Get More Done with Less Effort: The Power of Cognitive Bandwidth and Personal Knowledge Management

Like many people, I struggled for years on how to get more done with less effort, not let things fall through the cracks and to create space not just for work I was pursuing but also for the life I wanted to live joyfully.

There always seemed to be another book to read.

Another app to try.

Another system that would make this all work.

But what I discovered, after trying so many different tools, apps, notebooks and systems was that there was no single silver bullet, but as Alex Hormozi says, there are "1000 golden BBs."

Here's what worked for me and hopefully, you will find a BB or two that will work for you.

How to get more work done with less effort—that's the promise of systems like Niklas Luhmann's Zettelkasten (German for "slipbox) and modern tools like Obsidian.

After reading David Allen's Getting Things Done, it all made so much sense:

Our brains were not meant to be used as calendars or filing cabinets.

They were meant to be used as creative, sense-making, problem-solving tools.

But you can't access that creative part of the brain when you're stressed, overwhelmed, or spinning too many plates.

That's why discovering Obsidian about 5 years ago was a game-changer for me, making me more productive with less effort and making work playful again.

After reading David Allen's book, I tried repeatedly to recreate his system, learning from others how to duplicate it with Moleskine notebooks and, back then, Evernote software, before they were acquired and ruined.

But at least for me, they were lacking—either too much friction for easy "brain-dumping" or poor applicability for sense-making and idea-connection.

That changed with Obsidian.

With its easy digital capture (granted, I pay $50/year so that it syncs with my computer, phone, and tablets, but it's so worth it), and as I've learned how to use its folders, tagging, and note-linking, it's become easy for me to organize things in a way that makes retrieval simple when I need it.

I know I won't lose anything because the notes are safely stored in markdown format on my own personal devices—not in the cloud or on some business's servers. I also regularly download everything to a thumbdrive to keep my "IP" safe.

And the one thing I love about the app compared to others I've checked out is its graph view that I can filter so that I can see what's going on in my head and see connections that I may not have realized but that become apparent because of my tagging and linking.

So if you want to get more done with less mental effort, I strongly recommend that you use some kind of PKM (Personal Knowledge Management) system.

It doesn't have to be Obsidian.

I know a bunch of people who still use Evernote, those who swear by Notion or even Roam Research, and Dan Koe is developing his content-creators-specific PKM called Eden—at this time still in early development beta but looking good.

The Problem: Your Brain Is Overloaded

Cognitive Bandwidth

Your brain has limited cognitive bandwidth:

• Working memory can hold about 4-7 items at once
• Every open loop, unfinished task, or thing you're trying to remember takes up space
• The more you try to hold in your head, the less capacity you have for creative thinking
• Decision fatigue sets in when you're constantly trying to remember and manage everything

The result:

• You feel overwhelmed
• You forget important things
• You can't focus deeply
• Creative problem-solving becomes impossible
• You're constantly stressed about what you might be forgetting

This is the modern knowledge worker's reality:

Drowning in information, tasks, and commitments with no system to manage them.

The Brain as Filing Cabinet Problem

We use our brains for the wrong things:

• Trying to remember every task
• Trying to recall every idea
• Trying to track every commitment
• Trying to store every piece of information
• Trying to manage every deadline

But brains are terrible at these tasks:

• We forget things constantly
• We remember at the wrong times (3am anxiety anyone?)
• We can't reliably recall information when we need it
• We waste energy trying not to forget
• We're constantly anxious about what we might be missing

As David Allen discovered: Your brain is for having ideas, not holding them.

The Stress Response

When your brain is overloaded:

• The amygdala (stress center) activates
• Cortisol floods your system
• The prefrontal cortex (creative thinking center) shuts down
• You enter survival mode
• Creative problem-solving becomes impossible

You can't access your creative capacity when you're overwhelmed.

This is the trap most people are stuck in: working harder and harder while becoming less and less effective.

