In recent months, I have noticed a personal trend towards simplification. I've streamlined many of my workflows, experimented with new tools, and discarded some old ones. I've also explored various integrations. While the advent of AI-driven note-taking and Personal Knowledge Management (PKM) tools, which promised self-organization among other things, was exciting, I found simplicity in organizing my notes in a way that made sense to me. As we continue to develop Scrintal (the company I am working at), we aim to ensure that everyone can easily start taking notes, building a knowledge base, and managing projects without needing to read through extensive documentation or watch countless of tutorials. Should you possess a dedicated system, it would be beneficial to utilize it. However, the absence of such a system should not serve as an impediment to initiating your endeavors.

Nowadays, there are loads of note-taking, PKM, and productivity tools that force systems on you. As these apps get packed and bloated with features, simplicity gets lost. Back in the day, taking notes was as easy as grabbing a pen and paper. You could jot down anything you wanted, whether it was a to-do list, an important meeting point, or just a random thought that popped into your head. It was simple, effective, and didn't require a computer science degree to figure out. But then technology came along and disrupted everything. Suddenly, there were all these fancy note-taking apps that promised to revolutionize our lives. And sure, they did bring some cool features to the table. You could now organize your notes in different categories, add tags, and even sync everything across devices. It was like having a personal assistant in your pocket.

But here's the thing: these apps got so caught up in trying to be the best, they forgot about the one thing that truly mattered - simplicity. They became bloated with unnecessary features, confusing menus, and an absurd number of customization options. Suddenly, taking a simple note turned into a complicated task that required a user manual. The same thing happened with PKM apps. They started off as a promising way to manage our personal knowledge, allowing us to store articles, links, and ideas in one place. It was like having an external brain to rely on. However, the introduction of additional features like smart filters, complex search algorithms, and machine learning made managing our knowledge a complex task. Suddenly, managing our knowledge became a PhD-level task.

And don't even get me started on productivity apps. They used to be all about helping us stay organized and get things done. But now they bombard us with notifications, reminders, and all sorts of time-tracking features. It is like they are constantly breathing down our necks, making us feel guilty for not being productive every second of the day.

Recently, I have noticed a resurgence of simplicity. Users are realizing that they do not need complex apps to be productive. They are seeking intuitive tools that are easy to use and do not have a steep learning curve. Ultimately, simplicity is not about dumbing things down or removing features. It is about understanding what makes a tool genuinely useful and optimizing it for a seamless user experience.