. I take the bits and pieces and place them accordingly. Here are a few examples.
1. Book notes - transfer to Book Notes notebook - I use this app when I read. This is where I type in my ideas while reading. I used to hand write all my ideas, but now I use this app. It eliminates carrying around a notepad and now my notes are already typed. Before I would take my handwritten notes and type them all up after reading. This eliminates that step. I can capture my thoughts any time and any place. If there is a page from a book that has a great graphic or list of material I will take a picture and add it to the the notes to always have.
2. Random thought - If I don't record ideas right away I lose them. My poor brain just keeps working all the time so if I don't write things down then I am out of luck. Take for example yesterday flying. I had all these crazy ideas. I kept jotting them down knowing that later when I go back to revisit the ones that stand out are the ones I will most likely blog about. This process helps me sift through all my ideas and process what is worth sharing and investigating further and which ones are not. If an idea sticks after a few days, then I know I am on to something.
3. Blog/podcast ideas - I use the app much like #2, but when in pursuit of an idea I will make sure to think on it quite a bit and then type more structured thoughts into the app.
4. Reminders/checklist - slowly getting to this idea, but just created my first one that captured my goals for 2014. I know a bit ahead, but I have big plans for next year as I keep working hard this year.
Even last night as I was discussing some ideas with people at this Lego conference I would jot down notes so I would not forget some awesome ideas that I heard.
As I look into this app, this will be a great tool for the classroom. I want my students to have an Evernote account this year and begin the portfolio process. This app will be good for them as well to jot down key ideas and things to do. For me, I will use it capture ideas from class, meetings with teachers, and things to pursue more. I really look forward to having this app keep me more organized compared to a pocket full of scribble notes like I always have.
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