The Solution: External Systems for Internal Peace

David Allen's Getting Things Done (GTD)

The core insight:

• Get everything out of your head
• Capture it in a trusted external system
• Process and organize it systematically
• Review regularly
• Execute with clarity

Why this works:

• Frees up cognitive bandwidth
• Reduces anxiety (everything is captured)
• Allows focus on the task at hand
• Enables creative thinking
• Increases productivity without increasing effort

The problem I encountered:

• The system made perfect sense
• But the tools available (Moleskine notebooks, early Evernote) had too much friction
• Capturing was clunky
• Organizing was difficult
• Retrieving information was frustrating
• The system broke down

I needed something better.

Niklas Luhmann's Zettelkasten

Who was Luhmann?

• German sociologist
• Published 70 books and 400+ articles
• Incredibly prolific despite teaching full-time
• His secret: the Zettelkasten (slip-box) system

How it worked:

• Every idea went on a note card
• Each card had a unique identifier
• Cards linked to related cards
• The system grew organically
• Connections emerged that he hadn't planned

The result:

• A "conversation partner" that helped him think
• Unexpected connections led to new insights
• Writing became easier because ideas were already connected
• Productivity increased exponentially

But Luhmann used physical cards—6,000+ of them.

I needed the power of Zettelkasten with the ease of digital.

The Modern Solution: Personal Knowledge Management (PKM)

What PKM systems do:

• Capture information easily (low friction)
• Organize it intelligently
• Connect related ideas
• Surface insights
• Make retrieval effortless

The best PKM systems combine:

• GTD's capture and processing
• Zettelkasten's linking and sense-making
• Digital convenience
• Personal ownership of data

This is where tools like Obsidian, Notion, Roam Research, and others come in.

Why Obsidian Changed Everything for Me

The Discovery

About 5 years ago, I discovered Obsidian, and it was the game-changer I'd been searching for.

What made it different:

• Markdown files stored locally (I own my data)
• Incredibly fast capture (minimal friction)
• Powerful linking between notes
• Tagging for organization
• Graph view to see connections
• Syncs across devices ($50/year—totally worth it)
• Extensible with plugins
• No vendor lock-in (just plain text files)

For the first time, I had a system that worked the way my brain works.

Easy Capture: The Brain Dump

The problem with most systems:

• Too much friction to capture a thought
• By the time you open the app, navigate to the right place, and format the note, you've forgotten what you wanted to capture
• High friction = incomplete capture = system breaks down

What Obsidian does:

• Quick capture: hit a hotkey, type, done
• No need to categorize immediately
• Just get it out of your head
• Process later

Why this matters:

• Zero friction means you actually use it
• Everything gets captured
• Your brain knows the system is trustworthy
• Anxiety decreases
• Cognitive bandwidth frees up

This alone was worth the switch.

Organization: Folders, Tags, and Links

How I organize in Obsidian:

Folders:

• Broad categories (Projects, Areas, Resources, Archive)
• Based on the PARA method (Projects, Areas, Resources, Archives)
• Keeps things from getting chaotic
• Easy to navigate

Tags:

• Cross-cutting themes
• #leadership, #martial-arts, #writing, #business
• Multiple tags per note
• Allows for flexible retrieval

Links:

• The real magic
• Connect related ideas
• Build "idea networks"
• Surface unexpected connections

Example:

• Note on "Confidence vs. Arrogance" links to "Leadership," "Martial Arts," "Self-Knowledge"
• Note on "Keystone Habits" links to "Martial Arts," "Identity," "Behavior Change"
• When I look at either note, I see the connections
• When I'm writing about leadership, all related notes are accessible

This is how Zettelkasten works in digital form.

The Graph View: Seeing Your Thinking

This is my favorite feature:

• Visual representation of all your notes and their connections
• Can filter by tags or specific notes
• See clusters of related ideas
• Discover connections you didn't consciously make

What this reveals:

• Patterns in your thinking
• Topics you think about often (densely connected nodes)
• Gaps in your knowledge (isolated notes)
• Surprising connections (unexpected links)

Example from my graph:

• Martial arts is connected to leadership, discipline, identity, stress management, and physical health
• When I filter for #leadership, I see all leadership-related notes and their connections
• This helps me write because I can see the whole landscape of a topic

It's like having a map of my brain.

