1.5 KiB
id, title, tags, date-created, daily
| id | title | tags | date-created | daily | |
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| 2026-04-15T15:59:02-0400 | 2026-04-15 15:59:02 |
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2026-04-15T15:59:02-04:00 | 2026-04-15 |
2026-04-15 15:59:02
Probably the most obviously helpful convention of note-taking/personal-knowledge-management that I use in this-notebook is how I journal my mistakes.
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The mistake, the objectionable actions taken that lead to the problem.
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The problem, the undesirable state resulting from the mistake This includes the immediate outcome and, if applicable, the cost of correction.
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The rationale, the reason for the mistake.
The intent is that by recording this conflict in as much detail as practical I can determine what actions I can take to prevent the most pain from future mistakes.
Rationale is the most important part of the entry. It's not helpful to say "I just wasn't thinking". If that's truly what seems to be the cause, consider your state at the time: Were you mentally exhausted? If so, was it due to workload or issues at home?
"I was being stupid," and "I wasn't thinking," are not informative rationales. "I will try harder," and "I will pay more attention" are not actionable plans.
"Mistake" may be a misnomer, because acceptability is not objective. For example: two conest senior estimators may disagree on the acceptability of a certain heuristics. It may still be useful to record criticism from the more stringent senior as a mistake, even if their position is less popular.