Data Ownership and Security

Why this matters to me:

Your notes are your intellectual property:

• Ideas for articles, books, courses
• Business strategies
• Personal insights
• Years of accumulated knowledge

With Obsidian:

• Files are stored locally on my devices
• Plain text markdown (not proprietary format)
• I control the data, not some company
• If Obsidian disappeared tomorrow, I'd still have all my notes
• I regularly back up to a thumbdrive

Contrast with cloud-based systems:

• Your data is on someone else's servers
• If they change terms, raise prices, or shut down, you're vulnerable
• Proprietary formats can lock you in
• Less control over your intellectual property

For me, data ownership is non-negotiable.

Making Work Playful Again

Before Obsidian:

• Writing felt like pulling teeth
• Finding information was frustrating
• Connecting ideas required massive mental effort
• Work felt like work

After Obsidian:

• Writing is like assembling Legos (the ideas are already there)
• Finding information is instant
• Connections emerge naturally
• Work feels like play

Why?

• Less cognitive load
• More creative freedom
• System does the remembering, I do the thinking
• Ideas flow instead of forcing them

This is the difference between working hard and working smart.

How PKM Systems Increase Productivity

Reduced Cognitive Load

Without a PKM system:

• Your brain holds everything
• Constant low-level anxiety
• Energy spent remembering
• Limited capacity for deep work

With a PKM system:

• External system holds everything
• Anxiety drops
• Energy freed for creative work
• Unlimited capacity for deep work

The math:

• If 50% of your cognitive bandwidth is spent remembering and managing, you have 50% left for creating
• If a PKM system takes that load, you have 100% for creating
• That's a 2x productivity increase with no additional effort

Faster Idea Retrieval

Without a PKM system:

• "I know I had a note about that somewhere..."
• Searching through notebooks, random files, emails
• 10-20 minutes to find (or not find) what you need
• Frustration and wasted time

With a PKM system:

• Search for keyword or tag
• Instant results
• 10-20 seconds to find what you need

Time saved compounds:

• 20 minutes saved multiple times per day
• Hundreds of hours saved per year
• More time for actual work

Emergent Connections

Without a PKM system:

• Ideas stay isolated
• Connections require active effort to remember
• Insights are rare and effortful

With a PKM system (especially with linking):

• Ideas connect automatically
• Graph view surfaces unexpected relationships
• Insights emerge naturally
• Creativity increases

This is the Zettelkasten magic:

• Your notes become a "thinking partner"
• The system reveals patterns you didn't consciously see
• Writing becomes easier because ideas are already connected

Example:

• I'm writing about leadership
• My system shows me I've linked leadership to martial arts, questions, confidence, and cognitive bandwidth
• I see the outline of an article or book already forming
• Instead of starting from scratch, I'm assembling existing insights

Better Decision-Making

Without a PKM system:

• Making the same mistakes repeatedly
• Forgetting lessons learned
• No accumulated wisdom

With a PKM system:

• Capture lessons learned
• Review past decisions and outcomes
• Build institutional knowledge (for yourself)
• Make better decisions based on experience

Example:

• Note on "What worked in this project"
• Note on "What didn't work and why"
• When starting a new project, review these notes
• Avoid past mistakes, replicate past successes

Compounding Knowledge

Without a PKM system:

• Knowledge is lost over time
• Reading a book = temporary boost, then forgotten
• No cumulative effect

With a PKM system:

• Capture insights from every book, article, conversation
• Connect new ideas to existing knowledge
• Knowledge compounds over time
• Every input makes the system smarter

This is how expertise is built:

• Not by remembering everything
• But by having a system that remembers for you
• And surfaces connections when you need them

Other PKM Tools Worth Considering

Evernote

What it is:

• One of the early digital note-taking apps
• Been around since 2008
• Robust feature set

Pros:

• Mature product
• Good web clipper
• OCR for images and PDFs
• Cross-platform

Cons:

• Notes stored in proprietary format
• Data in the cloud (on Evernote's servers)
• Pricing changes and feature limitations
• Doesn't have native linking like Obsidian

Who it's for:

• People who've been using it for years and don't want to switch
• Those who prioritize web clipping and image OCR
• People who don't care about data ownership

Notion

What it is:

• All-in-one workspace
• Combines notes, databases, tasks, wikis
• Beautiful interface

Pros:

• Powerful databases
• Great for project management
• Collaborative features
• Templates and customization

Cons:

• Can be overwhelming (feature bloat)
• Data in the cloud
• Proprietary format
• Can be slow with large databases
• Requires internet for full functionality

Who it's for:

• Teams needing collaboration
• People who want databases + notes in one place
• Those who value aesthetics and templates

Roam Research

What it is:

• Pioneered bidirectional linking
• Network thinking approach
• Daily notes focus

Pros:

• Excellent for networked thought
• Daily notes workflow
• Good for research and exploration
• Active community

Cons:

• Expensive ($15/month or $165/year)
• Data in the cloud
• Steeper learning curve
• Less stable than competitors

Who it's for:

• Researchers and academics
• People who think in networks
• Those who love daily notes workflow

Dan Koe's Eden

What it is:

• Content creator-specific PKM
• Currently in early development beta
• Built by a content creator for content creators

Pros:

• Designed specifically for content workflows
• Understands creator needs
• Growing community

Cons:

• Still in beta
• Feature set not fully mature yet
• Unclear long-term pricing

Who it's for:

• Content creators
• Writers, YouTubers, course creators
• People invested in Dan Koe's ecosystem

My Recommendation

Pick the tool that:

• Has low friction for capture (you'll actually use it)
• Fits your workflow (not someone else's)
• You can trust with your data
• Allows for connections between ideas
• You're willing to learn and stick with

The best PKM system is the one you'll actually use consistently.

How to Get Started with PKM

Week 1: Capture Everything

Don't worry about organization yet.

Just capture:

• Every task
• Every idea
• Every commitment
• Every piece of information you want to remember

Use your chosen tool to brain dump everything.

What you'll notice:

• Immediate reduction in anxiety
• Your brain relaxes because it knows the system is holding everything
• You sleep better

Week 2: Process and Organize

Now organize what you captured:

• Create broad categories (Projects, Areas, Resources, Archives)
• Start tagging themes
• Begin linking related notes
• Review daily

What you'll notice:

• Finding things becomes easier
• Patterns start emerging
• The system becomes trustworthy

Week 3: Connect Ideas

Start building your network:

• When creating a note, ask: "What is this related to?"
• Link to related notes
• Add tags for themes
• Explore connections in graph view (if available)

What you'll notice:

• Ideas start connecting naturally
• Writing becomes easier
• Insights emerge

Week 4: Review and Refine

Make it a habit:

• Daily: capture everything, process inbox
• Weekly: review all projects and commitments
• Monthly: refine organization, prune what's not working

What you'll notice:

• The system becomes second nature
• Productivity increases
• Cognitive load decreases
• Work feels lighter

Long-Term: Compounding Returns

After months and years:

• Thousands of notes
• Dense network of connections
• Accumulated wisdom
• Instant access to everything you've ever learned

This is when the magic happens:

• Writing a book? Your notes are the outline
• Starting a project? Your past lessons are accessible
• Solving a problem? Your system surfaces relevant insights

The ROI compounds forever.

Conclusion: Free Your Mind

Your brain was not meant to be a filing cabinet.

It was meant to be a creative, sense-making, problem-solving tool.

But you can't access that creative power when you're stressed, overwhelmed, or spinning too many plates.

The solution: A Personal Knowledge Management system that:

• Captures everything effortlessly
• Organizes intelligently
• Connects ideas automatically
• Surfaces insights when you need them
• Frees your cognitive bandwidth for creative work

For me, that system is Obsidian.

For you, it might be Evernote, Notion, Roam, Eden, or something else.

The tool doesn't matter as much as the principle:

Get it out of your head and into a system you trust.

Then watch your productivity increase, your stress decrease, and your work become playful again.

David Allen was right: Your mind is for having ideas, not holding them.

Niklas Luhmann proved it: A good system makes you exponentially more productive and creative.

And modern PKM tools make it easier than ever.

So if you want to get more done with less effort and better results, stop trying to remember everything and start building a system that remembers for you.

Your future self will thank you.

And your brain will finally be free to do what it does best: create, connect, and solve.